Almost daily thunderstorms are keeping the trout streams well watered in the Smoky Mountains. Stream flows are running a bit above typical which is great moving into the heat of summer.
Beth Jones casts a dry fly in a beautiful run of water a couple of miles from the trailhead
Water temperatures have warmed up now so there’s no question about wearing waders or not. Cool weather lingered for a while and cloudy days with 58 degree water often called for waders. Now we’re seeing afternoon water temperatures of 60-65 where we’re fishing and there’s no reason for waders. Wet wading is the way to go right now. Plus it’s easier to hike in further without waders!
Dry/dropper set ups are fishing great with these flows.
We’re primarily fishing two fly rigs. On top we have a bushy dry fly with an abundance of buoyancy and the bottom is some type of beadhead or otherwise weighted nymph in about #16. The fish aren’t especially picky about the selection of either, but it is important that your dry fly can support the weight of the fly under it. It also helps if the dry fly isn’t too big; it can still work great as a strike indicator but it’s always best if the fish can easily fit it in their mouth.
Similar qualifications apply to the dropper fly. It should have some weight to sink well, yet not be so heavy it will drag the dry fly under. And don’t feel like you need a super heavy, tungsten weighted fly either. Simple, old style wet flies and soft hackles work just as well as they ever have.
One of Charity’s recent anglers, Brian Jones, caught two at once with a dropper rig.
Our favorite part about summer fly fishing in the Smokies is all the backcountry streams we can hike into. Not only do we tend to find more aggressive trout, but also see some cool stuff in relative solitude. I say “relative” because we often find company from some wildlife. Last week Ian had an elk encounter in a place where he hasn’t seen one before. We’ve seen tracks and rubs in some out of the way, high elevation places but this was the first elk we’ve seen in one of these places not known for elk sightings.
A bull elk seen recently on a small stream in the Smoky Mountain backcountry
Summer is here but the fishing is great, so don’t hesitate to get out and hit the water!
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