We’ve been hosting western fly fishing groups since 2005 at several locations in the greater Yellowstone region. We’ve been going to TroutHunter in Island Park, Idaho every September since 2011 so it felt like a homecoming when we returned last month with a group. We’ve come to think of the owners, guides, fly shop staff, […]
Wet Weather in the Smokies is Keeping Stream Levels Optimal for Fly Fishing
We’ve been in a bit of a wet weather pattern for over a year now. That’s had mixed results on the fishing in East Tennessee and the Smoky Mountains. River fishing on the large tailwaters has been spotty at best because of high flows. Typically we’re in a pretty predictable pattern in June. We usually […]
Cool Wet Weather Keeping Fly Fishing Conditions Ideal in the Smokies
We’re coming off of a bit of a wet spell here in East Tennessee that kept us nervous about fishing conditions but it all worked out great. While some locations did experience heavy rains, the Smokies had nothing more than beneficial rain that has kept streams at ideal levels and temperatures excellent for trout. After […]
Spring Fly Fishing Has Arrived in the Smokies
Depending on the day we’re either referring to the current situation as “early spring” or “late winter” fishing, but we’re definitely seeing hatches and eager trout in the Smoky Mountains. After a relatively long period of wet and mild weather we’re back in the midst of cold conditions. A few lonely snowflakes occasionally drift past […]
Winter Thaw
While it hasn’t been as cold a winter as we’ve had in recent years, we have had plenty of cold weather and a bit of snow in the Smokies. The coldest weather was late in January and early this month but that was immediately followed by exceptionally unseasonable warmth. We crushed a daily temperature record […]
Go Barbless or Stick With Barbed Hooks?
One of the most common questions we’ll hear when we have anglers on the water is “Did you just pinch the barb on the hook?” We’re always a little bit startled because most of the time there’s a bit of an accusing tone as if we don’t want them to actually catch a fish, but […]
Tips to Catch More Trout: Changing Seasons and Changing Tactics
Fall has finally arrived here in East Tennessee. As the leaves change so should your tactics while you’re out on the water. This is something we think about more as we change our fishing location from the Smokies to our tailwaters andon our annual trip to the Henry’s Fork since all of those places are […]
Unbalanced Weather in the Smokies
It’s been a strange October when you do nothing but watch weather and water flows like we do. Almost the first half of October was exceptionally warm, flirting with record highs most days while we continued to wet wade well beyond our usual time frame. What would usually be a colorful riot of autumn color […]
Wrap Up From our 2018 Trip to TroutHunter on the Henry’s Fork
It was another spectacular week in September at TroutHunter on the Henry’s Fork. This was our 8th year hosting a group there and we’ve come to think of all the staff and guides there as family. In fact we even arrived early this year to attend the wedding of one our guides who has become […]
A Productive Summer of Fly Fishing the Smokies and East Tennessee
It’s been a busy summer for us here in the Smokies! Fly fishing around East Tennessee has been great this summer and the season has slowed a bit now that school is back in session. We’ve had some new customers this season while still getting plenty of our old regular anglers out on the water. […]