Brief Visit to Lancaster PA

[CMA719]

With all that has been happening with COVID-19, we had to cancel our vacation plans for ME and NH. We planned a short trip to Lancaster PA in the beginning of August for some warmwater fly fishing, and had to reschedule that one because of the remnants of Isaias! Finally, the last week of August, we got out there for some fishing.

Before the trip report, a little backstory (will become pertinent down the thread). My sons and I have done some freshwater spin fishing together since my oldest boy was about 5 (they are now 9 and 12), but just last year we all started fly fishing together. We joined Trout Unlimited, and purchased some starter kits to get us tying our own flies, which we've had some success with. Here are some photos of my younger boys' flies after tying for a few weeks:



Older boys' flies after tying for a few months:



Once we joined TU, one of the highlights of last year was a talk done by a gentleman by the name of Ken Reinard, who goes by The Colonial Angler. He gives talks on fly fishing during the American Colonial period, and his talks are great for several reasons. Besides comparing and contrasting fly fishing today vs. then, he is really good at leading people to understand fishing and conservation through the lens of yesteryear.

He is also very good at tying flies by hand (no vice) on the spot, while giving his speeches. This completely fascinated my younger son, and we purchased a copy of Ken's book and my younger boy began tying flies by hand (no vice). He was already a knot whiz so it seemed to come easy for him. He even did an impromptu demonstration of tying by hand at the March Madness fly tying event for TU (and hammed it up quite a bit in the process)

My boys with Ken Reinard:



Some of the flies my son tied by hand. All are tied without a vice besides the one on the far left.



So back to Lancaster. We left on the evening on the 23rd. What else happened on the 23rd? Lots of rain! All of the little streams we planned to fish got blown out and we had to try from the banks. It really killed our first two days. My older son said to me "if I get one smallmouth it'll be worth it!". Right after that he caught this lunker:



Messing around in the flooded water, mostly getting skunked. All in all we got 1 smallie, 1 rock bass, and a few redbreast and bluegill sunnies.



...cont'd

[CMA719]

...but the trip wasn't over. I had arranged for a little surprise for the boys. Ken Reinard and I had been talking and he offered to have us come out to a local pond and use some of the Colonial Era gear. They also got to fly fish a bit at the pond:



...and the boys got to fly fish with Ken. My sons learned a lot from him and he really influenced my younger boy with his fly tying at the talk he gave. He's a great angler and a great conservationist. If you ever get the chance to attend one of his talks, I'd highly recommend it!



So since fly fishing was set back by the rain, we decided to end the trip with a visit to the Susquehanna for some catfishing.



7 lb channel cat



6 lb channel cat



juvenile flathead (weight not taken):



All in all a good trip! I've been taking them to a local stream since we returned to make up for lost fly fishing time. So far so good, some bluegill, redbreast, rock bass, crappie and largemouth on the fly rods. I didn't have any experience with fly fishing before this, so we're learning together and having a blast.

Thanks for looking and tight lines.

P.S. My apologies-several of the photos came out sideways. They were upright in the original source. I could not figure out a way to rotate the photo through the site. Any advice on how to fix it?

[Gerry Zagorski]

Sounds like a great trip for you and the family and that’s what it all about!

[thmyorke1]

Wonderful! Cool to get on that fly fishing especially with Ken, also that susq is a beautiful river, such a huge river, and way to go on the nice cats!

Ive re-attached those two sideways photos, i think I fixed em lol

[FASTEDDIE29]

That’s an awesome trip man! Quality time with the boys. They have some skills and the future looks bright for them! The Susquehanna is a phenom River. The Smallmouth fishing is nuts in the fall as well as the Cat fishing. Well done!

[Hookmanski]

Awesome trip! Wow, tying by hand I get frustrated tying lures on to line sometimes, can't imagine the skill that takes! Glad you and your sons were still able to get on some fish despite the setbacks!