Mt. Pocono vacation - Mid August - Decent spots?

[Functional]

My wifes family vacation is in mid august and this year they elected to go to the Poconos for a week. Were staying on Arrowhead Lake.

 

Id prefer to just bring my wifes 10.5' sit on top kayak and fish some smaller ponds/bodies of water but if there is a compelling reason to bring my Tacker I can be swayed.

 

Any good recommendations of where to fish? Been a long time since I've been in PA. LMB or SMB are my target, I've tried the susquahana for musky for about 2 summers and all I got were bruised ribs and tired arms. 

[casts_by_fly]

You're not far from Beltzville (I haven't fished it).  Also not far from the Delware river at the water gap.  There are free national park shuttles that can drop you up higher and float down to the gap to get out.

 

https://www.gomcta.com/trip.php

[Junger]

I fished Lake Wallenpaupack a couple years ago when staying up there. It's a good lake for smallies, we got them on shallow cranks around docks, topwater along grass next to deep edges, and paddletails in hydrilla flats. It's a popular lake for boats on weekends, so go early during the week and you should do well.

[Functional]

excellent. Going to give Beltzville a try and a few of the small places around our area. Seeing some comments of good size fish coming out of Beltzville consistently. If none seem to produce decent I might take the trip out to Wallenpaupack and the Delware Gap. 

 

I think were going on a saturday/sunday and ending on a saturday so my plans are to fish on the week days and hope everything is calm on the lakes. 

[Fallser]

Depends how far you want to drive.  Beltzville and the Delaware are least an hour's drive from where you'll be staying.  You should be able to pick up largemouth in Arrowhead, no gas powered boats are allowed on the lake.

Just saw your reply.  Can't help you with Beltzville, I've never fished it.  The Delaware can be iffy because of the water levels.  If there's been a lot of rain the river might be unfishable or since they're cutting the discharges from the reservoirs in NY the levels might be low.   I've fished Wallenpaupack a couple of times.  One of the guys I fish with has a place up there.  His son fishes it more than he does.  We tend to fish the smaller lakes around it.

  The closest lake to you, other than Arrowhead, is Brady's Lake.  It's, I believe, a canoe/kayak only lake.  Pocono Lake isn't far from you either.  Tobyhanna and Gouldsboro lakes are an easy drive away.  Both, I believe, are electric motor only lakes.  You can check on-line about boating/HP limitations.  All of them have largemouth.  Any of the lakes will be less crowded on weekdays.  Be prepared for chain pickerel, particularly on the smaller lakes.

[Susky River Rat]

On 5/8/2023 at 9:00 AM, Functional said:

I've tried the susquahana for musky for about 2 summers and all I got were bruised ribs and tired arms. 

Welcome to the club lol

 

 

I can’t help you much out that way. I’ve never fished there. I don’t know how far that is from hopatacong in NJ it’s about the only place I’ve been east past nockamixon to fish. 

[Functional]

Pickerel I'm fully expecting. I lived in "middle" NY until I was almost 30 so I get it comes with the territory haha.

 

What kind of forage is primary around those parts? NY could range from shad to bluegill to perch depending on the lake/region. After moving south I'm mostly geared for threadfin shad so would like to grab a few things to match a bit better. 

[Fallser]

8 hours ago, Functional said:

What kind of forage is primary around those parts? NY could range from shad to bluegill to perch depending on the lake/region. After moving south I'm mostly geared for threadfin shad so would like to grab a few things to match a bit better. 

My buddies use a lot of Rapala or other minnow style baits.   They also use in-line spinners, sometime spinner baits.   Shallow divers or top-water on the smaller lakes.   Minnows, small sunfish or perch would be the primary forage in the smaller lakes.  Beltzville and Wallenpaupack have shad in them.  Also crayfish imitations in the larger lakes.  The Delaware, pretty much the same.  By August, there should be YOY American shad and gizzard shad in the river.

  Mostly I fish top water flies in the smaller lakes.  I've tied up a few frog imitating flies which should work well in the smaller lakes.  I'm surprised my buddies don't fish plastic frogs.  They might be something to consider

[casts_by_fly]

19 hours ago, Functional said:

Pickerel I'm fully expecting. I lived in "middle" NY until I was almost 30 so I get it comes with the territory haha.

 

What kind of forage is primary around those parts? NY could range from shad to bluegill to perch depending on the lake/region. After moving south I'm mostly geared for threadfin shad so would like to grab a few things to match a bit better. 

 

Based on how much weed growth I'm seeing over this side of the delware in NJ already, I'd bring a punching rod and a frog rod with you.  The pond weed is already 8-10' tall in places and the milfoil is rapidly catching up.  I have now switched to my weedless wedge prop for the rest of the year.

