Sorry everyone for the lack of fishing reports lately, but between trips, tying flies and buying a new house, we barely have any time to sleep. We have a few days of rest in between trips this week and we will put up more pics and reports. Greg and Mark have fly fished a couple of times before and wanted to try the smokies while they were here. Dry flies are about the only thing fishable  right now with the water being so low and it just so happens that the fish are looking up.

Here are Greg and Mark with their first Smoky Mountain trout.

The fish are very fast on the takes in the Smokies and that’s why they are smiling so much, because it took several missed fish before they landed one. Once they caught on to where the fish were sitting and how fast they were, the catching average went up. Right before we ended the trip, Mark made one more cast into a big pool that was churning around and hook and landed a nice rainbow. Unfortunately while trying to get a picture of the fish, it had planned out an escape route.

We promise it was this big.

With low water use lighter tippet and try to let the fly line land softly on the water. If you smack the water with the line it’s usually best to keep moving to the next hole.

Flies to use.

Rusty Brown caddis #18-#14

Adams #18-#12

October Caddis #12

BWO #18 -#20

Jeff is from Northern Ohio and does a lot of Steelhead fishing. When he called me for a trip, I imagined a trip targeting bigger fish, but that wasn’t the case. Jeff had never caught a wild brook trout and it had been bugging him for a while. The weather was perfect for some dry fly fishing, cloudy and sprinkles here and there.

You can see that wearing natural colors while fishing helps you blend in to the background.

The fish were very active and didn’t hesitate to eat a dry. Brook trout aren’t known for being the pickiest of fish when it comes to fly selection, so concentrate on attractor patterns such as an Adams, Thunderhead or smaller caddis for this time of year. This nice brookie fell for an Adams.

Mission accomplished!

After Jeff got the hang of these Smoky Mountain fish, I really challenged his skills that he learned and put him in some pretty tight areas.

Jeff using the “Bow” cast.

Towards the end of the trip Jeff said he wanted to try and finish out with a solid fish, two casts later he landed this nice rainbow which blew up on his fly. It was funny, because we were pretty high up on the mountain and that is when Jeff catches the biggest fish of the day. This fish had been gorging on bugs and was a fatty.

Awesome job Jeff, I look forward to fishing with you again in the future.

Sorry it has taken so long to put up a new fishing report, but here it is. Frank is from Chicago and fishes a lot out of western Wisconsin in spring creeks. Fishing the Smokies is always different from everywhere else, but Frank is used to fishing small streams, so it wasn’t  a huge adjustment. Frank is a great fisherman and a heck of a nice guy and we had fun. A small cold front had pushed through the night before and made the morning fishing a little slow, but once the sun came out, the fish were fairly active.

We hiked in just a little to catch a few brookies. This one was small, but what a looker.

We met up with some of the boys doing the Brook Trout restoration for the National Park Service and got to talk with them about the work they do for the fish. It takes a lot of work and heart to do what they do and I know we appreciate it very much. We are still seeing Isonychia’s and Stoneflies everywhere, but the bug that would draw the most attention was a brown or rust Caddis. The fish are very spooky so stay low and wear colors to match the background. Heck, wear camo and also bring a rain jacket with the transition of Fall.

Frank had what we call a Grand Slam which is when you catch a Rainbow, Brook and Brown trout in one day. Sorry for the lack of pictures but it seemed like every time we caught a fish it would be raining and didn’t want to ruin the camera.

Also be careful while fishing, because we have been spotting a lot of these on the banks. If you do see a bear never try to get a “good shot” of it. Getting close to a wild animal can be extremely dangerous and I know it sounds like common sense, but I see it everyday. We have had one trip after the other this week, so stay tuned for more fishing reports.

The fishing in East TN is as good as it could be and the weather is unusually nice for the end of August. The smallmouth fishing is off the charts and though the National Park has some low water, throwing terrestrials has been a blast. My buddy Ethan McGroom is going back to school, so we wanted to take a couple of days and fish before he went back. The generation schedules on the tailwaters have been great for throwing streamers, which happens to be our favorite way to fish.

Streamer fishing can be tough at times, but can also bring out some very nice fish as Ethan shows off a few.

Watching a fish chase a fly out from the bank is pretty exciting, but trout tend to “swipe” at flies just trying to kill it, not trying to eat it and this way of fishing can be frustrating. We missed a lot of fish, some big and some small, but you really appreciate the hookups that you get. It is probably the best way to catch a quality fish and probably the most exciting, but sometimes you will work for them.

After lots of work throwing and stripping the Lord blessed us with the one that we were looking for. Now every fisherman always names a nice fish that he catches, so he can lie about how big it was later.

This is C.J.

We are expecting some really nice weather to come in this week and that will make the fishing even better, now if we could get some rain we would be set. If you are thinking about taking a trip to East TN and want to get in some fishing, give us a call. We would love to show you a good time on the water.

Byron from Little River Outfitters and I have been trying to get out and fish for a while, but during the fishing season it’s tough. Well it all fell in place this week and to the river we went for some popper action. The weather was nice and the fish were biting. When the sun was high though, the fish were pretty finicky and patience was a must. Here is Byron fighting a smallie that sipped a popping bug.

With hot days and cloudless skies, smallmouth can sit under a fly for a long time before they eat it, so stayed focused and wait. That was the case for most of the fish we caught today. Of course when you get used to that pattern, that’s when they blow up on it and surprise you. You’re never going to catch every fish that hits your fly, we didn’t today, but that’s part of the fun. In fact we lost some really nice fish today, but  that’s fishing. Byron had to keep reminding me of that, because I’m a pollock and can’t except it.

