The Limestone Streams Of Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania has a claim to a natural resource found in few other parts of the nation .. a type of stream one might expect to find during a visit to England. In central and southeastern Pennsylvania, the "chalk waters" meander slowly through quiet valleys and past rolling hills of fertile farms. Their reputation of being fished by numerous presidents and outstanding fishing has made them world famous. Pennsylvania limestoners have been fished by numerous presidents.
Characteristics:
Limestoners have very pristine clear waters producing wild trout that are wilier, brighter colored and larger than the trout found in freestone streams. Due to the pristine clear waters, the depth can be very deceptive because of the clarity. They are often bordered by high grasses, rich bogs and overhanging willow trees, being fed through a constant water source from underground that keeps the temperatures an average of 54 degree's year round. While winter drags on and on with frozen creeks and frigid, fishless bays, limestone streams never freeze and never stop producing. No matter how cruddy the weather gets, you can generally find fish and the bugs they eat in these chalky waters.
MACROINVERTEBRATES: The macroinvertebrate populations that commonly are found in limestone streams or limestone influenced streams have unique characteristics. These populations are often abundant, dominated by a few taxa such as Ephemerella (mayfly), Amphipoda (freshwater crustacean), Isopoda (freshwater crustacean), and Chironomidae (midges), but do not usually have many stonefly taxa. Limestone streams tend to below gradient and are characterized by constant temperatures, high alkalinity, and an abundance of aquatic plants.
The scud, or freshwater shrimp, has several marine relatives. Unlike most crustaceans, they have no upper shell. They breathe by means of gills which sets them apart from insects. Limestoners also contain mayflies, midges, sowbugs or pillbugs. Waterweed, the common name for Elodea, is one of the several plant species known to limestoners due to its high fertile content. Also abundant is watercress.
Water quality: Alkalinity: > 75 ppmpH >7.5 
Stable temperature making them natures natural buffers to acid rain.		 Physical/Landscape characters: Low gradient.
Primarily agricultural land use.
Fish Species: Larger wild trout.
Lower overall abundance with more pearl dace.		 Insects: Dominated by crustacean (scuds, amphipods). 
Freestoners have fewer numbers of insects but more variety
Limestone streams form from caverns in limestone bedrock. Several channels come together and form a huge spring where they intersect at ground surface. Shale underlies topsoil, allowing the water to filter downward into the bedrock. The Eastern Red-Cedar is a good indicator a limestoner is near by.
Overview:
Limestoners are also called spring creeks. They are not rare. Just few in number. Those which have been preserved and maintained are natural treasures.  Due to their location being mainly in agricultultral area's, the banks of the streams must be safe guarded. This means livestock contamination prevention. Contamination's such as these affect the degree of alkalinity. If it should be too low, the water is acidic and won't support life.  If the temperature of the water is wrong, (too warm) the plants and fish won't survive. Freestone streams ( like Stoney Creek) are fed from run off and numerous feeder creeks and their temperatures fluctuate with the weather conditions and higher temperatures of the surface water run-off. The majority of Pennsylvania's Limestoners are in the central part of the state.

While it is safe to assume all limestoners are great trout fishing havens, this is far from true. At one time all the limestone streams could support that statement and assumption but they all cannot support that theory now. The trout, susceptible to critical changes and fluctuations in water conditions and temperatures are now gone in many streams leaving nothing but scrub fish, or rough fish such as carp and suckers. All of this due only to human encroachment. Agriculture, timbering and housing projects have taken a serious toll.
What is being done?
The Pennsylvania Fish Commission has taken steps to preserve our natural treasures. They have purchased several areas encompassing our pristine limestoners, designating them as special regulated waters under special leases with landowners. Waterways by name are listed in our PFC Handbook section in green.
Areas of the state where anglers might expect to find limestone streams on the valley floors.

