Sandy Valley Campground Fishing Report

Fishing Report for 08/28/2010

Rating: Good (4/5)
Located near White Haven, PA, there's a camground called Sandy Valley Campground. At the rear of the campgound there's a man-made pond with tent site camping adjacent to it. The pond is probably about 10 acres in size and is maybe 5' deep at its deepest. There's some weeds close to the bottom, but overall, for August, it was a pretty clean lake, although the water is some pretty dark northeast PA cedar water. But at least you don't have to worry about losing any $7 Rapala lures :)

The pond is loaded with bluegills and would be a really great place to take impatient kids. [Note: You can't really fish there unless you're a paying camper.] I must say, as far as "parking lot camping" (as I call it) this place is pretty much the tops. There's bathrooms, shower stalls, running water, firewood for sale, a small general store, a rec hall, and plenty to keep a family busy for the weekend. So, if you'd like to take the family camping and fishing, or would like to head out with the guys for a weekend bachelor party as I did, this site is pretty ideal.

I used nightcrawlers, cut up into 1/3 pieces on a #10 snelled hook with 10lb test line with my light rod. Could have definitely gone with lighter test, but I like the feel of this rod and it sort of covers whatever I may run into in a pond like this.

Most of the bluegills were on the smaller side, although I did catch at 8" one. As soon as the line hits the water, the bobber will start moving as fish swarm the bait. It can be a bit frustrating to have worm after worm gobbled up by immature fish before actually hooking one, but at least you'll know the bite is on.

Oddly enough, during my weekend there, most of the fish seemed to be concentrated right in front of our campsite. I saw fish in other parts of the lake, but they seemed to be really aggressive right next to where we were camping, conveniently enough.

A kid that has been fishing there for the past 5 years told me he's seen people pull bass out of the pond. I have a 11' porta-bote with a 45lb thrust electric troling motor that I took out looking for bass late at night and early in the morning. I didn't get any bites, nor did I see any in the shallows, nor did I see any evidence of spawning beds that should have been visibile in such a calm pond. Not saying people haven't pulled bass out of there, but I wouldn't bet on doing so. I'd stick with the bluegill action. I also had a catfish rig in the water for the better part of the day, but no action there. It is just bluegill, bluegill, bluegill, and lot's of them!

Bear in mind, since it's a private site, no state fishing license is required. And finally, Marge, the lady who runs the general store on the site, and who is probably the proprietor, told me a story of stocking and opening up the pond, only to find that people were catching fish and just leaving them all over the banks to die -- so it's strictly catch-and-release. Please repsect Marge's rules if you find yourself enjoying bluegill action and camping on this pond!

Temperature: 75 °F
Water Level: +5 feet