Extreme Philly Fishing: Reports (Rob Z.): Pennypack Park

For previous reports from Rob Z.:
Cranes Lake - 2, NJ
First Flathead of the year
The Lakes at FDR - 2
Core Creek, Bucks County - 2, PA
Wissahickon Creek, PA
Core Creek, Bucks County - 1, PA
The Lakes at FDR - 1
Cranes Lake - 1, NJ
Scranton, PA

Also, Mike H. added a couple new videos on Youtube! Check them out:

Small Bass caught at Haddon Lake
10lb Common Carp caught on a Swimbait
Fall Bassing at the Manayunk Canal
Bass Fishing at Lake Elkhorn, MD.

Rob's report on Pennypack Creek - October 11th.

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Written by Rob Z. - edited by Leo S.

Hi all. It has been quite a while since I have caught any Trout. Luckily, that ended today, as I'm bringing you my first Fall Trout report.

It turns out that I work with a guy who had told me that he lives near the the Pennypack Creek, and that we could walk to it from his house. It sounded cool, and it was stocked today (10/11), so, I asked him if he wanted to fish the Creek. He said yes, so, we agreed we would fish it after work.

I went to the store real quick at lunch to get some bread and corn. I finished the last call, which was only 30 minutes, but it felt like forever. We stopped at my place. I ran up to grab my 4"8' inch ultralight combo from Browning - it had 4 lb test on still from the Spring season. Also, its small and good for public transportation. I grabbed some hooks, put a block of ice in my insulated bag, and then stuffed that in my backpack. I was feeling optimistic as I head out my door. It was fall-brisk out, and I thought I might have been under dressed, but I ended up being fine. It was a good warning to make sure to really bundle up during the Fall Trout season.

We set out from Philly on 95 North towards the park. We stopped at his place so he could get a rod and some gear, and we headed toward the woods. We had a limited amount of time, but I can't imagine we spent more than an hour fishing in there. We made our way down through some trails and approached the creek. At first glance, I didn't see any fish at all. I put a piece of bread on the hook and threw it out there. Some Sunnies took notice, but I couldn't see any trout, and I was particularly looking for them. After about 15 minutes and no sign of a Trout, I asked if we could try another spot. He led me for a bit, and we approached the Creek again.

We approached a spot which had some decent cover. Peeking over the edge, I thought I saw a Trout. I told my buddy. After throwing some corn out there, we noticed that there were some fish. I started casting bread at first, and he was throwing a spinner. The fish didn't seem to like my bread. I then switched to corn: that was the ticket. My first one came in under 10 minutes, and it was a nice Rainbow. Another one came out five minutes later, and it too was a healthy looking fish. My friend Fernando started getting curious as his spinner was getting good follows but no bites. At some point during the fishing, a bunch of deer were walking behind us and they caught my attention with their "making of noises and whatnot." It was pretty cool to see three deer at once, and not that far.

I then landed one more nice Rainbow on corn, and slipped the third fish into my iced cooler. For the Fall stocking, the limit is 3, so I stopped there. It's 4 in Jersey. My friend then switched to corn and landed one too. At that point, we were running out of light, so we headed out of the woods. We found the trail and used our phones for light and made it out.

He dropped me off at a regional rail, and I took it back to Philly, where I cleaned the fish, and cooked one for dinner. It was delicious, and a treat I haven't had in months. I separated the meat from the bone by hand after it cooled a bit, and had myself a nice pile of fish for dinner. Remember, you should salt your fish when cooking, but don't over-salt. This was pan seared with olive oil in an iron pan for a few minutes on each side, enough to get a crisp going. Then, finish in the oven for about 6-8 minutes on 375. That works well for about a 12 inch fish. A larger fish would need to be cooked longer.

Overall, I was glad to make my first trip to the Pennypack and to have success. I referred to one of Leo's previous Blog post for info on the buses to help learn about the area, and I will be going back. Thanks, Fernando, for taking me out there and back to the train station, and nice job on that Rainbow. I hope to catch more trout in PA and NJ in the next month all over the map, and maybe even a big one.

Pictures are below:

3 is the limit for Fall Trout stocking.

All of them looked healthy.

All the meat from one Trout.

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Congrats on your catchings, Rob & Co.!

As a matter of fact, Rob went back there with his friends two days after, and caught some nice Trouts once again. His friend Mike B. (first pic) caught a monster there - aprox. 1.85lbs. Pictures are below, guys: