It’s not red hot fishing, but we’re seeing bugs and that’s a start. Here’s a fresh arrival we saw on the river today in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. First of all, don’t panic. You’re not really missing much. There weren’t many bugs today and the fish let most of those drift on past unmolested. […]
Spring Fishing Is On the Way But Not Quite Here Yet
We’re close. Damn close… We had warm temperatures last weekend, but quite honestly it didn’t really feel like spring. The sunny days were pretty cool and the day it got into the 60’s was overcast and breezy. That was before the sleet and a fresh dusting of snow. Quite honestly if this was November or […]
Video: Fly Fishing the Blue Quill Hatch in the Great Smoky Mountains
March is here and it won’t be long before we see abundant hatches on the wild trout streams of the Great Smoky Mountains. Most experienced anglers in the region are familiar with Quill Gordons, Hendricksons, and March Browns but many are less aware of another very important mayfly hatch, the Blue Quill. Here’s a video […]
Recommendations for the Weekend
Here we go again with another beautiful weekend headed our way but with limited opportunities for fly fishing. Actually, let’s not say “limited” because there are plenty of places to go. Every possible option is not available though. On the positive side the mountain streams are in great shape. Expect some cold water and keep […]
Great Weather But Challenging Water Conditions This Weekend
The weather forecast is calling for sunny skies and mild weather this weekend but it looks as if water levels will be challenging across East Tennessee and Western North Carolina. We had a restless sleep last night as a strong front passed through with strong storms and heavy rain. This morning several USGS stream gauges […]
Now That Felt Good!
We had some important stuff to get done today. We’re hoping to get our first real e-book completed soon plus there’s some other stuff to get done before our guide season kicks into gear. But today was easily the nicest day we’ve seen since early November. Sunshine and 60 degrees! The rest of the week […]
Holiday Weekend Fly Fishing Forecast
If you’re successfully able to navigate Valentine’s Day you could have a good weekend out on the water. As always, there are plenty of opportunities in East Tennessee and Western North Carolina, but all the snow from this week will certainly play into any plans you might make. All the snow we’ve had will likely […]
Making the Rounds
It’s still February and the latest weather forecast shows plenty of wintry weather in store this week so it’s a good thing I made the most of the bearable weather and good flows available. Last week we made a trip over to the Holston. Over the weekend I also floated the Hiwassee and checked on […]
Warmer Weather On the Horizon
I’m sitting at my desk in Townsend waiting for more freezing weather and snow to arrive. Yesterday was relatively mild but the streams in the Smokies were essentially frozen over. Even now I can still see snow on Thunderhead Mountain and other high peaks. Still, yesterday was sunny and about 50 degrees and we weren’t […]
Cabin Fever Spreads Like Wildfire
One thing we can tell after getting out over the past weekend is that there is a highly virulent strain of cabin fever spreading out there. We thought it was only us. Last Saturday we had the unlikely combination of a good TVA flow on the river, Nana lined up to keep the kids, and […]