Our cicada that we have been tying produced a lot of fish, which was nice to see. I have a few more small changes to make on it, but I think we’ve got something. I think I made Byron a believer in it. We had a lot of fun and it was nice to fish with a good friend. Remember to stay hydrated and wear sunscreen out there in the heat.

The water is low and warm up in the Smokies and the fish can be picky, but that doesn’t mean you can’t catch them. We just don’t hit them very hard in these conditions and stress them out more than we have to. So that led us to float the Clinch this past saturday with Joe. The water in the Clinch is very clear and the fish were extremely spooky, so after we changed up our routine and flies we started landing fish. Long cast and light tippet will get fish to eat and midges are always a safe bet. Here is a solid fish that Joe landed after lunch.

Black caddis were everywhere on the surface in about a size 20 and fish were coming up to feed. All of our fish were caught on nymphs. When the water came up we switched to bigger patterns and that seemed to work pretty well. All in all we boated quite a few fish throughout the day and if you figure out how they want the fly that day it can be a lot of fun. It was an awesome day and I got to spend it with a really cool guy, congrats Joe on your fish.

So my in-laws came into town this weekend for some long over due family time and it was great. My father-in-law Steve is always on the go and loves to fish, but never has the time to. So we decided to go float for some smallies. Steve is from Idaho and has never been in a drift boat and we laughed because he had to come all the way to Tennessee to do it. Now this is his 3rd time fly fishing ever, so after knocking the rust off the rod we were in motion. It was a big transition for Steve, because I have only taken him trout fishing, so the flies and rods we used were all bigger and had to be fished differently. He caught on pretty quick.

Throughout the day the fishing got better and the fish got bigger, not to mention that it was all on topwater. Poppers and terrestrials are still our go to flies.

Now Steve went through some rough shoulder surgery last year and these fish fight really hard. After a few hours of catching these bruisers, he had to take a break, but not for to long.

After a long day on the water and in the sun we landed 2 more nice fish and called it a day. The float was a lot of fun and I’m glad that I got to spend it with family. Looking forward to doing it again.

August can be one of the most frustrating months to fish due to the hot days (Dog Days) and warm water. Usually fish tend to be slow and unaggressive, that’s why we focus a lot of time on smallmouth. Poppers and sliders usually work really well, but tend to be over worked this time of year. I have talked to several people lately that couldn’t believe that a dead drifted popper actually works. So I threw them another curveball and said try terrestrials. Hoppers have always been a good (Dog Day) fly and they are easy to see and tie.

For the past month or so I have been working on a cicada pattern that was easy to tie and looked spot on. It took several tries to work out the kinks, but I finally figured it out and got it perfect. I have been trying it lately with clients and just messing around the local streams. This has been a good fly to throw when they are sluggish, because you can’t pop it, so it makes you slow down. Our clients seem to like it because it’s easy to throw and easy to pick up off the water.

A good friend of mine, Dick, enlightened me a while back about using them more. He fishes the New, James and Shenandoah Rivers in Virginia and says they fish them a lot up there. You have to think if you hear them in the trees, they have to hit the water at some point. Try not to get caught in a rut when it comes to your fly selection. All of our fish around here are pretty opportunistic when it comes to dinner time anyway. Plus I have caught fish on some pretty crazy looking flies. Either way, hang in there and don’t get frustrated. It helps to fish early and late too, so give that a shot.

If anybody would like to tries some of these flies, give us a call and we will set you up with some. I would love for more folks to realize how much fun these fish are to catch and when the trout slow down the smallmouth fishing picks up. Spread the word and make smallmouth fishing more popular. Have an awesome day and may the Lord bless you.

So in between guided trips we like to get out and fish for ourselves, but that is a given. When we go, we usually end up chasing smallies either on foot or by drifter. It’s safe to say that smallmouth might be our favorite fish to catch on fly, especially this time of year. It also gives us a break from seeing trout day in and day out. Most every river in our area has smallmouth and they aren’t picky about flies. Minnows, crawdads and noisy topwater is just about all you need.

These are just some of the fish we have caught lately on our float trips. Float trips are a way to cover a lot of water and a nice way to spend the day. We float both tailwaters and freestone rivers, just watch the generation schedules and water levels after a good rain.

If you just want to get out and fish without the hassle of a boat, then there is plenty of wade fishing opportunities around in the National Park and through Blount County and Sevierville and the fish are just as eager to eat. If you haven’t tried smallmouth fishing I highly suggest giving it a shot, but be careful because it can be addictive.

Sunday, I took Chris Baker and his son Chase into the Smokies for some dry fly fishing. The weather has been crazy lately with all of the rain we have been getting. It had rained the night before so I didn’t know how bad the water would be, but it wasn’t high, although it was a little stained. If you are in the area and the conditions are like that, take advantage of it because it can be really good. Be careful though, if it’s too high just wait another day. It wasn’t long before they started catching fish and getting the hang of it. Terrestrials are still the key in the park; beetles, ants, hoppers and even cicada’s.

Here was Chase’s first fish of the day. Chase also landed a nice fish around 10 inches, but I was with his dad and couldn’t get a shot of it because Chris and I were trying to get a nice fish to come up and eat. The big one stayed down but here is one that got curious.

After a while Chris and Chase were in a groove and getting fish to rise in every pool.

These guys have done a lot of fishing in the Catskills, so they were used to fishing small streams like this. High sticking is a good technique to use when fishing the streams in the Smoky Mountains and it’s what we used a lot of on Sunday. On top of that, use light tippet and stay hidden from the fish and you should do pretty good. Also watch for the fish to be subtle we he rises for the fly. The Bakers take an annual fly fishing trip somewhere every year and I was glad that they chose to go through us this year in the Smokies because we had a lot of fun together and will look forward to going again.