Early Brown Stonefly
It looks like another early spring will soon be upon us here in the Smokies. There was snow falling on the rivers and streams in the Smokies only a few days ago but a relatively mild winter seems to have the insects ready to get started hatching and the fish seem to sense it.
Up to this point we’ve seen tiny black caddis, little dun caddis, and winter stoneflies. All of these are insects we typically see here and there throughout the winter. In the past week we’ve started to see more Early Brown Stoneflies, Blue Quills, and a very few Quill Gordons. Snow melting into the streams today is keeping the water very cold but a relatively warm rain forecast for this evening will warm the water.
The tailwater situation hasn’t really improved at all but those with drift boats can certainly get some streamer fishing in on the South Holston and Watauga Rivers. In fact, the water has been high for so long it probably wouldn’t be unreasonable to expect some Blue Wing Olives to be found hatching.
We intend to try to get out during several afternoons this week but we’re racing to complete a few projects. We’re digitizing some of our books for use on tablets and we’re updating our website. As solar powered individuals these long days in the basement hooked up to a computer has taken their toll on our sanity at times, but we know it will all be worth it!
We’re looking forward to telling you when the dry fly fishing has picked up!
