Fly Fishing Penns Creek: A Psychopath On The Run

I met a real psychopath when I went fly fishing on Penns Creek in central PA one day. Snuck up on me. I also met a man with no face. Well, he had a face. It was just that certain parts were missing. His jaw. Lips. Parts of his skull.

Haunts me to this day.

I still see his face in my nightmares. Haunts me to this day. A face that would make you either scream or feel undying sympathy for the man, depending on the kind of person you are.

Fly Fishing Penns Creek: Memories

But for me, that face just initially brings back memories of fly fishing on Penns Creek in central PA. That’s where I first met both of those individuals. The psychopath and man with no face. I tell you all about these men soon enough, but let me tell you a little secret, first.

Fly Fishing Penns Creek PA: The Secret

If I could fly fish anywhere in the United States in the month of May, it would undoubtedly be Penns Creek in central Pennsylvania. Sure, there’s plenty of other legendary spring creeks in the area, like Big Fishing Creek, Little Juniata, and Spring Creek, itself. All of them, great trout streams in their own right. But it was Penns Creek that won my heart over the most, when I first visited central Pennsylvania for a couple of weeks a few years ago.

Fly Fishing Penns Creek: Brown Trout

I could tell you why I loved Penns Creek so much. Some of the reasons are… Well, for starters, I had one of my best fly fishing days ever, when I fished Penns Creek for the first time in my life, landing four brown trout of nearly 20 inches, and one greater!

Fly Fishing Penns Creek: Green Drake Hatch

Penns Creek also just happens to have one of the most spectacular single insect hatches in the United States, which is the famous Green Drake hatch that usually peaks around Memorial Day. And finally, Penns Creek has a magnificent wilderness catch-and-release section that I feel offers one of the best pure fly fishing experiences in the Northeast. Maybe even in the entire US.

Penns Creek PA is Fly Fishing

So that’s why I came to Penns Creek in the first place a few years ago. So I could fly fish one of the finest limestone creeks in the whole country. And I fished it for a few days during the Green Drake hatch. Yes, I caught it at it’s peak! And when I saw all those massive swarms of pure white mayflies all around me, surging up the creek, like a tremendous snowstorm in May, well, it just made the whole trip so worth it. I was having such a great time! But that was also around the time when I experienced one of the most disturbing events in my whole life. That’s right. I encountered the mysterious man who had no face.

Fly Fishing Penns Creek: Mid State Trail

I met him, when I was hiking into Penns Creek to fish, on that first trip that I ever took to the area. He also just happened to have a gun, too.

Something Strange About Him

I saw him first, as I emerged from some woods and entered a clearing where there was a 30-foot overlook, providing a scenic view of Penns creek below. The man was sitting near the edge of the rock cliff. Immediately, I could tell that there was something strange about him.

Looked Like Something Out of a Horror Movie

And, as I drew closer on the trail, it became apparent to me that he was grotesquely disfigured. In fact, I’m not exaggerating at all when I say that his face looked like it was something out of a horror movie. He looked like a zombie whose jaw had rotted off and lips had been burnt open, creating a sinister, terrifying, everlasting grin.

A Smile That Would Haunt Me

Aghast, I just wanted to walk by with a casual hi, especially when I spotted the gun on the ground at his side. But, as I started by him, he immediately began talking to me, engaging me in a conversation that I couldn’t escape. Meanwhile, the whole time, he wiped the spit that constantly dripped from his heart-stopping smile–a smile that would haunt me for a long time after this day.

Looked Me Dead in the Eyes

I don’t remember what was said at first, or why I didn’t feel right about just leaving. Maybe it was courtesy. Then again, maybe it was the gun. But just when I finally saw my golden opportunity to leave with the conversation waning, he suddenly turned and looked at me dead in the eyes. Clearly, there was something else on his mind.

Do you want to know why?

“Do you want to know why I look this way?” the man asked me.
I just nodded, solemnly.

Worse Than Some Monster in a Horror Movie

“I was in a hunting accident that did this to my face,” he went on. “Ruined my life in an instant. Now, I look this way. Worse than some monster in a horror movie. Can’t even keep the spit and snot from leaking out of my face.

“And I’m stuck in a home now. Stuck in a home with all these people who are dying and have no hope left in them. I tell you, I hate everyone of them. They’ve all give up, even the doctors and nurses, working in that place. It’s all death. No, it’s worse than death, just wasting away every day of your life.

“So I couldn’t take it anymore. That’s why I had to come here, today. I used to come here a lot. Grew up in the area. Hunting and fishing, like you, on this creek. It’s where I used to be happy. I still love this place, as I’m sure you do, too?”

Penns Creek: Fly Fishing Doesn’t Get Any Better

“Man, fly fishing doesn’t get any better than here,” I agreed, now fascinated by this man’s life story.

Penns Creek: Walking Through the Woods

“That’s what I mean,” the man went on. “I came here to meet someone like you. Someone who hasn’t give up. Someone who’s out here. Exploring and enjoying the world. Walking through the woods on a sunny day and isn’t wasting away. Someone who’s living life. And not dying inside, wasting their life.”

