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.