# Bushkill Creek, Bushkll, PA 2018 Vacation



## ChileRelleno (Jul 7, 2012)

Annnd we're off!

On our way, the first day of a little two day, 1180 mile adventure to our SiL's cabin for a well deserved vacation .
A beautiful cabin on one of the Top 10 trout streams in Pennsylvania, Bushkill Creek.
My son and I are blessed with seven days to fish this gorgeous location.

Stay tuned for for catch reports!


Ya know you're leaving Mobile when ya cross the Double Ds.


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## DLo (Oct 2, 2007)

subscribed, good luck!!


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## fla_scout (Sep 28, 2007)

Good luck! I’ll be heading up to visit my father and grandmother on the 5th of June and we are going to sneak in a cou0le days of trout fishing on the Clarion.

Still new to this kind of fishing but we’re gonna take a swing at it.


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## Jason (Oct 2, 2007)

Good luck on the fishing.... I saw a American Pickers the other day (older show) and they picked an old carnival called Bushkill...I reckon it's the same place.


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## Try'n Hard (Oct 23, 2008)

Good luck. Post up a report with pics!


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## ChileRelleno (Jul 7, 2012)

Thursday
Stopped by the Cabela's flagship store in Hamburg, PA.
Just to pick up a few odds-n-ends, lures, flies, misc tackle and stuff.
Got out for around $300. which is less than my planned expenditure, prudent shopping for the win.


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## ChileRelleno (Jul 7, 2012)

*Friday, Day One*

Nate limits out in 2.5 hours.
He left me sleeping and then I breakfast with the wife and our hostess.
He killed them with a Rapala sinking minnow, silver and black.


First of the day, a nice 13" Brown Trout.
































Me? I caught a few dinks and gave up for the afternoon.
Gonna go see the new Stars Wars, Solo.


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## fla_scout (Sep 28, 2007)

Great job Nate! That looks like a happy young man.


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## ChileRelleno (Jul 7, 2012)

*Day One*
And I finally score during the evening bite, two Rainbows and a Brown,
Today was really frustrating all day, bites and fights but no fish landed except dink trout and small Smallmouths and rock bass. Bass are all out of season so C&R.


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## ChileRelleno (Jul 7, 2012)

I cooked dinner tonight.
Blackened Chicken, Spicy Yellow Rice and a Black Bean Salad.
Nate filleted his big Brownie for dinner too.

Nate's Plate










Everyone Else's Plates


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## ChileRelleno (Jul 7, 2012)

*Day Two

*I get the first fish of the day, a Brown on a Vibrax Blue Fox spinner.










And with that I cooked breakfast for the cabin, lightly scrambled duck eggs with pepper jack cheese, topped with black bean salad w\ onion sauteed in butter, and real New York bagels spread with Honey Cranberry cream cheese.


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## ChileRelleno (Jul 7, 2012)

Just had an encounter with a Black Bear.
He came outta the woods about 50 yards upstream, swam across, got curious and stopped to watch us. Blew an air horn at it and he huffed and melted in to the woods.
Reassuring to have my pistol on me.


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## lees way2 (Oct 7, 2007)

Send us some picts of the area,the ones from from yall last trip were great.Hope ya tied the house down before ya left,it might get windy around here.


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## ChileRelleno (Jul 7, 2012)

*Day Two
*
Nate catches his new PB Rainbow at 16"
Right after this I lost a similarly sized Rainbow at the net, I blame my net man.
So we're one for one today.



















Dinner was my job again, Thai Satay Chicken with Peanut sauce and green onion garnish, Thai Cucumber salad and rice.


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## lees way2 (Oct 7, 2007)

Dang I want to come get a motel room close by so I can come by and eat.


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## Jason (Oct 2, 2007)

Nothing better then fried/grilled trout fresh outta the water....Need more pics of this brother!!! hahaha Glad ya'll are having a great time, unfortunately our July trip to the mountains is out this year!!! So no trout this year fer me!


