Visiting the Wissahickon with Nightcrawlers

I had the guts to go fishing at the Wissahickon yesterday morning, even knowing that the weather was not really good and reliable. I packed my equipment, and stuffed my bag with nightcrawlers, willing to get some bass or trout at the Wiss.

I arrived there at 9 a.m.. First, I hit the big and high dam right next to the Wissahickon Transfer Center. Equipped my rod with a size 10 hook, and a float (no weight). The sunfish were hitting the nightcrawlers like nuts! In less than 10 minutes, I got more than 20 sunfish. However, nothing extremely big.

After noticing that I wouldn't get anything big at the first dam yesterday, I walked up to the second dam. There, the sunfish proved to be a big bigger, but not as big as I've fished them there before. Also, I ended the day with two Smallmouth Bass, and a few Rock Bass (nothing really big, really).

Despite the lack of big fish, I have decided to post the pictures because the fish there are just BEAUTIFUL, gorgeous! Despite their size, they are extremely pretty.

Unfortunately, it started to rain not long after I arrived. I have to pack my equipment quickly, and run to the bus station. It ended up being a nice day, though - at least I got some fish.

The First dam

The Second dam


Above the second dam - notice how the water there is forming a whirlpool. Fish tend to swim in them.


One of the biggest sunfish of the day, which disappointed me. However, it's extremely beautiful!

One of the two Smallmouth Bass - also very small.

A picture of the Rock Bass, one of my favorite fish in Philadelphia. I LOVE the color of its eyes.

Another Rock Bass, a little bit chubbier, but still small.

Unfortunately, I wasn't able to take more pictures of the other fish due to the rain. I fished only for 35 minutes, and I'm sure I could have gotten something bigger if I stayed longer. However, the rain was just pouring, and I got soaked wet - even though I was under a tree.

Best luck for all of us!

Long Days and Pleasant Nights

Sincerely,

Leo S.

Fishing for eels and flatheads at the muddy Schuylkill (after rain)

After all the rain these past few days, the Schuylkill River became a muddy and "dirty" place to fish. It happens almost every year: it rains for a certain period of time in/around Philadelphia(sometimes a couple days), and the river becomes a mess! All the water from the rain runs down the Schuylkill River - a combination of logs, branches, different kinds of vegetation, and all sorts of litter. The current becomes violent, and the water stays muddy for a couple days. Sometimes it even floods the banks, bringing a lot of trouble to the Schuylkill Banks' staff. However, a messy and muddy river doesn't necessarily mean "bad". Sometimes, these are the best conditions for fishing if the angler knows the right spots and baits to use!

It's well known already that fish are opportunists. They take full advantage when opportunities show up; specially when it comes to food. It doesn't really matter if the fish is not hungry: it will eat if good food is available. Rain usually messes up the current of the river (it becomes stronger), and brings with the current a lot of food available for fish. However, not every fish can take advantage of this opportunity, hence some species cannot stay long in muddy water (e.g. White Perch - they will not bite that often when the river is muddy). On the other hand, catfish and eels take full advantage of this opportunity to feed!

One of the best techniques for fishing the river when the current is extremely fast is finding places where water runs "slower". By logic alone, fish tend to get CLOSER to the banks when the river's current is extremely high because the current of the river is faster in the middle than in its borders. I could take 10-15 minutes to explain "capacity" and "competence" of a river, but I've decided to just post a link below with an article on it:

http://www.enotes.com/earth-science/stream-capacity-competence
Knowing angling techniques and etc is very appropriate for fishing itself, but learning some environmental science (specially when it comes to the aquatic cycle, rivers, waterfalls, hydraulic force, etc) is definitely plus knowledge that may increase your success in catching fish. As a matter of fact, all the fish I caught today at the Schuylkill River was withing 2 feet from where I was standing. Note that this does NOT mean that fish are not present in the river's outwards! Today a guy fishing there caught two channel catfish on clams, casting far outside.