More Information & Limestoner Links:
Pennsylvania Trout Sampler: Individual Streams Summertime Limestoners: Good reading Pennsylvania Council of Trout Unlimited
Trout Unlimited-The Penns Creek Chapter Fly Fishing in Central PA  FISHING IN BEDFORD COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA
Southcentral PA's Autumn Trout Hotspots Clarion River Adventures Great Fall Flyfishing Memories- Good Reading
Limestoners
LeTort Spring Run is a special limestone spring creek in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, namely for its smart, wild browns and beautiful water-cress laden banks. The smooth-flowing LeTort has been the focus of many anglers for many decades, and hopefully--if urban growth can coincide with conservation efforts, many more.  Penns Creek-Preview: Famous for great green drakes and big browns. Penns Creek is a long drink of water. Rising in Penns Cave, the creek cuts down across a broad farming valley before colliding with the flank of Big Poe Mountain. The height of land turns the stream to the northeast but at Coburn it finds a rift in the mountains. Here it enters a tight and very scenic valley, the lower stretch of which is inaccessible by road but followed by an abandoned railroad grade. Emerging from the mountains at Cherry Run, Penns begins to wind and warm as it courses through a Weikert on its way to the Susquehanna River at Selinsgrove. The mileage from Spring Mills to Cherry Valley is considered to be Penns Creek’s best trout water due to the rejuvenating powers of numerous limestone springs and spring-fed creeks that cool the flow and add to the volume. Most of the distance is accessible to anglers, but little, excepting the course upstream from Cherry Run, is in public hands. Permission to fish may not be required on all private land, but it never hurts to ask. Species: Brown. Angling methods: spin, and fly-fishing.  Tulpehocken Creek's four-mile Delayed Harvest section starts at the dam at Blue Marsh and ends at red covered bridge. 

Tulpehocken Creek in Berks County, near Reading, PA, is a tailwater stream that offers good trout fishing throughout the season, including the warmer summer months. Bottom releases from the dam at Blue Marsh Lake keep water temperatures suitable for trout survival and limestone springs keep the water nutrient rich and full of food. 
 
Falling Spring Branch-Located in Franklin County, Falling Spring Branch can be characterized as a fertile limestone spring. Falling Spring Branch offers anglers diverse angling opportunities. Anglers may choose to fish for wild trout in the Catch and Release Fly-Fishing Only section or fish for stocked trout in either the Delayed Harvest Artificial Lures Only section or in the section open to angling under Statewide Regulations. Spruce Creek -Though much of Hungtington County's Spruce Creek flows through private land, it is worth mentioning because it is one of Pennsylvania's legendary limestoners. Few streams have as many hatches. And there are plenty of wild fish, mostly browns, though most of them are crowded by stocked (and well-fed) hogs put in by private landowners and fishing clubs.  Big Spring Creek, Cumberland County, offers 2.3 miles of limestone spring creek waters for great fi shing. Big Spring Creek
gets muddy only after heavy rain, so it provides clear-water fishing when many other streams are muddy.” Drift live bait here.
 
Yellow Breeches Creek-Yellow Breeches at Allenberry Resort and Playhouse in Boiling Springs, PA, is the place to be in late August and early September for the famous White Fly hatch. During late August and into September, Yellow Breeches, near Boiling Springs, PA, can be the state's most popular and crowded stream. That is when the great White Fly hatch is on, and everyone wants in on the action.  Clarks Creek, just 15 minutes from downtown Harrisburg, offers anglers a quick getaway from the city. Just fifteen minutes from Harrisburg (Pennsylvania's capitol) lies a little limestoner named Clarks Creek. Nestled in PA State Gamelands, Clarks offers anglers some quick solitude from city life. 
 

 

 Donegal Creek – A true success story for Lancaster County, the Donegal Chapter of Trout Unlimited has helped turn this once degraded stream into a nice angling destination. While it will never rival other large limestone streams in the northcentral portion of the state, Donegal produces quality stocked fish that hold well through the year. The key to the stream’s success has been stream bank fencing. Keep in mind that while this has reduced erosion and shaded the stream, overhanging brush can challenge even the most competent angler. 


 BigDamFish  All Outdoors Forum
Contacts:
BigDamFish | Bossy Bass
BigDamFish.Net  2003-2008
Web Graphics & design by BigDamFish