Clutched at his Handgun

Then, to my shock and surprise, his hand clutched at his gun. Somehow I remained absolutely calm. But I felt this other strange sensation, boiling up from deep inside of me. He’d been reaching for it the whole time. Now he held it firmly in his grasp.

Suddenly, my whole world just seemed to spin wildly, out-of-control, and my entire vision went blank on me. Felt like a massive bolt of electricity was surging through my body, blurring all conscious reality. But, this feeling only lasted for a moment, as I quickly regained my clear view of the world, as well as my wits and composure.

Tears of anguish now flowed from the man’s face, mixing with the spit, spilling out of his mouth. He stared at me, as if he was begging for mercy.
“Hey man, it’ll be alright,” I tried to console him, as I stepped back.

“No, it won’t. My life will never get better. It’s over.”

Follow Your Own Path and Destiny

“But you,” he said, trying to pull himself together, “don’t ever forget: keep doing what you love. Being outside in the wild. Just breathing the air. And don’t ever take it for granted, because it can all change in an instant, like it did for me. So you just gotta do what you want in life. Follow your own path and destiny.

Do it! What are you waiting for?

“And I know you’re gonna do it today, no matter what. So do it! Go ahead! What are you waiting for? Do what you gotta do! Get going on your way and just go fishing!”
After he was done offering his sound advice to me, he just closed his eyes and hung his head.
“Oh, things are gonna get better for you. No doubt about it.” I tried to console him, one last time.
But he just took a deep breath of desperation and leaned way over to his side, as if he was about to collapse onto the ground.

I took this as a sign that I should leave him alone now. And I began to walk away from him. But that’s when it finally dawned on me that he might’ve actually come here to kill himself, today. Or kill me, in his despair.

Wondering If You’ll Be Shot Dead

It’s a strange thing, walking away from a man. Knowing you will not turn around ever again. Wondering, if you’ll be shot dead in the back, but somehow not fearing for your life. Seeing the sunshine, blue sky, trees swaying in the gentle winds. The stream sparkling in the sunlight.

And then, I dipped over a crest in the trail, out of his gunshot range. Still, I felt no relief, just the anticipation of fishing Penns Creek. And so I did that day, and she did not disappoint.

Might Find Blood on the Ground

Later, at the end of the day, as I hiked back to my truck, approaching the same spot where I’d first seen that mysterious man, I suddenly found myself averting my eyes. Looking away in another direction. For some reason, I was too terrified to even glance at the part of the trail where I’d talked with that man earlier in the day.

Blood From What?

I thought that maybe it was because I was afraid that I might find blood on the ground. But, blood from what? From him killing himself, of course, I reasoned. That would’ve made sense, given how he was acting. And it wouldn’t have surprised me. But the sole source of all my anxiety now was clearly coming from a certain memory that I had of him. You see, I just kept seeing that man as he clutched at his gun. I just couldn’t seem to get that image out of my head. Even, after I’d passed the place where I’d last seen that man.

Fly Fishing Penns Creek: Seize The Day

I told myself to just forget about it. And anyway, I hadn’t really thought about that man for the whole day while I was fishing. In fact, I gotten into the zone. Wading some tricky waters, I’d had to focus. So I’d done what I wanted to and what that man had urged me to do, anyway, which was to just seize the day. Live in the moment. So why should I be terrified about something that had happened earlier in the day? Better to focus on getting back to my hotel now and how fun the fishing was today. And that was, indeed, the way I’d spend the rest of my evening and night… dreaming of the fantastic fly fishing I’d had on Penns Creek.

Penns Creek: Day-Use Parking Area at Cherry Run

The next morning, as I drove to Penns Creek again, I didn’t really think about my encounter with that man I’d met the day before at all, until I arrived in my truck at the day-use parking area at Cherry Run, where I was greeted by a police checkpoint. There were a lot of other state and local police cruisers and law enforcement officers occupying the parking lot in front of me, too. No, I didn’t see the usual cars, trucks, and SUVs of fly fishermen from out-of-state, either.

Penns Creek: Police Interrogation

“Do you fish here often?” the officer asked me.
“Yeah, sure,” I responded.
“Yesterday?”
“No, I was up on Fishing Creek,” I lied, out of instinct.
“Well, have you ever seen this man?” the officer inquired, showing me a picture on his tablet of the man with no face.
“No, never.” I shook my head, not wanting to get involved.
“Are you sure?”
“How could I forget a face like that? What happened anyway, officer?”
“Well, I’m not supposed to say, because it’s an ongoing investigation. But, we believe, that man I just showed you got into an altercation with someone yesterday… a fisherman found his body in the evening with some gunshot wounds. Possible homicide.”
“Jesus. Here? That’s crazy!” I exclaimed, wondering to myself, for some strange reason, if I’d been the one who’d killed him.
“Yeah, well, I’m also here to tell you that you can’t fish here, today. We’re gonna be sweeping the whole area for evidence. I know you came here from out-of-state to fish, but I’m sure there’s some other places where you can go in the area, like Fishing Creek.”
“Sure, no problem. Best of luck with the investigation.” I ended the conversation and began backing up my truck.

