If you ever wake up early and get all of your stuff ready to go fishing, but don’t know what to throw, go outside and look at your bumper, or as we like to call it, the hatch chart. It will tell you all you need to know (colors, sizes, etc.).

The park has been fishing great with several hatches coming off and fish rising to them. The main hatch is still the Yellow Sallies with a few Golden Stones and Cahills mixed in. If you see lots of bugs flying around and not much happening on top of the water use the Joe Grobarek philosophy, if all else fails throw the adams. Also don’t forget about the terrestrials. Most folks think that it has to be summer before you throw terrestrials, but if they are out crawling around I guarantee that the fish won’t refuse one hitting the water.

We have been spending most of our time lately on the lower rivers fishing for smallies. We’ve seen plenty of topwater action during the day, but streamers have put more fish in the boat. The spawn should be over with shortly and the bigger fish will be hungry and looking for anything that swims, crawls or floats.

Dave and Chris helping us break in our new Sage VXP rods.

Everyone has one of those stories where the big one got away, but I can verify Chris’. He stuck a pig and after a few second it came out of the water only to show us how big he was and to throw the fly right back at us. Chris if you are reading this, I feel for you. After a much needed break to clear his head we were back to fishing and it wasn’t long before they were doubled up and Chris had forgotten all about it.

Check out the size of that Redeye.

When we got to the end of the float they said that it would be cool to catch a few trout, so we rigged up the 5 wts, put on some nymphs and it within a few minutes they were both hooked up.

Dave with a nice Holston bow.

Chris stuck another pig, only this time it was a big bow and with one jump we saw the line curling back and watch it land in the boat . At that point we just laughed and decided to call it a day. These guys were great fisherman and even better company, but the best part about taking a father/son trip is listening to all the trash talk on the ride home.

Dale is from Nashville and has done a good bit of bass fishing and has done some fly fishing, but hasn’t done them both at the same time. It didn’t take ole Dale to long to put both together and start catching some fish. In fact I think it was like the 5th cast and he was hooked up.

Not a trophy, but he hit a popper like he was.

Fishing poppers takes a little time to learn and involves a lot of patience. In fact you really have to believe that what you are throwing is going to work. Sometimes the fish aren’t turned on and they are very selective, but they seem to always be enticed by a topwater fly if presented right. After a short lunch break we switched to streamers and Dale really started working the river. He caught several more and lost some nice ones, but it happens. We had a great day and Dale really seemed to catch on to fly fishing.

The fishing in the park has been different lately, now I didn’t say bad just different. The water is where we like it and there have been great hatches everyday, but the fish can be kind of finicky at times. This time of year, finesse isn’t the word I would normally use to describe the fishing in the park, but lately the fish have wanted the flies completely still on the water and we have had to stay low so they can’t see us. Sulfurs, Yellow Sallies, Tan Caddis, March Browns, and Golden stones are what we are seeing on the water throughout the day with terrestrials around the banks.

Here are Danny and Mike with their first Smokies trout. Both were Methodist pastors from GA with a passion for the Lord. It was great to talk about fishing and to fellowship on the river.

Passing fly fishing on to the youngsters is very important and when they get into the sport it’s pretty awesome. Kids are like sponges and they hear and process everything you say for the most part. They ask questions and you can tell they really think about the situation. Well that was the case for 11 year old Ryan and his mom Maureen while they were on the stream. Both were great and really got the idea of staying hidden from the fish and getting a good drift.

Check out the colors on this fish that Ryan caught on a Sulfur. Way to go Ryan.

The tailwaters are fishing great and the changing weather doesn’t seem to affect the fishing. We are still seeing short bursts of caddis hatches during the day on the Holston. They are feeding on dries in spurts and nymphs all day long. Chuck from Nashville has never done a float trip and wanted to see what all the fuss was about. When we got to the the river a few caddis were hopping and the weather was very nice. It didn’t take Chuck long get used to fishing from the boat and we were hooked up!

Getting off to a good start.

A double nymph rig was the charm, but we noticed the fish eating quite a few on top and Chuck wanted to try his topwater skills. Chuck was getting a bite to eat and noticed a fish keying in on adult caddis. He put down the sandwich and grabbed the rod to make a cast, SET!!!

We wanted to throw some streamers for smallmouth, but spent too much time on the upper side of the float and had to get down river. As we got to the bottom we found a pod of nice fish sipping bugs of the surface and had to stop.

One more nice fish at the bottom ramp and Chuck said “I’m Done”.

The Clinch is fishing great too and the Sulfurs have started hatching on the lower side of the river. I thought the fish would refuse dries at first, but they weren’t shy. The Sulfurs were about a size 16 and school bus yellow. The average size of the fish caught were around 12 to 16 inches and some from 18 to 20.

Chunk!

The generation came up and slowed down the fishing for a short while, but even then you could get the nymphs down and see some love. Your basic Sulfur nymphs will do and a size 16 yellow dry fly on top. The generation on both the Holston and the Clinch looks good and it will probably stay that way for a while. The Sulfur hatch is great, but it just doesn’t last long enough. If you are wanting to float the Clinch during this hatch give us a call.

