Fishing Report

Hiwassee River

The Hi has been fishing great all season. The only thing that seems to change is what the preferred dry fly is from one week to the next. Currently, the isonychia's rule. We have been fishing these with great success, catching good numbers of 14" fish, including a 16" Brown that fell prey to a good drift. I would use a size 14 or 16. If you get a good drift in holding water they will eat. If you get too far behind on your drift and can't get a good mend without pulling your fly under, let it fish on the swing. They will still eat, it's just not as fun as seeing them eat on top.
The water temps have been holding up better than expected this year. The last one I checked on the upper river showed it to be 58 degrees. That is perfect! We could still use some rain of course, but so far, so good. The fish don't seem to mind.

Tellico River

I haven't done any trout fishing lately on the Tellico. I spend my time smallmouth fishing this time of year and give the trout a break. The higher water temps, along with the lower water levels, really stress the trout. I figure that we could both use a break, so I switch over to smallies. It's a real sacrifice, but I get by...Ha Ha!
The smallmouth fishing has been stellar so far this summer. I went a couple days ago and caught about forty, all on the same popper. Nothing wrong with that. Water temp was 71 on the section of river that I was fishing on. This was in the afternoon, not during my normal prime time evening smallie trips. It's a very special time right now for the smallies. Low water conditions make them alot easier to locate and to sight fish for. They can also spot you too, so stealth is very important. You really have to make that first cast count. If you do it right, they'll come up and crush the popper. That's one of my favorite sounds!
It's only a matter of time before they seek out some deeper water to escape the heat. I think I'll tie up a bunch of crawfish patterns today so I'll be ready to make the switch. Once they get on the crawfish bite in deeper water it's hard to get them looking up again. Especially in this heat. It always pays to have some of those patterns in the box. They can really save the day.