Another technique is simply placing a set with a very heavy sinker (2-4oz) and heavy line set (15lb+). Cast next to structures (e.g. bridge supporting pillars - it cuts the current, making the current after the pillar slower. Fish can rest in these kind of places, and even feed), or anywhere else with obstacles that may cut the current and form slow pools of water.

Last year, I caught a bunch of channel catfish after a heavy period of rains - the biggest one exceeding 8lb. The video below was made by someone that was nearby, while I was landing a catfish. Despite the music, I just wanted to show you guys that fish do BITE in this kind of circumstances, hence a lot of people asked me if fish would bite in days like these. The link for the video is below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l_nlNNznRMg

I started my session today at 9 a.m., loaded with nightcrawlers. I was really expecting to fish eel for bait, as I use it a lot to catch catfish at the Schuylkill and the Delaware river. People usually hate to catch eels for two main reasons: (1) they are extremely slimy, and if you touch them bare-handed, be aware that their slime will NOT go off easily, even if you wash yourself. (2) They are the "knot masters". They can make knots on your line by twisting their bodies that even the most skilled fisherman can't make. It's a pain to untie the knots, and usually the person just cuts that portion of the line. Well...I do have to say that I hate to fish for them as well. However, they do serve as a very good bait for catfish - second best bait I would use for it (I'm not telling what the first is =D). I ended the session with 17 eels, all caught on nightcrawlers - bottom and still fishing with a 1oz weight and a size 10 hook, no further than 2 feet from where I stood.

It was around 11:30 a.m. that something very surprising happened. I was fishing for eels with one rod, and catfish on the other rod. The rod with catfish had a number 4 hook with a flat 2oz weight (also no further than 2 feet from the wall), loaded with a full eel on the hook. It turned out that something heavy hit on it. At the beginning, I suspected a channel catfish right away. The fish was giving me a hard time, as it tangled itself in some debris at the bottom of the river. I decided to leave my rod there, and see if the fish could set itself free of the snag. It was right after I put my rod down that the tip of the rod bent in an unbelievable way! My drag started to burn, releasing a huge amount of line. It certainly reminded me of a carp by the way it was fighting it, but I knew it was quite rare to catch one under those circumstances (and impossible to catch one on an EEL). It fought crazily for ten minutes, until I finally could see the tail for a heartbeat - it was a catfish! After a long fight, the beast finally emerged, showing itself beautifully - a 12.5lb (measured) flathead catfish caught on a whole eel. It was definitely the highlight of the day.

I ended the day with 2 white perch, 1 sunny, 17 eels, and a flathead. I was more than satisfied, and went to South Street to eat some Indian food. Everything went back to the river (including the flathead), excluding the eel - which I'm keeping for future bait.

I hope there are more surprises tomorrow! Stay tuned for future updates...

Best luck for all of us!

Long days and pleasant nights,

Leo S.

Fishing for White Perch at the Schuylkill Banks (Walnut Street Bridge)/ Nightcrawler month!

Now that it's August (late summer), I finally decided to purchase some Canadian nightcrawlers and adventure myself into different places with it. It's impressive how nightcrawlers ALWAYS have worked for me, despite of location or season of the year. Sunfish, trout, bass, perch, catfish, crappies, etc. - they chow the nightcrawler down! Sometimes, even the Carp, Striped Bass, and Snakeheads get hit on the nightcrawlers (rarely, but they do).

I'm not certain if it's in their genes, but nightcrawlers are absolutely a must if you are trying new ground. Therefore, in other words, if you are visiting a new place: nightcrawlers are a must! This month of August, almost all the posts here will show fish caught on NIGHTCRAWLERS. I'll focus on its importance, as well as its reliability. Well...I'll call this the "worm month" (Original name, huh?).

