Mother’s Day Caddis Hatch on Casselman River

Where: Grantsville, Md

When: April 30 – May 1, 2022

Participants: Randy Dwyer, Ron Kerrick, Bob O’Donnell, Lou Reichel, Jay Sheppard

Overall great trip. Saturday weather was great. Cool in morning and warm in afternoon. Got up to about 70 degrees. Partly sunny, but I would say more sun than clouds. Water temperature was cold, did not have a thermometer. Water level just right, maybe a little on the low side.

We started off fishing in the morning from I68, under the stone Casselman Bridge, onwards downriver to the hole behind Penn Alps. There were caddis hatching in cycles. Not the storm of caddis as I’ve seen before. When a cloud hid the sun, the caddis would stop flying. Bob O got a few on caddis nymphs. Ron K casted into a hole, that all of us had cast into previously, and caught a large rainbow. I heard the clicking on his reel scream and saw a trout jump. We were all using a natural type nymph or dry fly with no luck. Ron decided to use a squirmy worm. Ron figured the trout have been seeing too many natural flies and would take an unusual trash fly. Shortly after that, Ron caught a nice golden trout from that same hole on a large cream/peach colored mop fly.

At lunch we had our PPTU grilled hot dogs and baked beans.

In the afternoon we headed downstream, north, to the Pa line, and fished at the Farmers Lane. You may park on the side of the Farmers Lane, up to a sign requesting no parking. Their horse and buggy do make lots of noise going over the bridge. Please wave back when they wave to you. It was noted there were very few, to no, caddis flies in this section. Theory is this creek section is more bedrock, less loose rocks that the caddis larva/pupa hatch from. However, I have slipped on many rocks in this section. We all caught trout near the Farmers bridge. We all caught or hooked onto some nice rainbows and golden trout near the Farmers bridge. Randy got his first double trout on a two fly set-up, I think sucker spawn and a green cress bug. Those juke flies were the trick; Mop flies, San Juan worms, sucker spawn, green weenie, etc., in green or chartreuse color.

I did see a trout rise in some riffles, cast to it with a dry black body elk hair caddis, and caught the rainbow. My first trout this year on a dry fly. Bob also caught a trout on a #16/18 green body elk hair caddis.

The farmer now has barbed wire fence following the tree line on edge of creek going further downstream, so now can’t walk back upstream on the field, one has to walk back upstream against the current.

By 6:00 pm, I lost all my junk flies on a rock or this one tree branch, which had many other trout flies on it, and we went to dinner at the Casselman Inn. Also met Jay there later.

Next day, Sunday it rained. No fishing. Most of us went home before noon. Jay did try the Savage River. No trout in the 7x pool. But during a heavy downpour he noted lots of fish rising in the PhD pool to some unseen fly. Also reports of lots of caddis hatching in the Luke area on the Potomac.

Next outing, May 14-15, for Sulphur Hatch on Spring Creek in Bellefonte/State College, PA.

Thanks
Lou Reichel
Outings Coordinator