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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 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.
May 12, 2010
Here is a sample of the great fishing the clients are having this week. Some pigs on the trophy private water, sulphurs coming off yesterday afternoon on the Watauga Tailwater, and today off to fish for some Holston Proper smallies.
 
 
March 11, 2010
Do you want to test your sight fishing skills going after large trophy class trout? We have the waters that will give you this opportunity. About one hour from our base in Kingsport, Tennessee, in the quiet scenic mountains of southwestern Virginia, are nearly 15 miles of private water on 5 streams. These waters hold some of the biggest, hardest fighting rainbow trout found anywhere. Commonly seen and sometimes hooked in these trophy streams are rainbows upwards of 15lb. Sixteen to twenty inch fish are plentiful and fish in the twenty to twenty-six inch class are caught repeatedly. These fish are in tune with their environment. What makes it better is you don’t have to travel to such out of the ordinary places to fish for them. You will have the opportunity to work streamers, indicator or high stick nymph rigs through the runs, and entice them with dry flies on occasion. Take a trip with our Orvis Endorsed Guide Service for a day of southern private scenery with the opportunity to land the fish of a lifetime. Come give these waters a try, you will be planning your next trip back before you are done with this day.
March 9, 2010
Been on the water with clients the past few days and it has been good, weather and fishing. The Watauga is fishing great on both low water and under generation. The BWO’s are coming off in droves and the feeding frenzy is on. Today was good numbers and some big fish thrown in for good measure. The browns were fighting hard digging deep as you fought back, and the rainbows were up on the surface giving those great tail dances. The South Holston is fishing extremely well while wading and the BWO’s really come off good in the mid afternoons. The weather was nice Sunday while floating the Holston proper for smallies, but the water below the Holston Army Ordinance Plant was still pretty cold, 45 degrees in the mid afternoon. The upper section we float through the Eastman Chemical Company is warm and some nice 4 to 5 pound smallies are being caught. While doing this float you have the chance to catch a 3 to 5 pound trout above the low water dam and then once we slide over the dam the warm water discharges take the river to 60 degrees and the smallies are stacked up in this section.
How are your sight fishing and casting skills for trophy class trout? Want to try you hand at casting to a tight target where rainbows that can go upwards of 15 pounds will only move 6 or 7 inches to take your presentation. We have almost fifteen miles of private waters on five different streams. One of the streams has the second highest biomass on streams in Virginia and another is number five in the state. Some folks who have fished all over the country for trout say this water ranks highly on their list of places they prefer to fish. If you are interested in fishing these waters give me a call and get hooked up with a catch of a lifetime.
The Nolichucky muskies are starting to move around this week. These are some of the greatest freshwater predator fish I have ever chased. They are proving to be a worthy adversary. It is a day of 10 weight fly rods and big flies, but the rewards can be so sweet. This type of fishing requires a different mindset because it can be a day of hard fishing just to see a follow, but those who have the obsession understand. I grew up fishing for these as a teenager on lakes in the northern states, I had a uncle who shared the passion. Keep and eye on this blog for more updates and pictures as we start spending more time hunting these great predators.
February 24, 2010
The new Orvis Hydros is a great rod and this is the proof. Field & Stream picked it as part of its best new fishing gear for 2010. To see the reviews, click here
I have two of them and they are great feeling and casting. Accuracy is dead on and they are light enough to cast all day with out wearing your arm out. It doesn’t matter if its trout fishing on the South Holston or Watauga Tailwaters or smallie fishing on the Nolichucky or Holston Proper these rods will get the job done and make for an enjoyable day on the river.
February 18, 2010
Well the TVA has gotten the lakes down to a manageable level and without any heavy rains in the future the generation will allow good floats and wades. The Watauga is fishing great with BWO’s hatching all up and down the river. We can float the upper sections when they generate and then it is the Quality Zone on the weekends when the water slows down. So get yourself to Elizabethton, Tennessee and wet a line on the Watuaga.
 
The South Holston has dry fly action as well as deep nymphing. It is so nice to see that strike indicator make that slight twitch and then feeling the head shake as you come tight to the fish. The best nymphs the past week have been Princes and San Juan Worms. When it come to dries, the BWO AK’s Parachute has been the “bee’s knee’s” (if you like GIECO commercials). They take it hard and fast, when you land a fish it is back in their mouth. This also causes us to loose some fish, usually browns with those sharp teeth. As they fight and swing their heads back and forth it cuts the leader. So it is getting time to get out and fish and the South Holston Tailwater in Bristol, Tennessee is the place to get hooked up on one of those butter belly browns.
 
 
Don’t forget that smallmouth bass fishing is just around the corner, I am already getting calls from folks who want to make sure that they get their trip in this year on Tennessee’s best smallie river, The Holston Proper River near Kingsport, Tennessee. Just to give everyone a little help on where we are located and where this great smallmouth river is, it is 20 minutes from the ‘Worlds Fastest Half Mile” and the NASCAR fan’s favorite track, Bristol Motor Speedway. So if you want to come and get hooked up to fight the best fighting freshwater fish out there, give me a call or email and lets get you scheduled for a great outdoor experience.
 
January 27, 2010
If you are in or around the Louisville, Knetucky area this coming Saturday, January 30th, Come to the Kentuckiana Fly Fishing Show at the Fern Valley Inn and Conference Center on Fern Valley Road. I will have my wooden drfitboat with me in the booth and will be giving two presentation/seminars during the day. Please stop by the booth to say hello. I will have a Orvis Helios and the new Hydros rods in the booth for you to test cast. Looking forward to seeing everyone.
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