Since I have purchased nightcrawlers, I decided to go down to the Schuylkill Banks (At the Walnut street bridge) to fish for some catfish and perch. At this season of the year - late summer throughout all fall - the fishing at the banks is very productive. The small catfish are very often caught on nightcrawlers, while the bigger ones are usually caught there on shrimp, chicken liver, or fish fillets (some people fillet a white perch for bait, which is very good). However, I've seen many people land big catfish on nightcrawlers as well. At the beginning of the fall till the beginning of the winter, "Spots" are present in the river. They don't get big in sizes, but they are worth a picture - after all, who would think there are actually "spots" at the Schuylkill River, right?

My focus for yesterday was not the catfish, though, but the white perch. I usually go fishing at the Walnut Bridge portion of the Banks every late summer/early fall (for the reasons I've mentioned before). That's is the time when small fish start to get CLOSER to the banks (you can actually drop your line - not all the way to the bottom - and get certain species of fish), and big catfish start to patrol the bottoms of the closer banks. Last year, I caught 20-25 catfish by dropping my line straight down to the bottom, no casting at all. The biggest one was around 7lb, caught on a piece of shrimp. Also, by leaving the line 5-10 feet down, one may be able to get sunfish (bluegills, pumpkin seed, etc), small bass (largemouth, and very rarely a smallmouth), yellow perch, and white perch. If you are willing to fish the smaller ones, make sure you use a number 6 or higher hook.

Yesterday my focus was directly on the white perch. I usually cast out with an 1 oz weight (it's enough for me, even though some people use 2-3oz there), past the first pillar of the bridge; and 15lb or less of line (yesterday I was using 14lb fluorocarbon). The perch don't really get big at the Schuykill River (the biggest one, rarely, pass the size of a palm of a hand), but the action is constant and steady. I did my homework, and I came to observe and learn that schools of white perch pass through that location every ten minutes or so. Therefore, if there are breaks, they don't exceed the ten minutes limit (usually). Of course there will be days that the fishing is really bad (due to a number of factors - weather and temperature being some of them), and on those days no perch will bite at all. Don't give up: just come another day.

I started early this Saturday, around 11 a.m., and stayed until 3 p.m. in the afternoon. I landed a couple small catfish (the biggest one nearly exceeding a pound), and ended the day with 22 White perch. My goal with the white perch at this portion of the river is to test them for heavy metals, and usually I need a sample of 50-60 of them (same location, different sizes) to do so. Therefore, I'm harvesting them right now despite its size. I'll definitely post the results of my testing once I collect the rest of the sample (Tuesday I'll probably be down by the banks again). Basically, I'm testing them with an Osumax heavy metal testing set, and I'm testing it for: Manganese (Mn), Nickel (Ni), Copper (Cu), Mercury (Hg), Cadmium (Cd), Cobalt (Co), Lead (Pb), and Zinc (Zn). Like I said before, I'll definitely post the results here, as well as the process, once it's done.

Stay tuned for the next updates! This is going to be an awesome month, as fishing will start picking up in late summer and early fall.

Best of luck for all of us!

Long Days and Pleasant Nights,

Leo S.

Surrounded by Carp and Catfish at Kelly Drive

Hello, Readers! I wanted to post this last post of the month with the title of "Carp Frenzy at Kelly Drive", but a friend cracked me up with the title "Surrounded by Carp"... Therefore, there we go!

I decided to make the last day of the month a trip to Kelly Drive, looking for some Carp.

I arrived there at 6 a.m., and started promptly at 6:11a.m. The weather was good, and the spawning activity was low compared to the days before. I REALLY REALLY hoped for a good day, and the God of fish (lol) didn't disappoint me!

The first fish came 7:13a.m.: a small 3.5lb catfish. Of course I was a bit disappointed it wasn't a carp, but a fish is still a fish. As far as something bites, and there's action, then it's good!

The second fish came at 7:32a.m. - a 16.2lb Common Carp! It's size is above average for that section of the non tidal Schuylkill, and this one pulled an INCREDIBLE fight! Maybe it was because of the lower temperature, or maybe because he ate good...I don't know. However, it took me 25 minutes to get it outside of the water. I took a couple pictures, and put it back.

