Limestone trout settle into fall pattern on Spring and Penns

What's biting

What's next

Expect little change over the next two to three days unless rain arrives, since the low-flow readings point to stable, clear water. The warmer 60°F reading at gauge 01547500 suggests the best fishing there will come in the afternoon, while the 53°F water at gauge 01548030 should fish well through midday.

With a New Moon, nights are dark and fish often feed hardest at dawn and dusk. Plan around low light.

For nymphing, Trout Unlimited's tip on weight is worth following: add split shot until the flies reach the strike zone. Gink and Gasoline makes a similar point on tandem nymph rigs. Gink and Gasoline also notes that scanning for visible trout before wading doubles your chances, which pays off in clear low water.

On the fly side, Caddis Fly (OR) calls the Perdigon a hot fall pattern, and the same source flags tiny terrestrial ants as still worth carrying. Those are West Coast reports, so treat them as a pattern idea rather than a local hatch report.

Context

Mid-October is the shoulder of the fall season on Pennsylvania limestone streams. Cooler nights have trimmed the summer warm-water stress, and flows are typically at their seasonal lows before autumn rain lifts them. Brown Trout and Brook Trout begin moving toward spawning behavior in the fall, so anglers should give redds and spawning fish room. Check state regulations and any special-regulation sections before keeping fish.