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## ChileRelleno (Jul 7, 2012)

*Day Three*

Just a quick 30 minutes mid morning fishing, I got a nice lil'Brookie.
It was raining so we headed in to dry off and eat a late brunch.
Then it was off to the movies to see _'Solo'_, I was entertained.
A late lunch in town capped it off.

Nate doggedly going at it in the rain.










My Brook next to the implements of it's capture.










Stand by for dinner.


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## ChileRelleno (Jul 7, 2012)

Trout Grilled in Foil, with butter, salt, herbs and lemon
Leftovers for sides


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## DLo (Oct 2, 2007)

Man that looks good, looks like y’all are having a good time, your son has the trout bug bad, that’s good


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## Jason (Oct 2, 2007)

Dat's more like it!!! hahaha ifin they get lock jaw, buy some crickets and send em in with a natural bobber and the smallest sinker you can find...


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## ChileRelleno (Jul 7, 2012)

*Day Four
*
Got my limit this morning working Joe's Flies and live Red Wigglers under a cork.










Some scenery shots






























And top it off with a hearty breakfast of scrambled duck eggs with Black Truffle salt and red pepper, some awesome local sausages and real New York City rye bagels slathered with butter and goat cheese... Yummy!


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## ChileRelleno (Jul 7, 2012)

We just got schooled by a couple of very experienced fly fishermen.
They caught over 20 trout in spots I was afraid to try for fear of getting snagged and loosing gear.
Nate chatted them up and picked their brains for his fly fishing, they were nice and explained/showed him some tips and tricks.


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## ChileRelleno (Jul 7, 2012)

*Day Four*

Nate is still batting zero today, even after taking him shopping for new tippets/leader and salmon egg flies.
I was planning on catch and release for any fish I caught, but Nate laid claim to my fishies.
Yep, I caught another nice 15" Bow and Brookie, was fishing a riffle not more that 6 inches deep and WHAM!


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## Bodupp (Oct 3, 2007)

For some reason, I just think all of this is awesome. Maybe because I spent most of my childhood reading Field & Stream and Outdoor Life and seeing all those pics of trout and beautiful trout streams, etc. And here you are living it.


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## ChileRelleno (Jul 7, 2012)

fla_scout said:


> Good luck! I’ll be heading up to visit my father and grandmother on the 5th of June and we are going to sneak in a cou0le days of trout fishing on the Clarion.
> 
> Still new to this kind of fishing but we’re gonna take a swing at it.


This is only my second year fishing trout, learning everyday. 
Who'd thought that pursuing an average 12" fish would be so damned exciting, frustrating and addicting.


And they eat exceptionally well too. :thumbup:
Watch a video on how to take the ribs out without filleting, it's easy and makes eating a breeze.


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## ChileRelleno (Jul 7, 2012)

Jason said:


> Dat's more like it!!! hahaha ifin they get lock jaw, buy some crickets and send em in with a natural bobber and the smallest sinker you can find...


I caught a bunch today using live red wigglers under a tiny cork.
Live bait is almost always da'bomb. :yes:


But what a challenge on flies like my son is doing. :notworthy:


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## ChileRelleno (Jul 7, 2012)

Jason said:


> Nothing better then fried/grilled trout fresh outta the water....Need more pics of this brother!!! hahaha Glad ya'll are having a great time, unfortunately our July trip to the mountains is out this year!!! So no trout this year fer me!


Tru'dat... Bummer.


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## lees way2 (Oct 7, 2007)

Nate and the dog is a wall hanger. That is a better than great place, Yall catch all ya can while ya can.


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## ChileRelleno (Jul 7, 2012)

Dinner tonight was my Herb Crusted Garlic Studded pork roast with Roasted Herb Potatoes seasoned with Black Truffle salt and celery sticks with Chipotle Ranch dressing.


