Now that the water has been high much of the time and the weather has turned cold we’ve gone back and taken a look back at the year we’ve had. It seems like the life of fly fishing guides is all fun and games, but it’s really quite hectic. It’s only now when we’re not up early, rounding up gear or hitching up a drift boat that we can look back and see all the cool stuff we’ve experience over the past year.
We’re so blessed to have so many fly fishing options from Great Smoky Mountains National Park, to our big tailwater rivers, to our phenomenal smallmouth bass fisheries. Here’s a look at our 2011.
The Scenery
One of the best things about living in the Smokies is just getting up in the morning. Several times a day we stop what we’re doing to just take a look around. Here are a few of those moments.
That’s why they call them the Smoky Mountains! The mountains rise above the morning mist.
Beautiful morning light in Townsend. That’s Mount Leconte poking into the clouds.
Another incredible sun rise over the Smoky Mountains.
On our “commute” to float the Tuckaseegee we had to stop to take this in. Looking down the Deep Creek valley and Bryson City, NC is under the fog.
Moments on the Water
Ice bells on a cold day on the stream
Unmistakably spring in the Smokies – Dogwood blooms along the stream.
A magical spring afternoon in the Smokies with warm sunshine, hatching mayflies, and rising trout.
Floating the Clinch River on a bluebird October day
Casting streamers along rock ledges
An idyllic summer afternoon creekin’ for smallmouth bass
A cool autumn morning on Hazel Creek
Could you create a prettier spot on a creek?
It was a phenomenal year for fall color in the Smokies
The Bugs
Without bugs where are we as fly fishers? Here are some of our favorites from the last year
Salmonfly up close and personal
Our favorite mayfly in the Smokies, the Quill Gordon
Small but they still bring trout to the surface – Blue Wing Olive
An extreme close up of a #20 Trico
The Fish
Early spring rainbow trout on a float
A healthy rainbow trout that we found rising to Quill Gordons
The best part about catching Smoky Mountain specks is just looking at them
A solid smallmouth bass from the Holston River
A solid Hazel Creek rainbow trout
A great pair – A nice brown trout and a Tellico Nymph
Wildlife
One of the best parts of our job is who we share the “office” with.
A curious but cautious black bear keeps its distance on Hazel Creek
Iconic image of spring – a tom turkey struts for hens
A bear cub high up in a tree over Bradley Fork
Show respect! A timber rattlesnake takes its time crossing the trail in the backcountry
Perfectly camouflaged a copperhead remains motionless on the forest floor
Out West
Every year we make our annual pilgrimage to Yellowstone Country. This year we hosted a group on Idaho’s Henry’s Fork and spent some personal time on the Yellowstone River and in Yellowstone National Park.
Ultimate prize – A big rainbow trout and a little fly on the Railroad Ranch section of the Henry’s Fork
Sunset over the Henry’s Fork
A heck of a slab! Cuttthroat/rainbow hybrid on Henry’s Lake
A family effort in Yellowstone Park. Dad holds the brown trout and carries young Boone in the pack, Willow holds the rod, and Mom takes the picture
“Mend it Mom! Mend!” Floating the Yellowstone
Welcome to your place in the food chain – A grizzly bear track along the Yellowstone River
A native Yellowstone Cutthroat trout
The Big Moments
A beautiful brown trout from the Smokies and a priceless smile
An early season slab of a smallmouth from the Pigeon River
A beast of a brown trout caught last spring on Hazel Creek. We saw him in the same spot later in October.
Can you believe this 23″ chunk took a dry fly? Best eat of the year!
This 20″ smallie ate a popper!
Not nearly so big as the others, but this 10″ native speck is equivalent to a 20″ brown.
A beautiful fall brown trout!
I still got it!
Charity shows off a nice wild fish
David Knapp says
Great pictures! Makes me want to relive the whole year over again. Looks like you guys had a pretty good year on the water…
John Coley says
Spectacular pics once again! But – that (extremely fresh looking) grizzly track gave me the willies…