Welcoming in Winter with the Long Rod

Finally was able to get out on the water for a little while lately. I met up with David Knapp of The Trout Zone in hopes of getting my big fish fix in for 2010. The weather was just as we planned, highs in the low 40's and rainy. This should keep most other people off the water, and allow us to get close to some of the big boys. Unfortunately, TVA had other plans, and we found ourselves looking at a generation schedule that was unfavorable for the South Holston. So we made our way over to NC to try for some rainbows. I found myself driving along the dragon in 35 degree temps with snow in the ditch in some locations. Not something I ever imagined I would experience. Needless to say we were about the only two people on the road that day, so it was quite a pleasurable ride.

After spending a couple hours at our destination, it was obvious that the fishing was very slow. So, we loaded up, drove back across the dragon, over the foothills parkway, and up to Elkmont. Oh, and on the way, we had to make our required stop by Little River Outfitters to shoot the breeze with Byron and Paula. We eventually found ourselves at Elkmont, and I just left my #20 blood midge tied on and started fishing at the first location David recommended. He played spotter for me and shortly thereafter I landed my first fish of the day. I was quite surprised at how active the fish were in the cold water, and how many missed strikes I had. We only stayed in this location for probably 45 minutes because the light was fading and it was getting dark. So, we made our way downstream to another location, where this time I just sat back and watched David work a run, and I took pictures. When we realized that we had virtually no chance of satisfying our big fish fix on this day, we immediately shifted into backup mode. Backup mode was for us both to catch our required fish for the LRO message board One Fish Per Month Challenge, and for me to look for some good photo ops while David was fishing. In summary, it was a very good day to be out. Even though the weather was bad, and we didn't catch many fish; it felt good to be on the water again. And the amount of effort we put in for our fish made the day's catch very rewarding. Maybe we will get our chance to go to the South Holston next week. Until next time though, below are some pictures for your viewing pleasure:

David Working a Swift Run

David working the same run

A Bridge we came across

Getting the Perfect Drift

Making the Cast

Another Run

Unusually Early Winter Weather

Although I have been in town all week long, the recent surge of winter weather has prevented me from getting out on the water. Sunday evening was snowfall around 2" in West Knoxville, and then Wednesday night we had an ice storm roll through. Below are a couple pics from the ice storm:






Plans are underway for a trip to the South Holston next week, and maybe I can get David from The Trout Zone to meet up with me for some potentially fantastic brown trout action. David is a phenomenal fisherman, with a knack for finding large trout wherever he goes. So, when you mix David and large prespawn browns, the results have the potential to be astonishing. Check back later to see if the trip happens.

A Recent Lack of Outdoor Time

It has been awhile since my last post, and that is in large part to a busy work schedule for the past two months. I spent 5 of the last 7 weeks in New Jersey working, and when I was at home I had a hard time tearing myself away from the family to hit the water. I did make it out to the Clinch one afternoon to fish in the weir pool for a relatively productive day. However, nothing of any size was landed. Also, I managed to have most of the week of Thanksgiving off work, so I spent that time with the family. During that time I put in a days worth of hunting with dad, and we both killed a buck within two hours of each other. Hopefully I will have more time in the coming weeks to either make it up to the South Holston or maybe over to North Carolina for some prespawn trout.

Much Needed Fishing Break

My work schedule has been really hectic lately. And even though I had a week of vacation in the past 6 weeks, it really didn't allow me to fully unwind because of knowing what was awaiting when I returned home. Today was the first chance to get back on the water since August 9th, which is a very long drought for me.

Leading up to this morning I saw that the weather was forecasting light showers for the morning. On top of that there was a noon football game and it was the first day of bow season. So, for my first day on the water in a long time, it looked like things were falling into place for me.

I got a late start this morning, after turning off my alarm clock accidentally. So, instead of leaving home at 7:00, it was 8:00 before I left. So, it was 8:45 before I stepped foot into the river, but found only one other person there. I slowly made my way downstream to my usual haunts, and got rigged up with my typical midge rigs. I scanned the area and found a trout that appeared to be rising in a regular pattern, and made my presentation. About 5 seconds later, and fish on. First cast and first fish. I looked for another active trout, and presented a fly to it. Second cast, and another hookup. However, this one managed to give me the shake. Fourth cast and another fish, but this one broke my 6X fluoro after wrapping me around a deep rock. At this point, I was on a roll and thinking it was going to be a fabulous day. Little did I know that it would be an hour and 15 minutes before I landed another fish.



