The smallmouth fishing around East TN has been grade A and it has been all topwater flies. Streamers are still working well, but who cares when fish are leaping out of the water to get a popper. I had the opportunity to take Ryan Hicks, a Florida native, on his first fly fishing trip and it was one to remember. These guys were fired up about some topwater,which is great because Ryan got to see just how mean a smallmouth can get.

Shortly after we started fishing Ryan had a blow up on his fly and said this is a nice fish, he was in for a surprise.

After missing a few fish, Ryan decided to buckle down and get serious. It didn’t take long before he caught several more fish and some nice ones. Needless to say, he was the one that was hooked.

Smallmouth have eyes that are sensitive to light so when that sun gets high, they will find shade and cover to hide from it. This time of year when the sun stays out for a long time, the fish will spend a lot of their time in cover, making it hard to get to them and hard to see. Patience can be the key this time of year when it starts to get warm. Trust me, when you throw a fly in the shade and let it sit, something is looking at it so give it time to reveal itself. It could also hit it as soon as it touches the water so stay focused.

Ask Ryan about it he will tell you the same thing.

We floated today for smallmouth, and what a day it was. The topwater action was definitely earlier in the day and it didn’t take long for the fish to get back into hiding. They were willing to eat though. We caught a few fish early on top and around 9:00am they were all in the hard to get places. Lee Whitehead didn’t have any problem getting into those places because he wore them out.

The are definitely on the craw bite too because we caught way more of our fish on craw patterns than baitfish flies. They were pretty picky too on how they wanted the fly presented. It didn’t take us long to figure them out, but when we did it was game on. Lee is a big trout guy, but is reconsidering his favorite species after today. The weather is great and the water temps are perfect, it really doesn’t get any better than this.

We also got to see what high water and not paying attention can do to a boat on this river. I hope that whoever was in this boat got out safely and is ok. Keep in mind that this boat is made of metal.

I had to get a shot of the raft sitting in the riffles when we got out and wade fished. It was a great day on the river and the Lord blessed us with great fishing. Give us a call for some of this incredible smallmouth action while it lasts.

We have been on the Holston the past couple of days and it has been fishing good. The caddis are still coming off strong and the weather is getting back to normal. Ted sr. and Ted jr. learned how to fish the park on monday and yesterday wanted to see what tailwaters were all about. They saw very quickly that they are 2 different worlds, but they loved both of them. They are beginners in fly fishing and were successful in both big and small waters. Here are some fish from yesterday’s float.

Man these guys were a lot of fun to fish with. If we would have done a smallie float too, they would have been some well rounded fisherman, but we will save that for next time. They are from Wisconsin and do a lot of ice fishing, so I don’t need to tell you how much they liked it down here. We are looking forward to all the warm weather coming in, and we will probably be doing some more smallmouth stuff. So stay tuned for more fishing reports.

The Dossers and I made it out to the Holston today for a float. The sun was shining and the fish were biting, what more could you ask for. The weather channel was calling for rain but we only saw a few sprinkles. There were a lot of fisherman out today, mostly wade fisherman and the fish were very active and didn’t get put down due to the pressure. That’s an indication of how awesome the fishing is on the Holston right now, not to mention all over East Tennessee. Here is a photo of a nice rainbow that Bob Dosser caught. Gail Dosser caught several fish about the same size and missed a good smallmouth.

The fish were not hesitant to eat the fly today, but were hesitant to get stuck, which means they were quick strikes, plus we had a bunch of L.D.R’s. The funny thing is that we still boated quite a few fish nonetheless. It is silly right now in our area, but it is just a normal Spring for us, it gets crazy. The caddis did let up a little around 12:30 so we stopped for a bite to eat and had to get a shot of our view.

On the way to the take out we were pleasantly surprised by this small doe wandering the bank. It was a beautiful day and we can only thank the Lord for it. Don’t forget about troutfest tomorrow and Sunday, and if you want to talk about fishing I think we can help you out.

We have been fishing all over lately from the park to the Tailwaters and even the lakes. So far we haven’t found bad fishing anywhere. The Holston River has been on fire with this crazy caddis hatch. We have been catching a lot of fish and some really nice ones. Today (Muffie) and I floated the holston and did really well. This was her first time fly fishing for trout and she did good to say the least. These fish are so active, they are slamming caddis on the top and eating anything under the service. These are some nice fish that were caught today.

With all of the water that has gone through this river it has made the fish super strong and they put up a great fight. Mix that with an average of 12 to 14 inch fish and you can have a pretty fun day. We hooked up with some very nice fish, but then had some L.D.R’s (long distance releases). That is what makes it fun though. Call us today for a float trip on the Holston to get in on some of this action. The National Park and the smallmouth are also fishing good. Don’t forget about troutfest this weekend in Townsend, TN. We will have a booth set up and we hope to see you there.

Yesterday we hit the river for some more smallie action and it was good. The fish were very active and they didn’t hesitate to eat a fly. TVA has had great schedules on all of the smallmouth waters and we have been taking advantage of it. Alex caught some nice smallmouth on the float and boy were they pretty. This one looked like he cross breaded with a tiger. We also threw some white bass in the mix.

The wind blew all day on the river which made casting kind of tough and as soon as we got to the take out it was like glass. That always seems to be the case. Next weekend is Troutfest and we will have a booth set up, so come and say hi and talk about fishing, or share some lies whatever you choose. It looks like tomorrow is going to be cold and rainy so I will probably spend some time behind the vise tying some smallmouth flies for our up coming trips this next week.

We have been fishing in the Smokies and on the tailwaters this past week and both have been incredible. In the park, the dry fly fishing has been so good with the yellow sally’s, hendricksons, and march browns that there is no need to put on a nymph. The Holston River caddis hatch has started too and it has the fish going nuts. Hugh Hartsell and I fished the Holston Monday and had a great time. The fish were eating the adult caddis, emergers and nymphs all day. We caught several fish and a few that would run in the 18 to 20 range on dry’s. The caddis hatch will last until the end of June so you don’t want to pass it up.

Like the tailwaters, the Smokies are on fire. The dry fly action has been outstanding, especially with the yellow sally’s. The yellow sally is a small yellow stonefly in sizes 18 to 14. It’s our longest hatch of the year and they come off all day long. Towards the later part of the day they are very thick, but it doesn’t matter to the fish because they eat them all day. The eawther has been great and the rain has held off for a while which has our rivers at great levels. If you are thinking about a vacation and want to get away, the Smokies would be the place to do it. I can’t say enough about the fishing, it has been awesome and you don’t want to miss it.

Along all the roads and trails by the rivers you will see tons of wild flowers growing, and right now one of my favorites, the Trillium, is blooming everywhere. You will also notice what looks to be a small snake in the rocks and soil, but don’t be alarmed because it is a giant millipede. The Smoky Mountains is an incredible place with very beautiful surroundings and lots of wild animals and plant life. It’s a one of a kind place. Have a blessed day and thanks for reading with us.