Fish Report from Rich Davenport – 3/22/2009

Hi All,

A quick fish report for you all for Sunday, March 22, 2009.  Anglers Dane Stocker, Tim Kernahan (TK) and I hit the Lake Erie streams this past Sunday seeking to stretch the lines on the "long rods", a nice change of perspective from the hard water perch bonanza we enjoyed at Chautauqua Lake this past winter.

Our first stop brought us to Cattaraugus Creek, Scoby Dam, to see how the runs are progressing and perhaps get the chance at tangling with a few nice rainbows.  To my surprise, TK was on time in the AM, getting on the road before 6:00AM full of anticipation.  Since Dane lives in Collins, he would be meeting us at the creek.

Well, we got to Scoby, deciding on accessing on the Catt County side of things, only to find we weren't the only ones with this same notion.  No less than 30 anglers were already there, leaving not much room to cast, so we headed downstream to work some of the runs well below the dam.  We gave it a good college try, but with water being well stained, and the troops showing restlessness, we pulled our lines and decided to head to 18-Mile South Branch for a little more seclusion.

The weather was COLD.  And we also had some snow.  By 9:30 we were in the ravine, with great water conditions and only a couple other anglers.The fish were hunkered downj, but they were there.  No fish were visible in the fast runs, rather opting to hold in the deep pools, especially under the falls.  After unsuccessful fly presentations and egg sac drifts, we switched to the tried and true night crawler, bouncing it along the rocks at the bottom, hoping to scratch a couple from their haunts.

Well, after an hour of hard casting and slow, bottom-bouncing, one finally cooperated, a nice 5+lb steelhead.  It hit close to shore and put up a great battle before finally giving up the ghost for a quick pic before being returned to the pool.  About ten minutes later, another fish decided it was chow time, slamming the bait as soon as it hit bottom.  What a battle!  Hard-charge direct at the shore, then a turn and an aerial acrobatic display that thrilled all of us.

Since we only had until noon to fish, we reluctantly packed up and headed back to reality, but with some nice pictures and refreshed spirits.

Attached are the pics of the two fish I managed to get.  Dane and TK got zipped, but still had a great time.  Also attached is a picture of the falls I took a week earlier.  The natural beauty and splendor of this place is tough to beat.  I left the falls pic as is.  Makes a great desktop wallpaper for the computer!!!!

Enjoy....

Rich Davenport

Vice President/ Editor

Outdoors Writer - Member NYSOWA

WeLoveOutdoors.com

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