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Blue Liner Flows Review | USGS Stream Gauges
All water level data originates from the United States Geological Survey (USGS) Surface-Water Data, which monitors over 13,000 stream gauges across the U.S. and more than 350 in Pennsylvania. The USGS has been transitioning to a new online interface over the past five-plus years. The updated look and feel have left some old features behind while adding new ones. I hate it.
So, I’ve been on the hunt for a desktop and mobile app that delivers USGS backend data through a clean, easy-to-use interface. Blue Liner Flows offers a solid solution for iPhone, iPad and Mac users, with apps built for both platforms. Most importantly, favorites and preferences sync across devices. There’s a free version, but I’ll be reviewing the $6.99 annual paid version.
Key features include: favorites, state selection, map view, latest data overview, discharge in CFS, discharge in feet, average annual discharge, various time views, weather forecasts, alerts, temperatures (station-dependent), turbidity (station-dependent), and other data specific to each gauge.
I found the app very easy to set up on my Mac. Once configured, all my favorites and alerts synced automatically to my iPhone. You don’t need both devices—an iPhone alone works just fine. I especially liked navigating between the state, favorites, and map views. It’s fast and intuitive. Most views display the key information I’m looking for, including directional arrows indicating whether water levels are rising or falling.
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Penns Creek, Union County, October 10/5-7/2023
Life has been very good lately, but very busy with my daughter getting married last week and a move coming up. All good things and no problems. I made the last minute call to get away for a break and fit in a few days away for some fall fishing. The weather, water and time were perfect. Having moved a year ago I really missed my backyard fire-pit. Part of my plans for fishing included a fire, a steak, and some bourbon. The trip turned out perfect and had a bonus of some nice fall colors to add to the atmosphere.
Thursday
The weather was beautiful for an early fall morning - sunny with temperatures in the low 70’s. I shouldn’t have been surprised, but it was nice to see the leaves turning. I started up off Tunnel Road and there were a few people around but clearly not like the spring. The water was running at about 220 CFS, clear and around 62 degrees. Hatches were a mix of BWOs and caddis.
I tried a lot of different tandem rigs, but had my best luck with a caddis and zebra midge combo. I caught a few smaller bows that seemed like fingerlings that were stocked. I moved to a lower section of the special regs for the afternoon. By 6:00 pm the caddis really picked up along with BWOs, and BWO spinners.
The evening came together with a nice fire, steak and some Basil Hayden.
Friday
Maurice joined me in the morning for the morning assault. The weather turned cloudy and dropped to the low 60’s. I was very optimistic for the day. We went back to the Special Regs section but had a slow go. I picked up a nice 16” bow on a black wooly bugger - looked like a fish that was stocked a few miles below in the spring. It was a very slow morning.
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Fall Fly Fishing and Spawning Redds
Fall fly fishing in the region offers plenty of great opportunities. The cooler weather offers anglers some solitude of fly fishing while many are caught up with other fall activities. A little bit of preparation can be a rewarding opportunity for those who can make the time.
Reproduction plays an important part of the trout lifecycle during the fall months for both brook and brown trout. Brook trout, native to the US, usually begin to spawn from late September through October. Brown trout typically start spawning in October through late November. I have seen this go later too.
During the spawn, coloring on the trout will intensify, especially in the males. Females will often create gravel beds for the fertilized eggs called a Redd. It is very important to be careful of these sections on streams when you see redds and not to kick them up when walking. It's probably best even to leave trout overtop of a Redd alone and give them a chance to protect the eggs.
Often the water in the fall is low and gin clear. Spotting trout on a Redd is pretty easy to see as in the photo to the left. The trout will sit over top of a small group of rocks that they have knocked around and they often will have a little more cleaned up look as if someone kicked up the spot. Take a little time before marching into the stream to check on the conditions. Good advice for any day.
As the trout begin to change so does the entomology or insect life in the stream. Activity will be different from region to region, stream size, earlier summer water temperatures, and geology. The fall provides a more limited selection of insects and often anglers enjoy bringing a more modest selection of flies and imitations. Some of the more popular collections include Slate Drakes, BWOs, Caddis, midges, and terrestrials. Typical nymphs and streamers are very successful smart choices as well.
I like Dave Weaver's suggestions for even looking for...
Reproduction plays an important part of the trout lifecycle during the fall months for both brook and brown trout. Brook trout, native to the US, usually begin to spawn from late September through October. Brown trout typically start spawning in October through late November. I have seen this go later too.
During the spawn, coloring on the trout will intensify, especially in the males. Females will often create gravel beds for the fertilized eggs called a Redd. It is very important to be careful of these sections on streams when you see redds and not to kick them up when walking. It's probably best even to leave trout overtop of a Redd alone and give them a chance to protect the eggs.
As the trout begin to change so does the entomology or insect life in the stream. Activity will be different from region to region, stream size, earlier summer water temperatures, and geology. The fall provides a more limited selection of insects and often anglers enjoy bringing a more modest selection of flies and imitations. Some of the more popular collections include Slate Drakes, BWOs, Caddis, midges, and terrestrials. Typical nymphs and streamers are very successful smart choices as well.
I like Dave Weaver's suggestions for even looking for...
