Charity fishes Hazel Creek just upstream of the Calhoun place and our camp at Proctor
We had what may have been our best trip to Hazel Creek. The weather was beautiful, the company was great, and the food was awesome. We had sunny weather with temperatures in the 70’s every day and great nights in the 50’s. The skies were exceptionally clear and the sky was filled with stars.
Oh yeah…. The fishing was pretty good too! We caught some fish on dry flies, but nymphing was the best way to stay in fish. My best rig was a Beadhead Pheasant Tail fished tandem with a Pat’s Nymph. I’d pinch on a split shot in the swiftest, deepest runs of water.
Rainbows were the predominant catch among the anglers in our group, but there were also a few browns brought to hand. Unlike a couple of previous trips there weren’t any real lunkers hooked, but the fish were standard Smoky Mountain specimens. Most were in the 6″-9″ range.
Wayne Stowers hooked up in the "guage run"
Dinner and social time at the Hazel Creek Hilton
This pair of gobblers was our alarm clock on Hazel Creek. They were just across the stream from our camp each morning.
Hazel Creek Crew April 23-26, 2009
But Wait! That’s Not All!
We’ve been floating the tailwaters before and after the camping trip. The Holston has been fishing relatively well, but not as good as we’d like. Most of the fishing has been with nymphs. We’ve seen a few rising fish but they’ve been rather inconsistent. There was some overcast weather this morning and the fish were on top until the sun came out. Our anglers have been pleased with the number of trout they’ve hooked, but we’ve been wanting more fish to rise.
Michael Kennedy hooked up with a nice fish hooked on a dry fly from the drift boat