Freestone · Mixed Metamorphic · Maryland, US

Big Hunting Creek

A rocky mountain stream tumbling over boulders through autumn forest on Big Hunting Creek, Maryland.
Today · About as good as it gets
Pheasant Tail Nymph
Forecast · Today
About as good as it gets
On the feed top to bottom — start on the rises with a dry, drop a nymph if they stay down.
90% projected
Today's fly
Pheasant Tail Nymph
Pheasant Tail Nymph
Conditions on the water · Today
Proxy gauge
Level
Falling
Proxy
via Yellow Breeches Creek
Water temp12.0°C
ClarityClearing
Weather10°C
WindN 22 km/h
Pressure1021 hPa
Rain · recent0.1 mm
Rain · ahead0.0 mm

No gauge on this water — conditions are inferred from Yellow Breeches Creek. The trend transfers, the absolute level does not.

Water temperature for Brown Trout
Ideal
12°C est.ideal 10–16°C
0°14°28°
How to fish it · for Brown Trout
When
Nymphing can work through most of the day.
Where
Cover mixed depths.
Method
Start with tight-line nymphs and adjust if fish rise or drift higher.
Kit
9 ft #4 rod, floating line, 12 ft tapered leader to 4–5 lb fluoro tippet.
Why this works
Excellent — water temperature is right today, though time of day could be better.
Likely species
Mayflies
Chironomids
Gammarids
Hatch timeline · todayPeak at 21:00

12:00(now) — Eastern Blue-Winged Olive

Stage: On emergersApproach: Emerger or dryActivity: 57%
Peak emergence window4 food groups active

Peak activity at 21:00 — Brown Dun (Brown Dun, 3 food groups active)

Beyond the hatch · worth watchingambient prey(1)

Hatch predictions

Supporters see what else is on the menu.

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Evidence
Records-basedModerate confidence

Based on species-occurrence records, not local invertebrate surveys.

Through the year
0–3 scale · October highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Trout seasonSeason
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
1
Brown DunHatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
3
2
Quill GordonHatch
2
2
Blue QuillHatch
2
3
2
HendricksonHatch
2
2

Numbers are intensity 0 (none) to 3 (peak) — a guide, not a guarantee.

Ranked for today
Fly box · Brown Trout
Permits & access
Permit required — see local rules.
  • Maryland licence required; fly-fishing-only, catch-and-return heritage water — barbless is the spirit of the place
  • Verify current MDNR special-regulation rules before you fish.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Other water nearby · 2
Falling Spring Branch
38 km
89
Brown trout · Rainbow trout
Big Spring Creek
60 km
84
Brook trout · Brown trout
Gallery · 2
  1. A rocky mountain stream tumbling over boulders through autumn forest on Big Hunting Creek, Maryland.
    Big Hunting Creek
  2. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
Water quality · US Clean Water Act
  • Aquatic life: Impaired
What this classification means

EPA ATTAINS assessment unit 'Big Hunting Creek' (MD-021403030251-BigHunting_Creek3), 2024 Integrated Report. Aquatic Life use: Not Supporting. Listed impairment causes: Temperature. This is a Clean Water Act assessment-unit classification (the US analogue of WFD), not a live reading.

Status is for the Clean Water Act assessment unit covering this reach.

EPA ATTAINS (Clean Water Act) · MD-021403030251-BigHunting_Creek3

The full read · show the working · for Brown Trout · confidence 90%
How the 83 is built — score × weight = contribution
Temperature100 × 28%28.0
Flow80 × 22%17.6
Clarity95 × 18%17.1
Feeding Time55 × 13%7.2
Pressure80 × 7%5.6
Insect activity59 × 12%7.1
Conditions total= 83
Can you trust it?
Water temperatureair-to-water estimateestimated
Level / flowproxy via Yellow Breeches Creekproxy
Prey activitymodelled from regional profilemodelled
What would change the calculation
The dawn and dusk windows score higher than the midday lull.
Directions
Apple MapsGoogle Maps
Seasons & zones
  • Trout 1 January → 31 December
Related guides
Euro Nymphingsubsurface methods
Booking & contacts