3 Tips for Fishing Montana's Salmon Fly Hatch
By Brian McGeehan at Montana Angler Fly Fishing
Montana’s rich and varied wild trout fisheries offer anglers year round fishing opportunities. While it is difficult to elevate any one time of the year as the “best” time to fish the Big Sky state’s blue ribbon rivers, there is no doubt that the most anticipated time of year coincides with the emergence of the legendary salmonfly hatch.
Salmonflies, which derive their name from their salmon orange abdomens as adults, are the largest aquatic insects found in our local rivers. They are a type of stonefly that are found in rocky and swift flowing rivers and are part of the Pteronarcys genus. Salmonflies dwarf most other aquatic insects and often exceed 2 inches in length. It is the large size of the insect that garners so much attention from fly fisherman. While smaller trout will spend their day hunting much smaller morsels of food; large trout tend to eat large meals less frequently. Most of the year anglers in search of truly large trout need to fish subsurface patterns such as streamers that imitate small fish. The salmonfly hatch is one of the rare times when even the largest fish in the river will be tempted to feed on the surface to intercept the oversized adult insects.
As juveniles salmonflies spend 3-4 years as immature nymphs in the river before hatching into adults. Although the nymphs can be a year round food source, they become much more accessible to trout just before the emergence when they migrate towards the banks.
Salmonflies begin hatching in lower elevation rivers that warm faster such as the Smith and as late as mid July on the Upper reaches of the Yellowstone River inside of Yellowstone National Park. Although the hatch can be encountered in different rivers over the course of several weeks, on any one section of river they are only on the water as...
Perkiomen Valley Trout Unlimited Summer Picnic 2023
Rick Nyles (PVTU/Sky Blue Outfitters) and Derek Eberly (Sky Blue Outfitters)
PVTU member, Rick Nyles, organized the day's activities, and the Sky Blue Outfitters Guide Team, including expert caster Derek Eberly, volunteered to teach casting techniques throughout the day. Also everyone had the pleasure of hearing from Dave Rothrock, of the Ranting Angler, who shared his knowledge on drop shot fishing techniques and led an entertaining entomology program right by the stream.
Dave Rothrock of the Ranting Angler
To raise funds for chapter projects, there were silent auctions and raffles with a great selection of prizes to choose from.
Let's talk about the food—it was simply exceptional! We were treated to a mouthwatering pig roast, accompanied by delicious salads, side dishes, and desserts. Kudos to Rick and other organizers for making sure we were well-fed and happy!
Who doesn't love a good summer pig roast?
After the scrumptious lunch, Bryan Fulop, the Chapter President, provided us with important...
Beginner’s Strategy for Locating Small, Wild Trout Streams in the Wilds of Pennsylvania
I often see a common question come up early in the learning curve for anglers looking to get into small stream, wild trout angling: How do I find good streams to fish? It can be an intimidating first hurdle to overcome, but once over it, the way is open to a very rewarding angling experience. It requires some homework, often good for a cold evening in the dead of winter with your beverage of choice. You’ll swing and miss sometimes, but the home runs you hit will be well worth the strikeouts.
Below is the method that I’ve developed and relied on, and that has led me to many good small stream days in the woods of Pennsylvania:
1. Locate via some simple Googling, the following three lists published, and regularly updated by the PFBC: 1) Natural Reproduction List. 2) Class A Wild Trout List. 3) Wilderness Trout Streams List. They contain different information, and there is some overlap between them, but it is all useful. They all indicate the county the stream is in, so you can use that to begin to narrow things down.
2. (Optional, but not necessary. Good for a beginner with this method, but the more successful you get, you’ll find you’ll rely on these less.) Purchase a couple of PA stream guide books. Dwight Landis’ is very good, and is my personal favorite, but there’s several other good options out there as well. Again, some simple Googling will head you in the right direction if you wish to purchase these. They all run about $20-$30.
3. Review the above-mentioned lists and books and locate some streams in a given area that you think interest you. Cross reference those stream’s locations with a good mapping software. Google Maps works very well for this, and of course, is free. Are the streams on publicly owned land? If not, who owns the land? What are the potential access points? Of course, it goes without saying, always...
B-52's and the attack on First Fork
"So Dave, how’s it going?" This was the booming voice of Ron "Trout Dog" Kolman. Ron is somewhat of a local legend for about 50 yards of guardrails along Route 872 on the special regs section of First Fork in Potter County. We were staying up at Greg Sipos's camp for one of our annual spring pilgrimages to God's Country. Both of them were kind enough to take me under their wings and teach me how to fly fish some years earlier.
Over the years, I learned Ron's inquiry was usually more of a competitive interest and not to be misconstrued with my wellbeing. All part of the usual banter I learned was part of fly fishing.
The casual evening was busy with sulphur duns on the water, and as the sun started to set, we tied on our traditional #16 rusty spinners for the anticipated spinner fall. By casual evening, I mean fierce competition to see who could catch more trout. The primary measure of any angler's worth versus their friends is the number of fish, of course. The first of us to make it to the Century Club was an award better than any trophy served up to a little kid playing soccer on Sunday afternoon.
After a day of trout triumphs, we fell into the Wharton Inn for a cold one or ten and a replay of our great fishing heroics. This usually involved a big trout that was on the far bank, behind a rock, in a bad drift, that eventually you schooled. You know...