State is a hotbed for bass fishing
Pennsylvania’s diverse landscape provides an interesting mix of bass fishing opportunities. We have sprawling flatland reservoirs like Pymatuning, and lengthy reservoirs such as Youghiogheny River Lake and Lake Wallenpaupack, where anglers with high-powered outboards are at home. Smaller-sized lakes like Green Lick and Stephen Foster furnish excellent sport in a more intimate setting. The major rivers that drain the state, and many of the streams that feed them, also offer excellent bass fishing, much of which sees comparatively light angling pressure.
Our annual bass forecast examines at the current bass-fishing situation across the state — the overall health of our black bass fisheries — and then describes several waterways expected to furnish good angling during the year to come.
To get a statewide perspective on the status of our bass fisheries I spoke with Bob Lorantas, the Warmwater Unit Leader for the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission.
“In lakes, everything looks copasetic,” Lorantas reported. “I think anglers can expect to experience the same kind of bass fishing as they have in the recent past. In general, we don’t see any dramatic increases in abundance, and certainly no dramatic deceases in abundance.”
Recent survey work by the state’s eight area fisheries managers -- per Lorantas -- indicates solid bass fisheries in a number of waters across the state, both larger reservoirs as well as smaller ones. Some are well-known as quality bass fisheries, though others are coming on.
“Some of our smaller reservoirs — what I call ‘close-to-home fisheries’ -- harbor good bass populations,” Lorantas noted. “Good numbers of fish, and some big ones, such as Cross Creek Lake in Washington County. Green Lick Reservoir is another one, as is Stephen Foster Lake in Bradford County.”
Lorantas said that recent assessments on larger reservoirs such as Pymatuning, Wallenpaupack and Youghiogheny River Lake showed good bass fisheries, as well as Cowanesque Reservoir in Tioga County. Neither Yough Lake or Cowanesque Reservoir have been noted for quality bass fishing in the past, particularly the latter.
The outlook is also bright for river anglers. Rivers such as those of the Ohio River watershed, the Allegheny in particular, have a solid reputation for good smallmouth bass fishing. Many stretches of the Susquehanna River, including the West Branch and North Branch, and portions of the main stem, continue to provide outstanding action. The same is true of much of the main stem of the Delaware in eastern Pennsylvania.
“In very general terms on rivers we have noticed that 2015’s production of young fish is above average,” Lorantas said. “This includes the Allegheny, most reaches of the Susquehanna, as well as the Delaware. Our area fisheries managers noticed a lot of yearling smallmouth bass during 2016. This bodes well for river fishing for the future. River fishing has remained good, as is backed up by our assessments of adult bass. Having this fairly large year class of younger fish, now becoming intermediate-sized fish, we’d expect river fishing to remain good, perhaps even experience a little bump as they grown into more desirable sizes.”
As Lorantas noted, Youghiogheny River Lake has been coming on as a bass fishery. In 2014 fisheries personnel from the Fish and Boat Commission did an extensive survey on Yough Lake, using both trap nets and nighttime electrofishing. Bass tend to avoid trap nets; night electrofishing is the means most often used to evaluate bass populations.
The May 2014 effort revealed a good bass fishery, one comprised nearly entirely by smallmouth bass. This reflects habitat, as Yough Lake is mostly rocky, better suited to brown bass. Smallmouth bass were collected at a rate of 28.24 fish per hour. 87 percent of them were longer than 12 inches; 60 percent better than 15 inches. What this means to the angler is that Yough Lake might not provide a lot of bites, but the fish you catch will likely be good ones. The biggest bass turned up in the survey was 19 inches. Incidentally, walleyes also showed up in good numbers, with 99 percent of the fish being legal sized. The biggest ‘eye was 24 inches.
Jeff Knapp is an outdoors columnist for the Butler Eagle.
