.
.
.
Successful
Little Lehigh flies:
.

Black Beetle,
size 16
.
.

Tan, Brown or
Olive Elk Wing Caddis, size 16
.
.

Blue-winged
Olive, size 22, 20
.
.

Cream Midge,
size 24-20
.
.

Trico, size 24,
22
.
.

Oliver Edward's
Hydropsyche Larva, size 16
.
.

Barr's Bead Head
Net Builder Larva, size 16
.
.

Oliver Edward's
Rhycophilia Pupa, size 16
|
.
Articles:
Read other
articles
.
.
The Little Lehigh: A Bio of a
Pennsylvania Creek
.

Little Lehigh
Creek (section below the covered bridge)
.
The Little
Lehigh Creek is a meandering limestone creek
known for providing some of the best trout
fishing in eastern Pennsylvania. The stream
begins in northeastern Berks County and
flows east through a seven mile wide
limestone valley situated between Blue
Mountain and South Mountain. The Little
Lehigh comes to rest as a tributary to the
Lehigh River and is one of four major
tributaries; the others include Jordan
Creek, Monocacy Creek and Saucon Creek. The
Little Lehigh is the largest of the four and
drains nearly 188 square miles.
.
The Lehigh was
originally named Lechauweki, "where there
are forks", by Delaware Indians due to its
natural branching from the Delaware River. It's thought the left bank provided an
Indian path from the lower part of the
Delaware country leading North and West to
various trails. The name Lechauweki evolved
to Lechau, but not before nearly a dozen
variations. Then in 1750 German influenced
maps began appearing with the Little Lehigh
labeled as "Little Lecha". Since then
English adopted its present form, "Lehigh". Those trails originally used by the Indians
have evolved as well in the form of present
day municipal parkways, the most notable
being the Little Lehigh Parkway in
Allentown. This four-mile long greenway
extends from the western edge of the city to
nearly the Lehigh River.
.

Stream improvement section
. |
The Pennsylvania
Department of Environmental Protection (DEP)
has designated the Little Lehigh as High
Quality Waters (HQ) . "High Quality
Waters" are streams or
watersheds with exceptional
quality waters and environmental
features that require special
protection. These waters are
only second to Exceptional Value Waters (EV).
Electro-fishing by Pennsylvania
Fish & Boat Commision |
Fishery Biologists in 2003
revealed both hatchery and wild trout were
present. Two sections were accessed and
included the section of stream adjacent to
the Queen City Hatchery and a section just
upstream of Bogarts Bridge, both within the
Heritage Trout special regulations (no-kill
fly fishing only) area. Wild trout accounted
for nearly 70 percent of the total catch
with 96 percent of both hatchery and wild
trout being brown trout. A total of 1,971
ft. of stream was electro-fished with a
total of 1,365 individual trout measured and
assessed. Overall, most fish included
smaller wild browns with a small percentage
being larger hatchery rainbows. Very few
golden or brook trout were present.
.
Heritage Trout
Angling rules apply if you're fishing the
one mile stretch below the bridge on Fish
Hatchery Road. This section is a no-kill
fly-fishing only section limited to barbless
hooks. Fishing is allowed
the entire year provided the
angler has a valid Pennsylvania
fishing license and a trout
stamp. Fishing licenses may be
purchased online at the
Pennsylvania |

Heritage Trout Angling rules
apply |
Fish & Boat Commission (The
Outdoor Shop). One additional rule for this
one mile section is wading is prohibited.
Access to this section of the stream is
easy. Various routes exist, however
directions are provided from Route 78.
.
Directions from
Route 78:
From New Jersey |
Take 78 West to
Exit 55 (Cedar Crest Blvd./Route 29). Travel
south on Route 29 (~0.4 mi.) to Fish
Hatchery Road. Turn Left (east) on Fish
Hatchery Road and travel ~0.3 mi. to the
parking lot. The parking lot appears
immediately after crossing the bridge on
your right. This is the parking lot used by
fishermen. Another parking lot exists for
the hatchery and is on your left prior to
crossing the bridge.
|
From Harrisburg,
PA |
Take 78 East to
Exit 55. Follow remaining directions from
above. |
.
Topographical
Map:
.

