Outdoor Life · Fishing
Fishing in Schuylkill County
Stocked trout streams, lakes, and reservoirs across Schuylkill County, with the county's stocked-water and special-regulation sections.
Before you go. Stocking schedules, trout-season dates, creel limits, and license and permit fees are set by the PFBC and change every year — confirm the current year with the Fish & Boat Commission before you go.
Places
- Locust Lake State Park — State park (campground, lake & trail system)
Schuylkill County's classic family lake campground — 282 wooded sites split into tent-only and trailer sides around a 52-acre lake with swimming, boating, fishing, and a trail system near Barnesville. - Owl Creek Reservoirs — Borough reservoir recreation area (two reservoirs)
Two restored former drinking-water reservoirs at Tamaqua, managed by the borough as a catch-and-release, electric-only bass and panfish fishery with loop trails for walking and mountain biking. - Rabbit Run Reservoir — Borough reservoir (stocked trout, bank fishing)
A small Tamaqua-owned former water-supply reservoir in Walker Township, PFBC-stocked with adult trout and supported by a volunteer co-op nursery — primarily bank fishing. - Sweet Arrow Lake County Park — County park (lake, trails & day-use)
A ~183-acre county park near Pine Grove around a 60-acre lake — paved lakefront paths, a waterfall walk, the natural Berger Dam Trail, disc golf, and year-round fishing stocked each spring with trout. - Tuscarora State Park — State park (cottages & yurts, lake & trail system)
A lake-centered state park around 96-acre Tuscarora Lake near Barnesville — roofed camping in cottages and yurts (no drive-in campground), an electric-only fishing lake, and a 5.5-mile perimeter trail loop. - Swatara State Park — State park (rail trail & creek valley) · straddles the county line
A linear creek-valley park between two I-81 interchanges near Pine Grove, with a 10-mile rail trail and the rolling Bear Hole Trail, combinable into a 10-mile loop via the historic Waterville Bridge.
Stocked-trout & special-regulation streams
PFBC defines stocked stream sections by road and bridge landmarks rather than a single point, so these are listed as sections, not map pins. Per-section species and the year's stocking dates change annually — pull the current schedule from the PFBC by the section's RFP water ID.
| Water | Program | Section | Area |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bear Creek RFP water ID 3197 | Stocked trout | 500 m downstream of the T-895/T-594 (Bear Creek Road) junction → 800 m upstream of T-662 (Berne Drive) 3.3 mi | West Brunswick / South Manheim Twp |
| Deep Creek RFP water ID 3127 | Stocked trout | Creek Road (T-577) → mouth ~17 (Secs 3–4) mi | western Schuylkill County |
| Little Catawissa Creek RFP water ID 1633 | Stocked trout | Reservoir Road (T-431) → Trout Run Road (T-435) 5.68 mi | North Union Twp (Brandonville area) |
| Little Mahanoy Creek RFP water ID 3818 | Stocked trout | Malones Road (T-961 bridge) → Gordon Mountain Road bridge (SR 4007) 4.28 mi | Eldred / Frailey Twp (Gordon area) |
| Little Schuylkill River RFP water ID 3193 | Stocked trout | confluence with Locust Creek → confluence with Panther Creek (and 1.1 mi upstream) 3.22 mi | Tamaqua–New Ringgold–Port Clinton corridor (Rush / West Penn / Walker / East Brunswick Twps) |
| Lizard Creek | Stocked trout | 1 mile upstream of the Andreas Road bridge → 0.5 mile upstream of the Stone Mountain Road bridge | Andreas area (county line) |
| Locust Creek RFP water ID 3117 | Stocked trout | Locust Lake Dam → mouth (via Tuscarora Lake) ~8.6 (Secs 2–3) mi | Rush Twp (Locust Lake State Park / Barnesville) |
| Lower Little Swatara Creek RFP water ID 2894 | Stocked trout | Blue Mountain Road (T-815) → mouth 7.92 mi | Washington Twp (Pine Grove area) |
| Mahantango Creek RFP water ID 3122 | Stocked trout | Route 125 bridge → the Schuylkill / Dauphin / Northumberland county lines ~5.6 (Schuylkill portion) mi | Eldred / Hubley Twps (Pitman, Hegins Valley) (county line) |
| Mahoning Creek | Stocked trout | Berry Road bridge → the Lehigh River | southeastern county line (county line) |
| Pine Creek (East Mahanoy — Little Schuylkill tributary) RFP water ID 3118 | Stocked trout | dam at East Mahanoy Junction → mouth 2.5 mi | Schuylkill / Delano Twp area |
| Pine Creek (Hegins Valley — Mahantango tributary) RFP water ID 3135 | Stocked trout | Fountain Road (SR 4009) → mouth on Mahantango Creek ~20 (Secs 2–4) mi | Hubley / Hegins Twps (Hegins, Valley View) |
| Pine Creek (Schuylkill River tributary) RFP water ID 3199 | Stocked trout | T-733 (Whitetail Lane) bridge → 340 m downstream of the T-723 bridge 2.73 mi | Schuylkill River corridor |
| Upper Little Swatara Creek RFP water ID 2899 | Stocked trout | upstream boundary of the Frog Hollow Environmental Center → inlet of Sweet Arrow Lake 6.62 mi | Pine Grove / Washington Twp |
| Bear Creek RFP water ID 3197 | Delayed Harvest, Artificial Lures Only (DHALO) | a cable 800 yards above T-662 (Berne Drive) → downstream side of the T-676 (Woodland Drive) bridge 1.74 mi | West Brunswick / South Manheim Twp |
| Little Schuylkill River RFP water ID 3193 | Delayed Harvest, Artificial Lures Only (DHALO) | SR 0895 in New Ringgold → T-848 bridge near Rauschs 1.7 mi | New Ringgold area |
| Little Catawissa Creek (Class A headwaters) | Class A wild trout (not stocked) | headwaters → Reservoir Road (T-431) 2.20 mi | Columbia–Schuylkill (74% public) (county line) |
| Rattling Run | Class A wild trout (not stocked) | headwaters → mouth 3.85 mi | Berks–Schuylkill (71% public) (county line) |
| Trexler Run | Class A wild trout (not stocked) | headwaters → mouth 3.00 mi | Columbia–Schuylkill (0% public access) (county line) |
| Unnamed tributary to Little Schuylkill River (by the SGL pond) | Class A wild trout (not stocked) | headwaters → mouth 1.86 mi | Berks–Schuylkill (80% public) (county line) |
| Unnamed tributary to Little Schuylkill River (river mile 3.20) | Class A wild trout (not stocked) | headwaters → mouth 1.29 mi | Berks–Schuylkill (100% public) (county line) |
| White Bear Creek | Class A wild trout (not stocked) | headwaters → inlet of Mauch Chunk Lake 3.14 mi | Carbon–Schuylkill (23% public) (county line) |