Fly Fishing the Yough River this Fall

Fly Fishing the Yough River this Fall

Fall fly fishing is a unique experience on the Youghiogheny. One of the fun, yet frustrating parts of fishing this river are the dynamic conditions that are often unpredictable. Finding and exploiting subtle consistencies on a river where they’re rare will typically produce success.

Once Yough lake is sufficiently drained, for winter pool, the cool night temperatures will get the river back to a cool consistent temperature. The late fall early/winter period is actually one of the longest stretches of ideal water temperature. While the hatches may be thin and inconsistent, the fish will be active and feeding. Bwo’s and caddis seem to always be present in numbers on days the wind isn’t howling.

There are a good number of baitfish in the river that make up the bulk of the bigger trouts’ diet this time of year. Size 4 to 6 white buggers fished in pockets and bounced off the bank tend to be go-to rigs for a lot of locals. It is definitely one time of year you should not be afraid to streamer fish in high water. While spawning success is limited or non existent, the fish still gear up to spawn and will be trying to pack on as many calories as possible.

Fall is a great time to fish the Youghiogheny. The change in seasons brings a change in tactics and really breaks up the monotony of a summer. While most favor the white streamer approach this time of year, keep a dry fly rig on hand to take advantage of some quick, sporadic hatches. Cooler temperatures really turn up the fish activity and coupled with significantly fewer crowds, the opportunity for multiple big fish in a day exists.

 

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Interested in fishing Steelhead on the Lake Erie tributaries this fall? Check out our Steelhead Fly Fishing Clinic October 13th!