Early season trout waters may open year-round
The state Fish and Boat Commission has proposed ending the Early Season Trout-stocked Waters Program and opening those waters to year-round fishing. The Early Season program is popular among anglers because it gets them on the water March 1-31, before the regional and statewide opening days of trout season.
If approved at the next commission meeting Oct. 1-2, the following waters in western Pennsylvania would be impacted — Allegheny County: North Park Lake; Beaver: Bradys Run Lake and Raccoon Lake; Butler: Harbar Acres Lake; Cambria: Duman Lake and Lake Rowena; Erie: East and West Basin Ponds, Upper Gravel Pit and Lake Pleasant; Fayette: Dunlap Creek Lake and Virgin Run Lake; Fayette and Somerset: Youghiogheny River; Mercer: Shenango River; Somerset: Laurel Hill Lake; Venango: Two Mile Run Reservoir (Justus Lake); Washington: Canonsburg Lake; Westmoreland: Northmoreland Lake, Donegal Lake, Keystone Lake, Upper and Lower Twin Lakes and Mammoth Lake.
The Early Season waters would be regulated as Approved Trout Waters Open to Year-Round Fishing.
Cross Creek cleared
Reports of an oily sheen off the launch ramp at the Washington County impoundment were not confirmed by the state Department of Environmental Protection. A tour of the lake by the Post-Gazette found no signs of oil.
Golden anniversary
Penn’s Woods West Trout Unlimited will launch its 50th year of cold-water conservation with a program by Bob Wheeler of the state Fish and Boat Commission. His talk on a year in the life of a waterways conservation officer begins shortly after 7 p.m. Monday at the Brentwood VFW on Rte. 51 in Brentwood. Details at www.pwwtu.org.
Steelhead tips
The L.L. Bean store at Ross Park Mall will hold a free steelhead workshop noon to 2 p.m. Sept. 16. Topics will include spin, fly and float-fishing techniques, selecting the right equipment and strategies for fishing Lake Erie tributaries. Details 888-552-5571.
School of fish
The Community College of Allegheny County will hold an eight-week fishing course Sept. 17 through November at Carson Middle School in McCandless. Taught by Karen Gainey, a state-certified fishing instructor and host of Venture Outdoors’ Downtown TriAnglers, the fresh-water fishing classes will include bass, trout, pike-family predators and an intro to fly fishing. $99, 412-369-3701.
The Wednesday lunchtime TriAngler outings ended recently having racked up a three-month total of 121 fish caught and released in the Allegheny River at Pittsburgh’s North Shore.
The biggest was a 33-inch northern. Volunteer John Force of the North Side was lauded as TriAngler of the Year.