Penns Creek: My Next Destination

Then, I turned her around and began driving down the gravel road toward my next destination. I could still see the officer staring at me in my rear view mirror, as I headed on my way. But I soon left him behind.

Penns Creek: A Bloody Mess

Christ, it was a bloody mess back there, I thought, wondering if I’d somehow been the one who was responsible for it. But what did I have to do with any of it? And why did I just wonder if I’d actually taken that man’s life when that cop was questioning me back there? I’d left that man alone on the cliff. He was alive. That fact could not be denied.

You lie! A strange voice whispered from somewhere deep inside of me.

“I didn’t fucking kill him!” I suddenly screamed, clutching my head, the blood nearly bursting from my veins.

Penns Creek: Flashbacks and Memories

That’s when I suddenly remembered everything that I’d actually done to that man in one flood of irrepressible flashbacks and memories. How he’d threatened me, reaching for his gun. How I’d rushed him, caught his arm, and beat him down. Beat him bloody to the ground, raining down blows upon his mutilated skull.

Penns Creek: Massacre

Wrestling his gun away from him, I jumped up, stepped back. He looked up at me, as if to beg for mercy, even said a few things. But I just fired a few bullets right into his stomach. Gurgling up blood and guts, he gasped for his last breath, as I kicked and rolled him off that cliff. I heard his body splash into the current below.

The Psychopath Inside of Me

The fool. He’d thought that he could distract me with his pathetic life story! But I was never going to let him get the drop on me. He never realized that he’d unleashed the psychopath inside of me.

I had no mercy. I was savage. When your survival is at stake, that’s all that’s left in you. When you’re afraid for your life. Even if you’re just a normal white guy, like me, you still have it in your genes. Trust me. You will do anything to stay alive when you know the attack is coming. And it is coming. Believe me. So be strong and have faith when your moment of truth comes. And may God give you the strength, courage, and resolve to prevail in this eternal battle of good versus evil…

Driving on in my truck, I headed up a hill, trying to figure out what I should do next now that I finally knew the truth. At the top of the hill, in my rear view mirror, I caught one last glimpse of Penns Creek, shimmering in the distance. It was just as beautiful, peaceful, and tranquil as ever. A warm breeze swept through my open window. The sweet scent of pine needles was in the moist rich spring air. Looming above, I could see the clear blue sky.

Penns Creek: Altered My Life

Still, I couldn’t escape this uneasy feeling that there was something fundamentally wrong with me just leaving here now. Going on throughout the rest of my day as if nothing had happened. As if I hadn’t been involved in that man’s death in any way. When, in fact, I’d been the one who’d fired the lethal shots into his body. And it had irrevocably altered my life and the lives of many others, too. Then, I just realized that there was nothing left for me to do here. Not a thing. And that, I hadn’t done anything wrong in killing that man.

Penns Creek: No Regrets

You see, he had it coming. All of it! Right from the moment when he’d reached for his gun. And if I hadn’t killed him, sooner or later, he would’ve robbed, harmed, or even murdered someone else. God only knows who?

The scum. The vermin. Someone else would’ve surely fallen for his trickery. Garbage like that–they always prey on the weak, innocent, and naive. Wait for you to rest. To pause and catch your breath. Let your guard down for one instant. That’s when they rush in for the attack. His deception almost worked on me, too. But when I felt those hairs rising up on the back of my neck. Saw him reaching for his gun… I felt something inside snap. Then, he was gone. And I was glad that I’d been the one who’d sent him to hell!

Well, that’s just so wrong of you! You didn’t have to kill him. You went too far. So you’re just as bad as him. I think I can hear a few of you protesting. Yeah, well, that’s real easy for you to say, if you’ve never been hunted before by a real crafty wolf, when you’re alone in the woods. Or sometimes, they’ll just lie and wait in ambush for you, like that snake in the grass, I’d had to kill. Just hope that it never happens to you.

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Penns Creek Directions:

To get to Penns Creek from State College, PA. Take S. Atherton St. south toward Boalsburg, PA. Turn left on PA-45, heading east. Continue on route 45-E to Milheim, PA. Take a right turn in Milheim at the traffic light onto Penn St., which merges into Coburn Rd. Continue on Coburn Road until you reach the town of Coburn, PA, where you will see The Feathered Hook fly shop, in case you need some supplies. But, if you keep driving straight past the fly shop, you’ll literally drive over Penns Creek on the bridge.

Please note, there is also a second fly shop in the area, Penns Creek Angler, located a few miles downstream of Coburn, which you would find closer to the Cherry Run access and parking area.

Fly Fishing Penns Creek Access:

There MANY fly fishing access points on Penns Creek. So I’m not going to even attempt to cover all of them here. Suffice to say, that they can steer you in the right direction at either of the two fly shops mentioned above. Or you can just follow Penns Creek downstream after crossing the bridge in Coburn. As you drive downstream, you will find a few places along the road where you can fly fish. And no, those roadside holes usually aren’t fished out.

Gary Alan

After a long career in the publishing industry, Gary Alan left his corporate job to pursue his next adventures in life as a blogger, writer, investor, fly fisherman, hiker, and traveler. He is the author of the adventure fiction book, 'Big Thunder-Hearted River'.