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August 15, 2010
This week has been excellent with trips on both the Watauga Tailwater in Elizabethton and the South Holston Tailwater near Bristol. The Watauga has some really good hatches coming off from late morning through the evening and the fish are feeding very aggressively on them. There are Craneflies, tan and cream Midges, Flying Ants, Sweatbees, and still some sulphurs. It is so cool for the clients to watch these fish come to the surface attack their fly. Here are some pictures to show the week we have had.
 
 
This was a cool double on the Watauga, both father and son threw into the rising fish in unison, having both fish strike as the fly hit the water and landed the double to make this memory filled picture.
Don’t forget about booking your private water trip to Southwest Virginia to go after some of those once in a lifetime memories. Here are some fish from previous trips.
 
 
Tightlines and wet nets!!!
August 9, 2010
This week has started with a couple of Watauga Tailwater float trips. The first was to introduce a gentleman to the sport of fly fishing. It was a great day of nymphing to start off and then dry flies the rest of the day. After a few fish on a sulphur dry fly, he said, you know I really like this type of fishing.
Today was more of the same, with better fishing on dries. The fish were feeding heavily on the emerging cranflies. Seeing those fish slashing and flashing for the bugs on the surface made the adrenalin levels rise. There is nothing like seeing a nice fish crush your fly.
August 6, 2010
What an excellent week for fishing on the East Tennessee tailwaters. The Watuaga is getting low and clear, typical summer water, but the fishing was good. I took Reba and Todd B. on Reba’s birthday float. HAPPY BIRTHDAY Reba. She had an excellent day of fishing along with learning more about the river system so when she and Todd float their raft they can have better results on the Watauga Tailwater.
Then there was a fishing school for Aarron F. He wanted to take up the sport of fly fishing so we went to the South Holston for casting, knot, water reading and then catching a few fish. He was amazed at the amount of fish in the water around him taking the sulphurs and blackflies off the surface. He is going to ETSU full time and needed some way to relax and get his mind off things and fly fishing is just the sport for that.
I had father and son Carl and Ethan E. on the South Holston. Ethan is a beginner to fly fishing but took to it quickly. His father has spent considerable time fly fishing around the world and I feel Ethan will be going with him from now on. The South Holston gave up plenty of those beautiful butter belly browns to their fly imitations. It was great to see their smiles as they caught those browns on nymphs and sulphur dries during the high water float trip.
This has been and incredible summer of fishing, but it is still not over. Give ma a call and lets go fishing like these folks did.
July 27, 2010
It was a great day on the South Holston with a new clent who brought a old client/friend along. Trip S. called and set up a trip based on a recommendation from TJ Roy, the manager of the Orvis store in Charlotte, North Carolina. He told me he was bringing one of his friends named Adam. When they pulled into the meeting place it was Adam M. from Raleigh, I have done several trips with him and his wife. We started the morning floating the lower South Holston and then after lunch waded the upper stretches of the river near the Weir labyrinth. It was great to watch these guys work the water getting those beautiful browns and rainbows to the net. There was a sulphur hatch where we were from about 1:30 pm until 5:00 pm. The guys caught fish on many different techniques from deep nymphing, midge dries, soft hackles and finished the day with sulphur dries. It a great day with a new and old client.
Here is the email that Trip S. sent after the trip:
Randy,
I have been out with my fair share of guides in and around North Carolina and Tennessee. I can honestly say I have never learned more, had more experiences on the water, caught more fish, laughed more, or had a better time than with you today. I really appreciate your knowledge and ability to teach and coach, Today was a truly memorable day and I look forward to many more.
Best Regards,
Trip S.
Director of Sales
WBT AM/FM, WLNK FM
Greater Media Charlotte
One Julian Price Place
Charlotte, NC 28208
(704) 374-3596
Here is a few pictures from the day.
 
 
July 24, 2010
The fishing on the South Holston and Watauga Tailwaters in East Tennessee is as hot as the weather. The sulphurs are coming off so thick that it is like a blanket on the river surface. The fish are in a feeding frenzy and you can tell how much they are eating by the bulge in their belly. It is so cool to watch the brown stage up and take aim on your fly, the anticipation is intense and you hope you don’t pull it from their mouth before the brown inhales it. The fog is on the river during the early morning keeping the temperatures in a manageable zone, but once the sun burns the fog off it gets hot. But with the way the river is fishing, you don’t pay much attention because your focus is on your fly and the rising fish.
So give me a call and lets get you out there catching a few of those beautiful browns as they sip those sulphurs on the South Holston Tailwater. Don’t forget about the smallies on the Holston Proper or Pigeon River. The topwater action is in full swing so get your trip scheduled now.
Stay tuned for more reports as I fish for smallies this coming week.
July 18, 2010
I had Keith, his brother Chris, and Chris’ sons Matt and Josh on the Watauga fly fishing for trout. Matt was so excited to go he hadn’t slept in two days. It was fun watching them catch fish and getting more addicted to the sport. The day started out great catching fish on the first couple of casts right at the boat ramp.
 