The third fish (and second carp) came shortly after, 8:01 a.m. It was slightly thinner than the first one (this one was 15.5lb), but it put a good fight as well as the first one. I was thrilled by then, and satisfied already. These two fish alone were my day already.

The fourth fish was a small 11lb Common Carp (9:08a.m.), followed by a 5lb catfish (9:41a.m.). After that, I landed two more carps (10lb - 10:39a.m., and 8lb - 12:00p.m.) and one more catfish (12:58p.m.).

After all these, I was so satisfied that I packed my stuff and went home! Absolutely no better way of ending a month! The pictures are below: please, don't criticize the lack of quality because I had no one to take pictures for me. I wanted to make them quick, and just show the fish; so I could put them back in the water as soon as possible. I guess that carp the other day scared me quite a bunch when it took it quite a while to revive and swim away. Anyways...Enjoy!

16.2lb. Biggest one of the day.

15.5lb.

11lb.

10lb

8lb

3.5lb

5lb

3lb

Best of luck for ALL OF US!

And hopefully next month will be better than this month...

Sincerely,

Leo S.

Another Carping Session at Kelly Drive

I did another carping session at Kelly Drive this past Tuesday, July 26th. I went out at 10:30 a.m., arriving by my spot at noon (12:30 p.m.). I fished till the end of the afternoon, around 5:30p.m.

To tell the truth, I didn't expect a any fish that day. Maybe the regular catfish, but not carp. The spawning activity was very high, and fish were certainly jumping non stop at that portion of the river. They were jumping so high that a person could see them for a good 1-2 seconds outside of the water! It was extremely beautiful, and artistic in some ways...

The first fish came at 2:45 p.m. It was around 7-9lb, by naked eye (I didn't have a chance to measure it), and it got away right in front of me, before I could net it. It unhooked itself, and swam away. I didn't lose any equipment on this one, and hopefully his mouth will heal soon!

The second one came at 3:38 p.m.. This one gave an extremely good fight! It took me a good 20 minutes to land this one. He ran wild until the middle of the river, and resisted the long fight for quite a while. It was definitely a good and pleasurable experience. It weighted 16.8lb (which is above the average size for that area), and it took quite a while for it to revive and swim away. My bet is that the fish was very tired from the fight, and tired from the heat too. After a little while, it started to swim slowly....slowly disappearing into the Schuylkill. It wasn't a "floater", thanks God. Hehe.

The third and last one of the day came at 4:40 p.m. It weighted 11.2lb, and it was beautiful and healthy.

It was really a good day; I couldn't have asked for more.

I'll definitely post something interesting once I find time to do so! For now, best of luck for all of us!

The biggest one of the day

The third and last one - ready to shake my hand

Long days and pleasant nights, people!

Leo S.

Fish, Temperature, and Oxygen at the Wissahickon Park

I went fishing at the Wissahickon on July 19th - this past Tuesday. My primary goal was the good old Carp, considering that there are good amounts of Carp in the creek. I went out really early, and I arrived at the park 6:40 a.m. Pulled my rods out, chummed the water at the moment, and landed a 9lb Common Carp almost after three hours of waiting. The reason for the wait was simple: I noticed that the levels of water at the creek lowered, and the vegetation increased. The water was not even flowing past the 2 little dams at the entrance of the Park next to the Wissahickon Transfer Center. Of course the water wasn't stagnant; However, it's common that fish may seek other locations to stay at when water levels drop (specially at summer time). It's common to see fish moving from location to location due to Oxygen levels in the water - fish will prefer locations that I richer in oxygen. Temperature is also another factor - this Tuesday was extremelly hot: 90-95F. When the water temperature rises dramatically, it certainly influences the eating behaviors of certain species of fish.

Therefore, I found fundamental to do an oxygen and temperature review, specially using the Wissahickon as an example.

