Photos & videos sponsored by StoryTrax.com & The Green Roof Inn

Images/Video From February 19, 2008

ELK CREEK CONDITIONS  AFTERNOON [CLICK FOR LARGE VIEW]

ImagesVideo From February 18, 2008

The streams are "blown-out" and un-fishable!

Images & Video From February 17, 2008 - 5 p.m.

I took some late afternoon pictures to show the change from those below taken at 8 a.m. this morning.  The short video also shows the increased flow at Walnut Creek.

 WALNUT CREEK 5 P.M. [CLICK FOR LARGE VIEW]

TROUT RUN AND ELK CREEK ACCESS AREA

Walnut Creek Stop Sign Hole

Images & Video From February 17, 2008

Sunday morning started with light rain, so we took a ride before church services to check the stream conditions.

Anglers are fishing at Walnut Creek, Trout Run, and Elk Creek.  The amount of open water is expanding as the stream water level rises, and there is standing water on top of the ice in the streams.  Some people are tempting fate by ice fishing at Walnut Creek and Trout Run. A word to the wise should be sufficient.  I saw fish that were caught ;ying on the ice at Walnut Creek, but I did not see any other fish caught while we were watching.

I did film a short video at Trout Run.  The increased flow of the stream is drawing in more Steelhead, and things are getting crowded in the stream as the fish come up stream from Lake Erie.

I have posted the pictures and video from this morning.  Then later this afternoon I will check again and see if the ice has been cleared from the streams.   If the stream ice is cleared, tomorrow could be a decent day for stream fishing.  Unfortunately, the rain could spoil the fishing if we get too much.  The forecast is calling for the rain to stop by evening and the temperature to drop below freezing. 

Check out the images and video now, and then check back later tonight to see the “before and after”.

WALNUT CREEK

TROUT RUN & ELK CREEK ACCESS AREA

TROUT RUN

Images & Video From February 16, 2008

The outside view from my room at The Green Roof Inn looked frigid, so I was in no hurry to leave the spacious, kitchenette room and rush to Walnut Creek for another day of ice fishing for Steelhead.  My wife and I decided to make another pot of coffee and delay the start of the today’s fishing.

The Westside of Erie County has many lodging options, but we prefer The Green Roof Inn.  I like the fact that it is close to Elk Creek, my favorite fishing location.  My wife likes the large, clean rooms.  We both like the kitchenette for preparing meals.       

By the time I arrived at Walnut Creek at 9 a.m., an “early bird” angler fishing since daybreak told me that he had caught 11 Steelhead.  He caught the 12^th one as we were talking and landed 17 Steelhead before calling it a day at noon.  He had a good day.

I managed to pull seven Steelhead through the ice and also lost that many fish when they pulled free as I tried to pull them through the 8” hole.  All the fish I caught were returned to Lake Erie.  All other anglers fishing at Walnut Creek caught fish.  It was a great day for all.

Today was sunny and the air temperature was 25 degrees and the south breeze was light.  By Erie standards, today was perfect for ice fishing.  The pictures below prove my point.

I took a short video of Bruce catching two of his 17 fish that he caught today.  Unfortunately, my camera was set to “compact” rather than “standard” video.  The result was low resolution and poor sound so keep that in mind when you watch the video.

Images & Video From February 15, 2008

We caught fish through the ice at the Walnut Creek Marina yesterday, so we opted for a sure thing and started there today.   The action was steady for most of the morning.   Minnows and jigs produced well.  We managed also to catch some nice Steelhead by using white and green Power Bait.  That product always catches fish.   Marty caught a 29” male that weighted close to 10 pounds.  >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

                                                 

   

Images & Video From February 14, 2008

The day started with temperatures in the low teens and the fishing was slooooow!  Lower Elk Creek - four anglers - zero fish!  The lack of fish was not our biggest problem, Marty took a dunk in the icy water.  In fact, he slipped once and got his arm wet, but the second slip was the deal breaker.  He broke through the edge ice and for a few seconds was completly submerged in a deep pool of water.  He managed to pull himself back up on the ice and made a beeline for the car. 

In the early afternoon, we moved to the Walnut Creek Marina and spent the remainder of the day catching Steelhead  and a few small Brown Trout through the ice on jigs. 

Images & Video From February 13, 2008

Instead of fishing today, I decided to visit some stream locations, take a few minutes of video, and post the video URL so you can see the stream conditions. 

If you are familiar with winter Steelhead fishing, you will be able to look at the video and judge for yourself as to the “fish-ability” of the streams. I actually saw three anglers fishing. I saw two on Elk Creek near Girard, and one at the Stop Sign Hole on Walnut Creek. 

The real question at this point is tomorrow’s air temperature, and how it will affect the snow pack and the stream ice. Edge ice covered streams are difficult to fish, but the deeper water can be productive when you do find the fish. Since I already made the 4-hour trip, I am going fishing tomorrow morning.   I will post the results tomorrow evening.

If you are thinking about making a trip to Erie, watch the video. Once you see the streams, you can check the future weather reports and make your decision about making a trip to Erie in the next several days.

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