The day was comfortable temperature wise and the weather guessers missed the forecast again. It was cloudy most of the day and the fish were biting very well. Split Case and Miracle nymph were the best flies, the dry fly and terrestrial bite never materialized today.
 
 
I have been blessed to meet so many great folks in my career as a guide and these guys were no exception. To watch the excitement as they get the bite and fight the fish makes your day so enjoyable. I truly enjoyed the day and look forward to taking them fishing again.
As the sign I saw in Beaufort, South Carolina said, “the is no chance of snow in the forecast for the next 72 hours”, so lets go fishing.
Give me a call or email and come fish to great tailwaters or mountain streams of East Tennessee, Western North Carolina, or Southwest Virginia.
July 15, 2010
Today was a different kind of day on one of East Tennessee’s best warmwater rivers, the Pigeon River. The clients caught some nice walleye, largemouth and smallmouth bass, and lots of redbreast sunfish. It was a bluebird sky kind of day and the river was stained from the recent rains, but the fishing was excellent. The walleye were firsts for Paul and John, a couple of cousins from Mt. Sterling, Kentucky. It was great to be able to talk about home, as this is where my Mothers side of the family is from, and where I spent my summers helping the family with the tobacco farms. It was hard work but there are many memories to go along with it.
Back to fishing, here is a pictorial on some of the catches from today.
If you are vacationing near Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, or Sevierville, give me a call and get yourself booked on a float down the wonderful Pigeon River.
July 9, 2010
Had a great day on the Watauga with a soldier and his father. Derek was traveling to his next assignment with his father and they called me to take them fishing as they passed through the area. I want to thank this young man for his service to our country. His father can be proud that his son is a fine person.
Can you say terrestrials. They were munching hard all down the river.
Don’t you just love the topwater bite with dry flies and terrestrials.
July 6, 2010
What a great 4th of July, celebrating our countries birth and having great trips with clients. The weekend started with Sam and Kathy C. on a Watauga float through the Quality Zone. The fishing was great on the usual Watauga Tailwater summertime patterns, nymphs until you could see the noses as they fed on sulphurs and sweat bee dries.
Then it was two great gentleman who were childhood friends taking another memory filled fishing trip. Buzz and Gren talked about the old days as they fished and had a great time fighting those Watauga Tailwater attitude filled bows.
Sunday July 4th was Scott and Sarah B. from Atlanta, GA. It was Sarah’s first trout fishing trip and she worked hard at getting the cast down and was rewarded with many bites on her presentations. It was truly enjoyable to watch Sarah become a great fly fisher person as the day progressed. The folks on the “Hooch” better watch out.
Then it was back with Sam and Kathy from Richmond, Va on Monday. We fished the South Holston near Bluff City to start the morning off and it was a spectacular day for them on the South Holston Tailwater. We put the wooden driftboat in the water and rowed to the proper spot and in the first ten casts, landed six beautiful South Holston brown trout. The sulphur hatch during the afternoon generation was like a blanket on the water. Watching those fish splashing and slashing going after all those bugs was nothing shoer of amazing. We finished the day with a flurry of better than average browns on dries.
Then it was on to the Holston Proper for some smallie action with a gentleman who had never caught a smallmouth bass. The weather was hot and the fish were everywhere. Working with his cast with the heavier weight rods only took a few minute to get him into the rhythm then it was lets catch some fish. He talked about the hard fight the smallies put up and from the many deep bends in the rod today he got more than his share of the excellent fighting ability of the Holston Proper smallies.
I hope everyone had a great 4th and is staying cool in the summertime heat. Its a couple of days off and time for some driftboat trailer maintenance and then back on the water for a good set of trips for trout and smallies.
June 20, 2010
We have had a great week of fishing this week in the Southern Appalachians. We started the week floating the Watauga Tailwater in Elizabethton, Tennessee. It was a very rewarding trip for Nat and Tony. They each fished hard and landed some nice trout throughout the day.
 
Then it was on to the Southwest Virginia private trophy trout waters. The river was stained from the rain the day before, but the big fish were biting. Nat and Jim put there best cast out there and were rewarded with some nice fish to get the “Grip n Grin” pictures.
 
Then it was back to the Watauga Tailwater and Holston Proper for brothers from Ohio. They loved their first float on the Watauga and enjoyed many double hook-ups during the float trip. The next day we floated the Holston Proper for smallies. They got to feel the fight from the Holston’s river smallies as the fish loaded up their 8 wt rods and put them through the paces during the fight. They each had big smiles at the end of the day.
 
Give me a call and lets get your summertime fishing trip on the calendar. I have a summer time special for the months of July and August. Book and take a two person float trip during these months and the trip will only cost $300, an $80 savings.
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