First, we should divide the different species of fish in the Wissahickon according to their temperature preferences. I'll divide the temperature in three ranges:

1. Coldwater (50-60)

Rainbow Trout; Brown Trout; Palominos.

2. Coolwater (60-70)

There are no species in the Wissahickon (that I know) that are classified in Coolwater.

3. Warmwater (70-80)

Largemouth Bass; Bluegill; Rock Bass; Redbreast Sunfish; Channel Catfish; Common Carp and variations.

Before continuing, we should notice three things: (1) Trouts are only present in the creek because they are stocked by the Fish and Boat Commission. Therefore, if they did not stock trout, the creek would basically have only Warmwater fish. (2) Carps prefer temperatures that range from 73F to 86F. This means that Carp tend to bite less if the water temperature is ABOVE 86F. (3) Even though those are the species preferenced water temperature, it doesn't mean they will be found only in that temperature range. They move mostly according to food: fish will be present where food is more plentful.

The reason trout can actually survive high temperatures at the Wissahickon creek on summer time is the fact that Coldwater fish are limited to waters that provide refuge for cold, oxygenated water on summer time. Therefore, it does make sense that all trout anglers usually fish for trout deeper when it's hot, and usually right under dams - where water is rich in oxygen due to circulation; food comes downstream with flow; and water is cooler due to convection and surface area of circulating water.

Warmwater fish, on the other hand, are species that walk around their respective waters the whole summer - when temperatures are high.

The Carp that I landed (the 9lb one) was caught at a very shallow portion of the creek, which kinds of prove the fact that they will be where food is more plentiful, despite temperature conditions. After all, fish are clearly opportunists, and they take advantage of any kind of bait when they have a chance to eat it.

Also, the same day that I went fishing for Carp, I switched spots to try for different kinds of fish. I went to a spot further inside the creek, after crossing a red bridge. There, the water had a much stronger current, and it was perfect for casting lures. I ended there with one Rock Bass, 4 Largemouth Bass (not big, though), and one small Brown Trout caught on a trout magnet at the bottom. Therefore, this is clear evidence to support the theory that temperature is an extremelly important factor to determine the activeness of a certain species of fish.

Ample dissolved oxygen MUST be present in the water fish live at. To balance with air, water absorbs oxygen in contact of air. Therefore, a similar experience happens when water is moving (e.g. Dam): just as the temperature drops because of convection and area surface of the flowing water, oxygen is absorbed in bigger quantities due to the surface and flow of water. Also, oxygen can be produced by aquatic plants. Notice that it's not EVERY plant in the water that produces oxygen, though. Just because the plant is in the water, it doesn't make it aquatic. Basically, certain species tolerate lower oxygen levels than other fish(e.g. A Bullhead tolerates much less oxygen than a Trout), and this factor determines the location of fish in certain waters.

In reality, there are three factors that determines the amount and size of fish: the water temperature, the dissolved oxygen level, and fertility.

Maybe one day I'll do a post on fertility. For now, that's all.

I hope this was informative for your guys.

Best luck for all of us.

Long Days and Pleasant Nights.

Leo S.

Fishing, Carping, and "Unknowing"

One of the top pleasures in fishing is the fact that you never know exactly WHAT will hit your hook. It could be "that fish" that you get at that spot all the time; maybe a new species that you never fished before; or even a piece of trash may get snagged - which would be a pain to drag and remove depending on its size and shape. The "unknown" is an very important factor in this sport that promotes excitement, boosts curiosity, and causes amazement.