Image courtesy
of the USGS, click on image to enlarge.
.
.
Aerial Map:
.

Image courtesy
of the USGS, click on image to enlarge.
.
Fishing is
permitted on other sections of the Little
Lehigh as well. If you travel further east
on Fish Hatchery Road access to the red
covered bridge (pictured below) is possible.
You'll come to a traffic light for the
intersection of Fish Hatchery Road and
Oxford Drive. Continue straight through the
light and follow the road to the left to the
parking lot. Bridle Path parallels the
stream. Further downstream stream
improvements have been built (pictured
above).
.
Another fishable
spot is governed by Delayed Harvest Fly
Fishing regulations. This section located
off of Wild Cherry Lane (pictured below) is
accessible by returning to Route 29 and
following it south towards Lower Macungie
Road (~2.0 mi.). Turn right onto Lower
Macungie and follow approximately 1.0 mile
to Wild Cherry Lane. Turn left on to Wild
Cherry Lane, the stream is approximately 0.5
miles down the road. This section of the
stream is productive as well but has both
less fish and less crowds. Fishing quarters
are tight due to brush and trees.
.
Hatches on the
Little Lehigh are few and at times the fish
can be very picky, sometimes passing on the
naturals. Midges are staples but you'll find
the usuals too, blue-winged olives, sulphurs,
caddis, tricos and terrestrials; 6x and 7x
tippet is the norm. More fishing specifics
can be found by visiting
The Little Lehigh
Fly Shop. Productive Little Lehigh patterns
are provided in the left margin.
.
.
Climatologic
Data:
.
Monthly Average Temperature,
degrees F (20 year average) |
Jan |
Feb |
Mar |
Apr |
May |
Jun |
Jul |
Aug |
Sep |
Oct |
Nov |
Dec |
29.3 |
29.4 |
38.0 |
48.4 |
60.4 |
69.7 |
74.1 |
72.0 |
65.0 |
52.8 |
42.4 |
32.3 |
.
Monthly Average Precipitation,
inches (30 year average) |
Jan |
Feb |
Mar |
Apr |
May |
Jun |
Jul |
Aug |
Sep |
Oct |
Nov |
Dec |
3.44 |
2.94 |
3.43 |
3.67 |
3.51 |
3.83 |
4.99 |
4.53 |
3.51 |
3.25 |
2.76 |
3.18 |
.
.
Stream Data:
.
Little Lehigh
Daily (Real-time) Stream Heights & Flows
.
.
While you're in
the area you may wish to try other local
streams. Both Monocacy and Saucon Creek fish
well. They receive less pressure but have
less fish and less fishing access. Enjoy the
pictures below.
.
.
Little Lehigh Photographs
. |

The Head Pool |

The Rat Hole |

The Kiddie Pool |

Lots of fish in
the Kiddie Pool |

Nice Brown
caught by Brad Berlin |

Author with a
rainbow |

The Little
Lehigh Fly Shop |

Wheelchair
accessibility by the fly shop |

Covered Bridge
along Bridle Path |

Delayed Harvest
by Wild Cherry Lane |

Wild Cherry Lane
(downstream) |

Wild Cherry Lane
(upstream) |
.
.
Source: This
article would not have been possible without
the gracious time, research and effort
provided by the following:
-
Pennsylvania
Fish & Boat Commission - Fisheries
Management Field Report (Little Lehigh Creek
2003) and Bob Weber, Justin Lorson, Joe
Minnichbach and Dave Nihart
-
Lehigh Valley
Planning Commission - Natural Resource Plan
-
Lehigh County
Pennsylvania - Geology and Geography by
Benjamin LeRoy Miller, Donald McCoy Fraser,
Ralph LeRoy Miller, Bradford Willard and
Edgar T Wherry
-
US Weather
Bureau
|
.

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