After the long dry spell, I settled into another spot and found the fly and depth that was working. I stood in this one pool and managed to pull about another 15 fish out of this one location. The average fish was around 12 - 14", with three pushing 16".

It was exactly what I needed to unwind from the stressful past 6 weeks at work. Hopefully, it won't be as long before I make it back out on the water.




Until next time,
Tight Lines and God Bless

Clinch Settles Into Typical Summer Patterns

Fog Burning Off Around 10:00

Made it out to the Clinch over the weekend, and the typical summer techniques and patterns were working well. My typical summer technique is dredging the bottom in slow deep water where midges are most often found. Sometimes I will even change it up and use a scud if there is vegetation present. The key is to be bouncing bottom, and that often requires fishing with an indicator as much as 7' above the fly and 6X fluorocarbon tippet. Also, as the day progresses, the fish tend to change from taking midge larva, to pupae, and then finally to emergers and dries. So, the fisherman needs to adapt to the changing conditions. Below are some pics from Saturday.

My First Fish of the Day - 16" Bow on an Olive Buzzer

First Victim to the Blood Worm

Blood Worm Strikes Again

Same Fish, Slightly Different Perspective

My Best Fish of the Day - 18" Bow

A Successful Release

Ended the day with about a dozen fish in 4 hours. Not what I would call a good day, but it definitely was nice to get back on the Clinch after a 3 month absence. Expect to see more reports from the Clinch now that the typical summer crowds should start thinning out. Plus in another couple months the browns will start staging for the spawn, and you never know when you will tie into a big one.

Until next time,
Tight Lines and God Bless

Recent Warmwater Outings

Not going to post a full report, but I have been primarily fishing for smallies, redeye, and carp the past few weeks. Below are some pics. Hopefully, I will be able to make it out to the Clinch again soon for a reunion. I also picked up a new 8-wt and reel after assisting with a flyfishing class at the Orvis in Sevierville today, and I plan on posting an evaluation after using it today for some Little River smallmouth.

Greenbrier Trip 6/12

Made it out this morning to an area that I really enjoy. I had intentions of fishing Elkmont this morning, but then figured that it would probably be quite crowded. So, I switched plans and went to a stream that I don't recall ever seeing another person fishing at. I commonly ask myself why I don't venture over to the various streams around Greenbrier more often, and I remembered today why. My thoughts on Gatlinburg remain the same today as in previous years, and I consider it a necessary evil to have to endure the traffic en-route to some very good fishing.

Fished from 8 till 11:30 today, never more than about 300 yards from my car, and the fishing was productive throughout. Caught fish on a variety of flies with most success on Para Adams, Yellow Stimis, and BHPT. It took me a while to get my reaction time back to normal after mostly fishing the Clinch for the past couple months, but once I got that figured out things really picked up. Next time I will have to walk farther up the trail before getting in the water, but that is easier said than done.

Still Waiting on the Sulfur Duns

Scott and I hit the water this morning from 7:45 till 11:00. Saw maybe three sulfur duns and six rises during that time. However, the fish were taking BHPT actively once again. Well, that is until the sun burned off the fog and made it's way overhead. Once that happened I had to dredge the bottom and fish deep structure to pick up any fish. Not too big a deal since that is how I typically fish my midges during the summer and fall anyway. The water was really high, even with the pulse. We fished thru it, but I don't recall a typical pulse bringing that much flow.

TVA website shows a pulse today at 7AM of 3385 CFS as compared to the typical pulse of 1200 to 1500 CFS that I usually fish thru. Do they have one small variable flow turbine and one large constant flow turbine? Just trying to figure out how they are able to have flows in the 1500 CFS, 3400 CFS, and then 6700 CFS. Or is the 1500 CFS number just a short 30 minute pulse kind of like what I have been told the SoHo does at times?

No big fish were caught this morning, as most were in the 9 to 11 inch range with the biggest fish being around 13". However, I did land my first brookie in a long long time there, and it was a decent little one. Surprised to see four other people on the water with us this morning. However, it is a holiday weekend, and that combined with the storms predicted for this afternoon contributed to our decision to head out early in the morning.