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## ChileRelleno (Jul 7, 2012)

*Day Five*

Up and at'em early, took a good while of hard fishing before I got my first bite and it was a decent Bow.
A short while later I got another upstream from the first set of rapids.
Both were nailed on Joes Flies, I love these, the JF's Super Strikers are the best for easy casting with UL/L spinning gear and you can drift'em like a wet fly or work'em like a spinner.
Those and small Rapala Minnows in both sinking and floating have been fantastic lures.










Then while fishing in about a foot of water I thought I saw an Eel, but it's a little too early for them.
I noticed it sucked onto a rock, a Lamprey! Hot damn! Never seen one before, very cool.
I tried to grab it, grabbed it but it was too slimy and got away, it wasn't afraid it hung out in the same area. So I grabbed my net and just scooped it up, about 2.5 feet of parasitic Sea Lamprey.
Guy who has lived on and fished this creek for forty years said he'd never seen one in the creek.

Researched it thoroughly after remembering hearing they are a delicacy, and we're eating this guy for lunch.


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## ChileRelleno (Jul 7, 2012)




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## fla_scout (Sep 28, 2007)

The video says it’s unavailable Chili. Let us know how the lamprey tastes!


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## lees way2 (Oct 7, 2007)

For yalls sake I hope it dont taste any where near as nasty as that thing looks. Oh yea the dead video was a bummer.


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## ChileRelleno (Jul 7, 2012)

Can y'all see this one?


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## lees way2 (Oct 7, 2007)

That one worked,and its still ugly.


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## fla_scout (Sep 28, 2007)

Yep that worked. Not sure I’m gonna sleep tonight after seeing it though. Looks like someth8 g out of an alien movie!


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## Bodupp (Oct 3, 2007)

Cobia bait!


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## Jason (Oct 2, 2007)

Purty cool little critter... Only strange thing I found up in the mountains was a big ole water dog when we were diving in swimming holes. He was about 16 inches long.


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## ChileRelleno (Jul 7, 2012)

*Day Five*

The ladies, two women and a girl, got up at the crack of dawn and went off sightseeing and shopping down in Lancaster, PA... Amish Country.
My wife better not return with a rental truck full of furniture... It happened in central IL one time :wacko:

So the gents, after sleeping in till almost 8am, enjoyed a leisurely home cooked breakfast and then followed the ladies lead.
We hit up the largest sporting goods store in the area, Dunkelbergers in Stroudsburg, and did a little shopping too.
Then we decided to go sightseeing and drove out to Resica Falls, which involves some nice backwoods roads and mountain views.

































Then back to the cabin where I finally processed and cooked that Sea Lamprey.
It was actually pretty good, and not intimidating at all with that horror movie head chopped off, much like handling eels... Mmmm, I love eel.
It was like a cross between squid and clam, but not chewy, a nice bite through consistency.
Nate and I really liked it.

I started by cleaning and chunking it into four inch pieces.
Then I parboiled it order to be able to wipe off the slime coat.
After cooling and drying I removed the cartilage and left the skin on, cut down the center and cut the chunks into one inch pieces.
EVOO, onion, garlic and bell pepper into a sauce pan and lightly saute.
Add lamprey and saute for about 10 minutes, add white wine and deglaze pan.
Add in tomato sauce, I used an upscale bottled sauce that was tasty.
Simmer covered for about an half hour or until lamprey is al dente.
Serve over pasta or buttered toast.




























Finale :chef:











Oh yeah... We went fishing for about three hours this evening.
Nate got one 10" Bow while just absent mindedly flopping his Rooster Tail spinner next to the rock he was standing on, go figure.
I on the other hand got skunked 


Sorry no pic, see others above.


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## ChileRelleno (Jul 7, 2012)

*Day Six*

Wow, what a morning... Hi's and Lows abound.