[Functional]

yea if its thick I'm thinking swim jigs, hollow body frogs, weightless and lightly weighted flukes and then a punching rod for Trigs and depending on how thick a jig. 

 

Might pick up one or 2 more things in bluegill to have on hand. Jigs and everything else I should be set on. 

[casts_by_fly]

that's about it.  Depending on the place I'll throw a buzzbait along the semi slop so long as I'm not grabbing too much grass.  I got two last night on flukes off the back of the grass beds.  Last year was a good swim jig year for me.

[JediAmoeba]

Where at in the Poconos? I am in Albrightsville, not far from the pocono raceway

[Functional]

6 hours ago, JediAmoeba said:

Where at in the Poconos? I am in Albrightsville, not far from the pocono raceway

Shows arrowhead lake about 20 minutes north of the raceway and albrightsville. The 3 places make a triangle ?

[JediAmoeba]

5 hours ago, Functional said:

Shows arrowhead lake about 20 minutes north of the raceway and albrightsville. The 3 places make a triangle ?

Awesome- Arrowhead lake is fine for fishing. One thing about most of the Pocono lakes is they are mostly shallow with tannic water and horribly managed. The best majority are private. The public Fisheries are highly pressured so can be tough - Beltzville has some great fish but don't expect to slam them there as it's a highland reservoir that gets pounded.

 

In the Poconos you catch a lot of 1-2 lb LM and a lot of 14-18" Pickerel- just the nature of the area and 0 management for bass. Bradys lake is decent for catching some numbers but I haven't seen any real monsters come out of there. On a kayak you have many options but they are all similar fishing experiences IMO.

 

 

[Susky River Rat]

On 6/12/2023 at 10:54 AM, steve_in_pa said:

Until they added the structure it was the dead sea.

Sounds like most lakes in PA east of Harrisburg. Shoreline then a steep main break then flat as a pancake.

[Functional]

Thanks @steve_in_pa that's a nice chart to get a good start. 

 

Starting to look forward to northern fishing again... might not be as big as down here on average but I feel like northerns are more aggressive. 

[Susky River Rat]

i was only ever at nock a handful of times. 
 

I know they have them I used to use them a lot. I really do not fish lakes much anymore unless it’s all I can get out on.

[Functional]

So the more I look into the Susky the more tempted I am to give it a go. I'll likely only be using my wifes 10.5' SOT kayak. Thinking I'd put in in the Pittson area and float on down to a ramp in Lynnwood.

 

No idea how long that would take, is the current not safe enough for a kayak that size, if its even reasonable or not and any insight on that stretch for smallies I'd be up for hearing. 

[casts_by_fly]

you'll have to watch the weather.  A week ago I'd say it was more than safe, but you're going to get out and drag it over rocks for stretches.  Today I'm going to tell you it isn't safe after the rain we just had.  

[Will Ketchum]

2 hours ago, Functional said:

So the more I look into the Susky the more tempted I am to give it a go. I'll likely only be using my wifes 10.5' SOT kayak. Thinking I'd put in in the Pittson area and float on down to a ramp in Lynnwood.

 

No idea how long that would take, is the current not safe enough for a kayak that size, if its even reasonable or not and any insight on that stretch for smallies I'd be up for hearing. 

That stretch from Pittston to Lynnwood is in the center of the Wyoming Valley and is highly populated. I know because I live there. It is plagued by municipal outflows, and although there are treatment plants, nothing's perfect. The Lackawanna River also empties just above Pittston and is another drainage of a highly populated area,

 

I would recommend upriver which is rural. There's are launches in Tunkhannock, Falls and one a few miles upriver from Pittston called Apple Tree access. You would have to figure out if the float distances are right for you.

 

There is a kayak rental business in Falls also that takes groups down to Apple Tree access.

 

River height in Wilkes Barre:  https://water.weather.gov/ahps2/hydrograph.php?wfo=bgm&gage=wbrp1 

The lowest it usually gets is about 1.5 feet. The river is a mix of rifts and pools with no dangerous rapids.

 

Some useful links :

https://pfbc.pa.gov/watertrails/susq_northbranch/nbranch_sec2.pdf

https://pfbc.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=ef4db86320d24c0d8e05e4569b30c06c

[Susky River Rat]

I have gone from the ramp in wilksbarre to just above scovell island and as far down as the  hanover township ramp. I think the lowest I did that was around the 3.5 mark on the wilksbarre gauge. I did this in my boat. There is some great water in that stretch. I do not think it would be to bad at that level in a kayak. Just take a good anchor so you can sit on areas.