In a county of 1.2 million people, with an outdated worldwide reputation for its industrial pollution, anglers can find themselves alone on a quiet trout stream casting dry flies over a morning caddis hatch. In some neighborhoods, kids can catch trout in lakes or streams within walking distance from home.
Trout, and the larva and flies they primarily eat, are particularly sensitive to water quality and temperature, which makes trout fishing in Allegheny County all the more noteworthy. Today, on the opening of the statewide trout season, thousands of Pittsburgh-area anglers will forgo the long drive to traditional “trout country” and fish locally.
After some 200 years of development, nothing in Allegheny County is “natural” including the trout fishing. The brown, rainbow and golden rainbow trout (often mistakenly called “palomino”) are hatchery raised and stocked in an angler-funded program that relies on the sale of trout permits and a federal excise tax on fishing gear and boat fuel. Statewide, the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission annually stocks 3.2 million legal-size adult trout and provides another million for stocking by outdoors groups.
With the exception of some 1.4 million trout fingerlings planted by the state in some waters, stocked trout are not expected to stay there long. It’s a put-and-take program in which they’re stocked specifically for harvest.
Expect crowded opening-day conditions everywhere, with easy-access urban fisheries experiencing the highest angler pressure. Nevertheless, it’s not hard to find places in Allegheny County where the trout are and the anglers aren’t.
Solitary fishing is most common on stream sections managed specifically for the use of flies and artificial lures, where a culture of voluntary catch-and-release is common. Allegheny County has three Delayed Harvest Artificial Lures Only areas — a combined 4.3 miles of water on Pine, Bull and Deer creeks.
Clean, healthy water benefits everyone, and you don’t have to be an angler to help the trout streams to stay that way. The Allison Park Sportsmen group is recruiting volunteers for its annual Pine Creek Cleanup 8 a.m. to noon April 30. Call 412-487-2873 for details.
John Hayes: 412-263-1991, jhayes@post-gazette.com.
First Published: April 16, 2016, 4:00 a.m.