Well...Well....the Watauga River Caddis Hatch is beginning. We went out this weekend and clobbered the fish throwing a size 16 caddis pattern. There were not a lot of bugs, but there were enough. We must have had 100 heads up in one riffle alone. It was sick.....sat on these fish for 2 hours and picked off each one deliberately.....this is why fishing is so fun. We only have 4 more days available to take you fishing, so give us a call.....soon!

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Spring is just around the corner and we can't wait! The warmer temps and consistent rainfall tell us that it's time to fish and fish hard. We've had two gorgeous east tennessee weeks and the fishing has been darn good. The midge activity is strong sub-surface and our go to pattern is a 22 black midge larva with a single strand of flash for an emerging looking bug. There are stillplenty of blue wings around on those overcast days and any small pattern like a black copper john or pheasant tail is catching plenty of fish.

From a guiding perspective, we're getting geared up for the spring caddis hatch on the watauga. It's going to be fantastic this year. We're almost booked solid from April 15th to May 15th so far. We have just a few spots left (less than 10 total days) during that time. Give us a call and we'll go over the possibilities. YOU WANT TO FISH THIS HATCH.....TRUST US!

 

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The worst thing a trout fisherman sees when he wakes up in the morning is the bright sun. It's a double edge sword though. Nice sunny skies make for a comfortable and beautiful day on the river, but frankly, I'd rather save the sun for yard work. Give me overcast skies for fishing. Unforunately, mother nature didn't recieve our request this weekend. It made for a tough day of fishingSaturday on the Holston. On Sunday, we opted for the watauga. We knew the weather would remain the same and it even topped 65 degrees on Sunday. The Watauga has deep, fast runs that fish far better on sunny days than the Holston. We a "string of pearls" but with 3-4 BB split shot, our favorite 4wt, and two good nymph patterns, we had a heck of a good day for this time of year. Three of us put about 50 fish to hand and we had about 10 that were 16" plus, on reaching 19" and about 3lbs. These fatty rainbows made us smile despite fishing deep with shot. We preferred pulling on their lips with nymph rigs than waving a dry fly through the air and not catching much to speak of. To sum it all up, we had a great time, caught lots of fish and weekend was a success.

The Caddis Hatch is just 6 weeks away and we're almost fully booked. If you want a spot, give us a call as soon as possible.

 

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It was a very nice weekend on the river to say the least. Overcast skies and balmy february temps caught my attention and forced me to drive to the fish. Saturday was spent in the South Holston, attempting to make an unsuspecting trout rise to the surface with a size 20 BWO pattern. It worked moderately well, but surprisingly, there weren't as many bugs as I had anticipated. Conditions wereperfectfor these beautiful mayflies. Unfortunately, the trout were less than impressed. I did catch a few, but once I went subsurface with an emerger pattern, it was lights out. Every third or fourth cast was a fish for about 2hrs. Again, conditions were perfect.

Sunday, well Sunday was a different story. I tried my attempt at the Watauga and honestly, it fished better than the Holston, but I was far more frustrated. I probably missed a dozen fish in the first 1/2 hour. I was fishing a 16 green copper john and trailing a 20 BWO emerger off the back. I'm sure it was the emerger that was causing the brief hook-up and long distance release, but my frustration level was the same. The afternoon was flat terribly though. Winds steady at 30 with gusts to 50 made fly fishing all but impossible. I wasn't that interested in casting per se, I was concentrating on high sticking or long line nymphing, but even that was a challenge. Somehow the winds managed to grab a fly line with an 1/8" diameter and drag it through the water uncontrollably. I finally gave it up, drank a beer, and went home to spend time on the vise.

So, there ya have it sports fans....fishing is pretty darn good. Not great, but certainly better than the honey do list. With no football on TV, you might as well be out there....just check the weather first.

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This is technically our off season so it give us the opportunity to go fish ourselves. We do occasionally run a trip but mostly....it's just us fishing. The fishing has been pretty darn good too. The Watuaga is fishing superbly right now. Daily Blue Wings are abundant and large for that size mayfly (size 18). The fish will readily take a CDC comparadun or even a parachute post. Sub-surface will definitely produce the largest fish and the most numbers also. We had them take green copper johns, beadhead pheasant tails, Graphic Caddis Pupa, and of course midge larva. The streamers are still very effective in high water. However, the most fun is drinking a few beers, catching a few fish and just enjoying the comfortable afternoon temps and the good company while awaiting the caddis hatch in April.

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