This guy ate a dry.

Thanks for reading this long overdue fishing report and we hope to see you out on the water. Have a blessed day.

The Holston River has been fishing great and we are seeing sporadic hatches throughout the day. Dry fly fishing isn’t quite there, but we have stuck a few with them. Nymphs are still the way to go. Wednesday, Kevin from Detroit wanted to do a float so we headed to the Holston only to get there and see a river of chocolate milk and not the low fat kind, but the real stuff. Rescheduling for the next day sounded better. Thursday morning when we got to the river; the color was back to normal and fish were eating midges.

Kevin is a steelhead fisherman so throwing tiny flies for sipping trout took some getting used to, but it didn’t take him long. Fish like this one were caught fairly often.

This was a common sight from the bench.

The fishing was pretty good for most of the day and the bug activity was consistent. Again it was mainly midges, but plenty of them and no shortage of fish. Kevin is a great fisherman and I look forward to future trips with him. We have been dealing with a lot of rain lately and every day has had some chance of thunderstorms. We got through most of the float and didn’t see a single cloud and within minutes the sky was black and the rain was there. It’s like we have skipped Spring and gone into Summer.

One more shot of a very colorful male bow.

Have a great day and Happy Easter everyone.

We have been fishing the park and floating the Holston all week. The park has been good with March Browns, Gloden Stones and Yellow Sallies. Matching the hatch isn’t as important as staying low and getting a good drift. Yellow Stimulators, Tan Caddis and an Adams will all be good choices to throw. We are finally seeing some steady water levels in the mountains after a very wet start to our Spring.

Sean with his first fish in the Smokies on a dry fly.       Bill throwing at a rising fish.

If you decide to fish the park, be careful and keep your potatoes peeled for snakes. We were surprised to see the guy on the left sitting on a rock  at the waters edge and almost stepped on him. A lot of folks mistake this Banded Water Snake for a Copperhead and although they look kind of similar they are way different put together.

The Holston River has been fishing great and the Caddis have started to hatch. The water is in the upper 50′s and the fish are sporadically taking dries, but most have been on nymphs. Cherokee Dam has been keeping a constant flow all day and pulsing 1 generator every 3 hours which has been great to float. I got to take 2 of my buddies out for a float this past Thursday on the Holston and we did pretty good.

This was a pretty common view from my seat all day. Bill with a nice bow.

The action lasted pretty much all day and the fish were bulked up from the Winter. I don’t think you could compare the fight of a Holston fish to any of our other tailwaters in our area. We didn’t fish for smallies much but Hugh did catch one on a dry. Hugh pretty much stayed in the back of the boat batting cleanup and shooting video which you can find on his site (smokymountainflyguide.com). Towards the end of the float we got to see one of God’s most beautiful birds.

Seeing them in pictures doesn’t even do them justice. Bald Eagles are huge birds and fun to watch while floating down the river.

We were back on the Holston today with some local boys from Knoxville and had a great time and the fish were definitely turned on. Some were beginners and others had done it quite a bit, but they all had a blast and caught fish, so what more could you ask for. If you decide to head out don’t forget the rain jacket, because you could run into a pretty nasty storm at any time. I hope you get the chance to get out and enjoy this beautiful weather and if you would like to book a trip please call or email us. Thanks and have a great day.

Here in East TN the weather is very nice with the temperatures staying close to 80 every day. The fishing in the Smoky Mountains has been great and the tailwaters are getting a break from the generation for a while. I had the opportunity of showing Steve Liptak how good the fishing is yesterday. We spent most of the day around Elkmont and fishing dries. The first half of the day fished pretty good, but the second half was on fire.

Steve is used to fishing pocket water in the mountains of West Virginia for Brookies, so he was right at home in the Smokies. Here he is high sticking a good looking run where a fish was rising to some Blue Quills.

We stuck with a parachute adams for our dry in the afternoon, because they were all over it. Sometimes just keeping it simple is all it takes. The Blue Quills were hatching on and off all day which kept the fish wanting more on top. Towards the end of the day though, the fish seemed to be swatting at the fly more than actually eating it, so we went to a smaller size and started getting more love.

Although we did catch a lot of fish, this one was the biggest and to boot, it rose to a dry.

The March Browns will be the next big hatch and we have already been seeing them. Everything in our area is about a month and a half early, so if you love to fish those big dries in the Smokies don’t let it pass you by. Have a great day and be safe.

The bigger rivers are still a hit or miss and the water in the park has just now come back down from flood stage. The Clinch river is running high and the Holston river is a hit or miss. Fortunately when Freddy called me for a trip last week we had a break in generation, so I loaded up the boat and we hit the Holston.

The fishing was slow in the morning, but picked up around lunch time. When the sun started to shine, the bugs came off and the fish were feeding. Don’t count on a splashy rise though, because you will miss a lot of fish. Every strike that we had, we could barely see the water dimple. A small caddis hatch came off for about an hour and Freddy and Billy D. had fun throwing dries for a while.

Plus you couldn’t beat the scenery.