I start of early this morning catching an average sized Rainbow, keep fishing switching out spots and land the biggest Rainbow of the trip, get it netted and to the bank.
Hooray, I'm ecstatic, this fish has to be 18"-20"!
I pop the hook out of it's mouth and it violently flops out of the net, gives three more huge flops and slides down a wet mud bank and back into the river as I'm desperately trying to grab it.
Talk about a morale crushing blow.

Ok, I can get over it, I keep fishing and moving, and I'm in a quiet spot casting when across the creek I notice a spotted fawn stand up in a patch of grass right on the edge of the creek.
Its not 15 yards from me and wholly unafraid, it watches me, it settles back down into the grass where I can clearly see it. I pull my phone out of it's _"waterproof pocket"_ in my waders and get a few pics and even some video when it stood up again, cool stuff.
Never did see it's doe and I left it alone.

Keep fishing and decide to cross the creek in a likely looking spot, not too deep, not too fast, as I can see rocks/bottom all the way across.
I get about to the middle and find that I've managed to get atop a huge flat rock covered with slime.
Slip #1, and I'm wet, damn get off this rock!
Slip #2, much wetter, cussing, where is the edge of this slab?
Trying to find footing, how big is this F#cking thing, Slip #3 and I'm almost swimming.
But hey, I'm off the giant assed slip and slide of a rock slab!
Slip#4 and I'm sputtering cuss words with water and finally stagger into a few inches of water, out of breath and waders full of water.
Wow, I still have my rod, nothing lost out of vest pockets and I'm not hurt/drowned.
Life is good.
Then my phone starts making random noises... Oh crapola!
Yep, that waterproof pocket wasn't waterproof... I give it up and slosh 1/2 a mile back to the cabin.
Phone is toast, gonna have to buy a new one.
And my pics of the fawn are history.

I might go back out later and scour the section of river I caught that PB best Bow in, he might still be around.


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## Jason (Oct 2, 2007)

Heck you made that ugly critter look good... Sounds like a heck of a trip you are having. Family memories brother!!!


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## lastcast (Oct 12, 2007)

Chile I saw on one of the pics of Nate that he had a belt on over the outside of his waders. I hope your wearing one too. Put it as high up on your chest as you can. Almost lost a buddy fishing Penn's Creek due to filled up chest waders. If you fall in and it's deep, just raise your knees, it'll trap air in your legs. Great trip your having. Grew up real close to there. Tight lines!


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## ChileRelleno (Jul 7, 2012)

*Day Six*

After this morning I hung it for the day and went back to bed.
I must've been a little depressed cause I slept till that evening.
Got up and fixed a nice dinner for everyone.


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## ChileRelleno (Jul 7, 2012)

*Day Seven*

Got up early and went hunting for _'The One That Got Away'_.
Nate and I both combed that particular section and up and downstream of it.
Neither of us hooked any monsters but we did get a few.

Going upstream I noticed a familiar patch of golden brown in the same patch of grass from yesterday, and there was the same fawn. I called to Nate so he could come get a look, we edged up pretty close before the fawn took off up the steep hillside, stopping to watch us. Again no sign of it's Doe.
I figure it was abandoned or lost in a creek crossing, or maybe it's Doe got killed, don't know.
But I do know it isn't going to last long, some bear or pack of yotes is going to find it.


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## ChileRelleno (Jul 7, 2012)

*The Trip Home

*The trip home was a fairly uneventful 1100 miles.
A little heavy rain here and there, but no traffic jams or other delays.
We over nighted in Abingdon, VA and hit the road again.
I talked the family into detouring through NC and GA via _I-40E / The Gorge_, and it was as beautiful as I remembered it. Went through Atlanta and it wasn't too bad being a Sunday. 

*Home*

Hello Double Ds









We brought a nice bag of fish home this time.
Breakfast and dinner on Monday featured fried trout, yum!

Trout with Hashbrown Casserole









Trout with Cob Corn and Cucumber


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## sbrettphill (Aug 21, 2016)

Chile,
All of your posts are making me hungry. I had to share with my wife. What restaurant are you at so I can try this out?


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