It’s been a whirlwind season for us up to this point. Our spring guide season was as busy as ever with the added wrinkle of Ian’s recovery from knee surgery. Charity handled most of the wade trips in the Smokies while Ian was relegated to strict duty in the drift boat until he was fit […]
Fishing Getting Better One Day at a Time
Every day that has gone by has seen the fishing improve a little bit. Today it was the warmest, sunniest day we’ve seen since last October with temperatures around 70. The water was a little high still and the morning fishing was still on the slow side, but every fishy spot you could drift a […]
The Day We’ve All Been Waiting For
We just received a press release from Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and even though we had a good idea it was happening soon, it’s still great news. Lynn Camp Prong, as well as every other stream in the Smokies, is now open to fishing. In fact, in the history of the park this is the […]
Native Brook Trout Restoration in the Smokies Going Well
We just spotted an article in the Maryville Daily Times today that says the brook trout restoration on Lynn Camp Prong is going well. That’s not necessarily news to us as we’ve spent plenty of time volunteering several times over the past few years, but it still feels good to see it in print. You […]
Damp & Mild Conditions Across East Tennessee and the Smoky Mountains
The weather across East Tennessee has been in a rut lately. Almost daily it’s partly cloudy and rains somewhere. Some days rain coverage is widespread, but more often it’s a patchwork over the area primarily popping up over the mountains and the northern reaches toward Kentucky and Virginia. As far as late summer weather goes […]
Progress Report: Lynn Camp Prong Brook Trout Restoration in the Smokies
Last week Charity and I volunteered one day when the Great Smoky Mountains National Park fisheries biologists went to check on the brook trout population in Lynn Camp Prong. This stream was recently restored with native brook trout from other streams in the Smokies after all rainbow trout were removed from the stream. This is […]
Almost Too Much To Remember It All
It’s easy for us to know we’ve been guiding for months and on the water almost everyday. We can tell because we don’t know what day it really is. We know we’re supposed to meet Angler X at Location Y in the morning because that’s what the schedule says, but as far as what day […]
Scenes From A Day in the Life
We’re well into our “backcountry” fishing season here in the Smoky Mountains. Warm weather precludes the need for waders so it’s easier to hike in with only wading boots and a fly rod. Even as we really enjoy rowing the drift boat or instigating smallmouth bass to eat a popper, there’s something extra cool about […]
A Gray, Damp Week On the Water
It’s been a damp week out there, and that’s not a bad thing. As we always remind people, “Fish like water!” Unfortunately it’s been in short supply recently in East Tennessee so it’s nice to start seeing some rain. Charity and I were talking about it this morning that while we’ve not been particularly worried […]
Smoky Mountain Brook Trout And the Next Generation
Anyone who’s known us or followed us for very long knows we have a soft spot for wild, native brook trout here in the Smoky Mountains. These fish have persisted for thousands of years against everything Mother Nature and mankind has thrown at them. Even as their numbers have diminished significantly over the last century […]