Around 2 or so we got back in the boat and covered the rest of the float before the night got us. Along the way Freddy and Billy D. would spot a fish and take turns casting. After a while they were calling their fish like the Babe. The fish were really spooky and longer casts with thin long leaders were a big help.

The trip started off slow, but finished out strong which is just fine with me. This was definitely a trip I will never forget and I look forward to fishing with these guys again soon. I had to throw this picture in here because it was my favorite.

The weather channel is calling for a good amount of rain for the next couple of days so pack a rain jacket. Also keep an eye on the generation schedule before you make your trip to the river. If you notice the water coming up don’t take any chances, get out. Have a blessed day.

Recommended Flies:

Lime caddis #18-20

Olive caddis#18-20

Black fly larvae#20-26

Black and gold zebra midge#18-22

Parachute Adams#18-22

Bob and Gail are from Louisiana and come to East TN to fish with us from time to time. They love to float the bigger rivers, so with the leaves colored up and the browns moving around on the Clinch, it sounded like a good idea. The only thing is that TVA has been lowering the lake levels and blowing out our tailwaters, so floating was out of the question. I couldn’t let them go home without catching any fish, so the plan was to fish the park.

To make matters worse a monsoon pushed in and the bottom fell out of the thermometer.

The water was on the high side and off color, plus the rain and wind filled the rivers with leaves so throwing tiny beatis nymphs was out of the question. Usually when this happens, what we do is put on bigger or darker flies with some flash, like a prince or flashback pt to get the fish’s attention. Also keep the flies out of the main current and into the pocket water. The fish will be there so they don’t have to fight the fast water.

That was the case for this trip and it produced a lot of fish. Leave it to a rainy day in the Smokies to turn the trip around. Plus Bob and Gail are awesome fishermen so that helped too.

I got a call from a guy for a trip up in the Smokies and as I was getting the info for the books he said, “my name is Mark Martin.” I said “like the Nascar driver” and he said “yeah, but I’m not him.” To be honest I never would have known anyway, I don’t watch Nascar. The trip started a little slow, missing quick strikes on beatis nymphs, but as soon as the sun heated up the water the bugs were coming off and the fish were looking up.

Now normally a Blue Winged Olive is known for being a tiny mayfly around the 18 to 22 range. This year though, they have been around the 14 to 16 range which is great for us, because that makes it easy to see the fly in the riffles when matching the hatch.

Mark showing us how it’s done with BWO’s

This fish came up and slowly sipped the fly off the surface, awesome. The fishing was great from then on and Mark caught quite a few more fish throughout the day. This is probably our favorite time of year to be fishing. The browns are spawning, you need a light jacket to fish and just when you think the water is too cold for any dries, you see a BWO hop across the surface and a fish smash it. The thing about fishing in East Tennessee, is that the fishing never ends. It doesn’t get too cold to shut down the fishing, just the fisherman.  So if you can handle it, the fishing is here.

Chris is from Oklahoma and came to the Smokies for some relaxation and fly fishing. It was his first time in a set of waders and I’ve got to say he wasn’t too shabby. The Blue Winged Olives have been coming off pretty good, which makes fishing in the park pretty awesome, even with the cold weather. The bugs haven’t been coming off until the late morning, around noon. That doesn’t mean that you can’t catch fish though. Nymphs have been working well in the earlier part of the day.

Not a trophy, but you couldn’t have convinced him of that. The smile says it all.

That went on for a little while until the bugs started hatching, then it was game time on top. Normally Blue Winged Olives are a really small mayfly, around sizes 18 to 22. Here lately though, the Smokies has been producing size 14 bugs and the fish are loving it.

Congrats Chris on a successful day on the water and looking forward to the next time.

We also have October caddis coming off and they are running in the size 12 range, an orange stimulator will do the trick. After the trip was over, Chris was asking questions about living in the area for the future. All it takes is a fun day on the water for most folks and they are hooked.

The leaves are still pretty colorful, but won’t be for long. With the days getting shorter, colors starting to fade out and the fishing as good as it gets, why wait any longer.

Dave from Harriman and I headed out for the park last week for some early fall fly fishing. The weather couldn’t have been more perfect and the bugs were coming off like crazy. The morning started off kind of slow, just picking up a few fish here and there on nymphs, but after the sun came out, the river came alive. I had Dave throw his caddis across the current to a riffle running down a ledge and this is what was waiting on it.

Dave saw the sip and said, “I think this is a better fish,” just as I see it running down stream. What a nice fish and on a dry.

As the sun got higher, we started seeing several species of bugs coming off. Brown caddis, October caddis, a few isonychia’s, but the majority was a small sulphur which is unusual for this time of year. I had some in my box, so we put one on and noticed another good fish sipping emergers. A few cast’s later Dave hooked up with another good fish.

This one was a big rainbow.

For the next 2 hours it was about every 3rd cast, Dave would hook up with another fish. I told him that he would be spoiled from now on when he came to the Smokies. This is how fall can be in the Smokies, lots of bugs and hungry fish waiting for them to float by. This is also the best time to try to catch a bigger fish, because the brown trout are in spawning mode and fill up before they get on the redds.

Way to go Dave on all the quality fish, especially the brown.