I remember a couple years ago, when I first started fishing for catfish at the tidal Schuylkill River. I used to get the channel cats all the time. Soon, the white perch came - and I was astonished by that fish. After all, I've never seen it before, not to mention that fish are all beautiful to my eyes. Then, I continued for the regular channel cats, and often getting a couple white perch. Then, one day, after a couple rainy days, I got my first American eel in the river. To know that there were American eels in the river was a pain for me, since I consider them to be the true "knot masters". Once they get in your line, it's almost certain that they will tangle it better than you can possibly do it. I continued my journey fishing the Schuylkill and my curiosity for new species increased dramatically, not to mention my excitement. After that came the Yellow Perch, the Spot Croaker on fall (YES, there are spots on the Tidal Schuylkill, normally on fall), Largemouth Bass, and all different kinds of sunfish - even the rarely seen Pumpkin Seed (rarely seen at the Schuylkill), and the endangered Warmouth.

Due to my curiosity and my excitement, I had expanded my horizons by fishing different spots at the Schuylkill river. I moved from the Walnut bridge to a spot near Spring Garden, and there I caught my first Common Carp. I moved from that spot to the Fairmount Dam, and I caught my first walleye (small), Striped Bass (small), and Black Crappie. I couldn't believe there were Crappies in the river, as many other fishermen told me. However, after I fished there, I understood a critical concept in the World of fishing: just because the fish is not at your spot, doesn't mean the fish is not present in the river.

I have yet to fish many species in the Schuylkill River. I'm not presently targeting muskies or bowfins, but I would love to hook a Quillback Carpsucker! That's actually my next goal for this summer time.

A good example of "unknowing" happened to me yesterday. As a went fishing for Carp at Kelly Drive, many unusual things happened - things that I really didn't expect to happen!

First, something was biting on my rod. When the Carp hits, the rod bends in a very powerful way, as the fish runs the fastest it can. When the Catfish hits, the rod bends consecutively, as if following a music beat. When small white perch hits, the rod "shivers" and the line usually looses. In conclusion, every species of fish has their own way of hitting the bait, and the anglers that focus on those certain species know right away which one is hitting it (or at least they can have a hypothesis of it - a smart guess). Yesterday, something was hitting my rod - something I thought it was VERY SMALL. The tip of the rod was shaking just a little bit, and sometimes the rod would bend slightly as the line was being pushed. I really couldn't guess what kind of fish was that, and the "unknowing" made me think it was a Quillback Carpsucker. I got full of excitement thinking I was about to fish a new species of fish, and it ended up that the "fish" that was hitting my rod was a TURTLE. As a matter of fact, I fished two turtles yesterday at Kelly Drive on sweet corn. Isn't it funny how the unknown can turn excitement into frustration in a blink of a second? It was awful taking the hook out of its mouth, but it was even more awful knowing that if I snapped the line he would live with that hook in its mouth for a long time. Therefore, I did some effort to take it off CAREFULLY, harming as least as possible, and the turtle swam back safety.

Second, I was deceived by a fish! It was around eleven in the morning that I got a hit on my big rod. The drag was set really loose, so the line started to burn. The fish ran a good amount, but not enough for me to think it was a Carp. And just when I doubted my judgement, the fish slipped inside a hole (probably under a rock), and I got stuck. I really wanted to see what fish was there, and so I got frustrated thinking that I would lose that one. Instead of forcing or snapping the line, I just decided to wait. I could still feel the fish in the line, therefore I just left my rod on the holder. After 15 minutes of waiting, I finally saw my line moving from left to the center of the river! As I pulled the fish up, it surfaced on the water. For my surprised, it was a 5lb Catfish regurgitating AT LEAST half pound of my chummed corn! It's funny how I really didn't expect a catfish, specially because they don't usually bite at daytime at Kelly Drive, at this season of the year.

5lb Catfish

Weightning the fish

I stayed there from six in the morning until one-thirty in the afternoon. I ended the day with two turtles, one catfish, and two carp - 8lb and 12lb. It was a very productive day, and I was entirely satisfied at the end of the fishing session. Even if only ONE FISH showed up, I would still be satisfied. I always think positively, and one is better than nothing. Actually, anything is better than nothing.

12lb Carp

8lb Carp

Best of luck for all of us!

Stay tuned for future updates...

Long Days and Pleasant Nights.

Leo S.