NESHANNOCK CREEK
Neshannock Creek is a fine freestone stream in western Pennsylvania flowing some 20 miles through Mercer and Lawrence counties. It ranks high on the winter list because local businesses add trout to its waters at Volant, and the stream receives a fall stocking from the PFBC in October.

Fish are stocked by the PFBC from the dam at Volant downstream to the covered bridge at T-476, a three-mile Delayed Harvest, Artificial Lures Only section.

Neshannock Creek crosses under the Route 208 bridge at Volant and then continues through wooded, flatland country. Anglers may park in the Volant town center lot or behind a line of railroad boxcars that serve as tourist shops. Gangs of fly-fishermen will hover around the upper part of the Special Regulations area, but good angling can be enjoyed a few hundred yards downstream.

From the boxcar parking lot, anglers can follow a trail that continues nearly the whole length of the Special Regulations area.

Beneath the milldam at Volant, Neshannock Creek is less than 60 feet wide. The bottom is mostly small rock with a soft base. The stream appears to have been channeled and riprap has been added to bolster the banks along the inside bends. Downstream, above the covered bridge, Neshannock Creek is least 100 feet wide with deeper, longer pools.

TOBYHANNA CREEK
Imagine finding a reliable Pocono Mountain freestone stream in winter that contains wild brook and brown trout and also stocked trout.

Tobyhanna Creek in Monroe County fishes amazingly well in winter. Fishermen who get there during a brief thaw liken it to springtime angling. I fish Tobyhanna Creek from the state game lands parking lot near the Pennsylvania Game Commission’s maintenance building on Route 423 to beyond the Special Regulations section on the opposite site of the road.

Above Interstate Route 380, much of Tobyhanna Creek is a typical mountain stream with some excellent pocket water. Because of its high elevation, Tobyhanna Lake freezes over each winter when other area impoundments stay open. The frigid water coming out of the dam affects the fishing for some distance below. But once the stream gets through Mill Pond No. 1 and under I-380, it warms enough to make the trout more active.

In the Special Regulations section, the banks of Tobyhanna Creek are sandy with small, smooth stones -- a good winter wading spot. This Special Regulations zone receives a fall stocking, ensuring plenty of trout for the winter.

Access along the middle section of the Tobyhanna is quite good. Between routes 380 and 940, Route 423 is the parallel road. East of I-380, SGL 127 contains numerous parking areas and foot trails lead down to the stream. A one-mile Delayed Harvest, Artificial Lures Only stretch runs from Still Swamp Run downstream to an iron bridge.

MIDDLE CREEK
Middle Creek in western Snyder County is a hot winter fishery for Harrisburg-area anglers. Middle Creek comes from Walker Lake and the tributaries of the North and South branches of Middle Creek and Faylor Lake. Both branches are Approved Trout waters.

However, the section of Middle Creek worthy of winter attention starts at state Route 4007 (Pine Swamp Road) and continues downstream to the boundary of State Game Lands No. 188. Not surprisingly, this is a Delayed Harvest, Artificial Lures Only area.