Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2022 - 40

Loyalhanna Creek
Fishing Opportunities
by Bob Frye
photos by the author
Finally, I got the fish to my feet. It was a musky, about
24-inches long. Not the stuff of " husky musky " club
standards but an unexpected battler all the same.
It spit my lure at the rocks at my feet. Then, in the
For the better part of 2 hours, I was casting into
Loyalhanna Creek, which runs about 50 miles through
Westmoreland County, from the Laurel Ridge to
Saltsburg, where it joins the Conemaugh River to form
the Kiskiminetas River. The action was consistently
good. Not a fish-on-every-cast good but exciting fishing
by alternating between live baits, like nightcrawlers and
butterworms, and artificial tackle, like inline spinners
and crawfish crankbaits. I caught Brown Trout, Rainbow
Trout, quite a few Rock Bass, several Smallmouth Bass,
and a crappie.
Then, nothing. As I debated whether to move upstream,
I caught a glimpse of movement under the water.
You know how it is with every shark movie you
have ever seen? One moment, all is quiet. Then,
without warning, there is a shadowy hint of something
intimidating. I peered into the water and saw it again.
There are big carp in the stream, but this was too
streamlined for a carp. When it cruised by a third time, I
switched baits to a floating minnow crankbait and cast out.
One cast, two casts, then, wham! I hooked the fish and
held on as it peeled the 4-pound-test line from my reel.
I reeled in, it peeled line back out, then I reeled in again.
In between, it jumped clear of the water four times.
40
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater * March/April 2022
split second it took to realize it was free, there was a
hasty retreat.
But, what fun it provided in the meantime-leaping,
shaking, splashing, and diving. It fought hard-a fierce
thing, wild and alive.
I never expected to catch a musky when I set out that
day. That is the allure of Loyalhanna Creek.
If this waterway were a musician, it would sing, strum
the guitar, blow on its harmonica, crash cymbals between
its knees, and maybe even shake some maracas. It would
be a one-man band, offering a little bit-and sometimes a
lot-of everything.
There are big trout here. Anglers who like catching
trophy trout on flies or artificial lures can hit the 1.67-mile
section of the Loyalhanna Creek that is in the Delayed
Harvest Artificial Lures Only program, which sets limits on
harvest and equipment. This stretch is also in the Keystone
Select Stocked Trout Waters program. It goes from the
bridge at State Route 711 downstream to the bridge at State
Route 2045, known locally as Two Mile Run Road.
Keystone Select Stocked Trout Waters get many more
2- to 3-year-old trout, averaging between 14 and 20 inches,
per mile then typical waters in the stocking program.
But, this stretch is popular and easily accessible. It is
no wonder the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission
fishandboat.com
http://www.fishandboat.com
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2022

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