Displaying items by tag: Blogs Tagged with Western North Carolina
Fly Fishing on the Nantahala was really good today. Fish were rising to dries regularly along with your typical assortment of subsurface bugs. We were throwing San Juan worms, Egg patterns and pheasant tails. Wooly Buggers were working well too!
The key to success on this day, was getting the nymphs down deep and bouncing them off the bottom. If you were not getting your flies down, the fish were not interested.
After 2-3 hours of fishing the DH water of the Nantahala River we decided to fish some wild trout water in Western North Carolina.
It was an entirely different story. The dry fly action was phenomenal with fish leaping completely out of the water after dry flies. What worked well here was a dry dropper rig with a size 16 quill imitation with size 16 bead head dropper. When they weren't taking the dry, they were taking the nymph.
After about 20-30 fish within a little over an hour, the surface bite tapered off. Everything after that was subsurface, with a tight line tandem nymph rig.
What a great day on the river... Book your trip today. 724-986-2652
Now is the time to be fly-fishing in Western North Carolina
Tight Lines,
Gordon Vanderpool, Owner/Guide
Location: Nantahala DH and Small Wild Trout Stream
Well, folks, The rain is on, and the rivers are all up and really moving as of this evening. The rain is supposed to slow down overnight and then we have a beautiful stretch of weather coming! As far as the fishing goes, it has been really good on the Tuckasegee, Nantahala, and Ravens Fork for some time now! With all of this rain, our flows should remain up for a while (but fishable)!
These three rivers are all loaded up and fishing great!! San Juans in various colors, Hares Ears, Pheasant Tails, Price Nymphs, Rainbow warriors, Zebra Midges are all taking fish with regularity! When tying these patterns don't be afraid to incorporate some flash and hot spots on them, stocked trout can't say no to it! :) For the streamer guy, olive, black, and white are my favorites! Once again, make them stand out and you'll be glad you did!
Location: Western North Carolina! Nantahala River, Tuckasegee River, and Raven Fork of the Oconaluftee River!
Well, The summer weather is slowly slipping past us. As it happens the fishing is starting to improve with the cooler temperatures! We are about to have some of the best fly fishing of the year in our grasps. October 1st means the start of North Carolina's Delayed Harvest season! What does that mean??? Well, let's just say trout fishing is about to go through a big change for the better. Starting the first week of October, North Carolina will start stocking the Tuckasegee river, Nantahala River, West Fork Of The Pigeon River, Snowbird Creek, and Fires Creek!! All of which are in western North Carolina and on our radar for guide trips!! We will also have float trips on the Tuckasegee River for trout!! This time of year is an absolutely perfect time for a new fly angler to have a go at fly fishing!! The fish will be waiting, and are quite friendly to the new fly fisher! We here at Turning Stones Fly Fishing hope we can be a part of your first fly fishing adventure!
CALL NOW FOR GUIDE TRIPS!! 724-986-2652
Tight lines,
Gordon Vanderpool
With 90 degree days common this summer, you have to get creative here in the Smoky Mountains if you want to catch trout!
The first thing is to temp the water on your lower elevation watersheds. If it's near the upper 60's to 70 degrees let them rest.
That's when it's time to go higher in elevation, and yes this might mean a little hiking. These fish also have less pressure and are more likely to be friendly. If you are still having a hard time finding fish keep in mind how warm it is, the trout will be favoring the more oxygenated water types (Riffles, pocket water). They will also hunker down in the bottoms of deeper pools to relax. There are numerous streams like this in western North Carolina to play on! If you are still struggling give us a call and one of my guides will be more than happy to help you.
Tight lines!
Gordon Vanderpool