Tailwater Hatches

It’s relatively easy to prepare for hatches on the tailwaters since there are relatively few bug species. Midges are the most prevalent insect on the large rivers. While they are tiny, about #18 to #24 and sometimes smaller, they are often the most important food item for trout. A fish may eat upwards of a thousand on days with long emergences.

Dry flies like a Griffith’s Gnat can work, but the most successful midge patterns represent larva or pupa. Flies like a Zebra Midge are among the most effective, even when trout are rising. Many trout rising to midges are eating insects just under the surface, but this activity still creates a rise ring.

The most important insect to fly fishers on the tailwaters in the spring is the Sulphur. These elegant mayflies begin to appear in April on most of the tailwaters. They generally peak in May on the Clinch, but late June into July is typically the peak on the South Holston.

Sulphurs are generally a #16 and a variety of fly patterns will imitate them successfully. A Pheasant Tail nymph is the most popular nymph pattern and it can be used in the hours before the hatch or during the hatch.

Parachute patterns can be effective, but flies without hackle like Compara Duns and Sparkle Duns seem to fool more trout in the smooth, slick currents found on the tailwaters.

Smoky Mountain Hatches

There is far more insect diversity in the mountain streams than there is on the tailwaters. There are literally hundreds of mayfly and caddis species in the Smokies. However, there are only a few insects that you need to focus on.

The first insects to show up may do so even in January. The Little Winter Stonefly is quite small and of marginal importance. They migrate to the banks and crawl out of the water to hatch. While the trout will eat them, they tend to keep themselves out of imminent danger by staying near the banks. These bugs are small, about #18-20, but very tough. We’ve even seen them crawling around on snow along the stream.

Little Winter Stonefly

The Early Brown Stonefly is a larger cousin of the Little Winter Stonefly. We see these guys buzzing about the streams in March and early April, but trout are only occasionally interested in them. As with all stoneflies, trout are most interested in them when they are laying eggs on the water. Early Brown Stones are #12-14 and cause quite a commotion as the fly about and dive bomb the water to lay their eggs.

A good strategy is to use an Orange Stimulator and drop a nymph under it to imitate emerging mayflies.

Early Brown Stonefly

Little Black Caddis also emerge relatively early. While these insects rarely cause trout to rise reliably in the Smokies, they do work trout into a frenzy on the Watauga. In the Smokies we begin to see them in February, but they’ll continue to emerge through the spring.

Little Black Caddis

Like the stoneflies, these caddis tend to hatch along the edges of the stream. However, they do get in the water when the lay eggs. Small Elk Hair Caddis in #18 can bring trout to the surface, but wet flies and nymphs seem to be more consistent. This is probably because these bugs hatch when water temperatures are pretty cold and their emergences are scattered and inconsistent on the streams.

Perhaps the two most important insects to the Smoky Mountain fly fisher in the spring are the Quill Gordon and Blue Quill. We’ll go ahead and include the Blue Wing Olive as well, but most people can’t tell them apart from a Blue Quill. It’s very possible the trout don’t distinguish between them either since a fly pattern that works for one will also work for the other.

The Blue Wing Olive is also very important on the South Holston and Hiwasse tailwaters. They hatch through the winter and well into the spring on these large rivers.

The Quill Gordon is a large #12 mayfly that has a gray body and wings. They seem somewhat clumsy on the water and their large size and habit of flopping on the surface can put trout into a frenzy.

A Quill Gordon

This is our favorite hatch in the Smokies. Every year we’ll find at least one large brown trout up eating these spring time delicacies.

Basic nymph patterns will fool the trout, but an important piece of knowledge is to know that Quill Gordons hatch under water and ascend to the surface with the their wings  already out. This means that wet fly patterns are also effective.

For many fly fishers the Yellow Sally or Little Yellow Stonefly is the epitome of Smoky Mountain fly fishing. This perhaps the most consistent and largest emergence of insects every season in the Smokies. We begin to see the Yellow Sally in early to mid April, but it’s late April into May when things really heat up.

Yellow Sally

The most important thing a fly fisher can do is notice how the insects are flying around the water. If they are flying upwards, there isn’t much use in using a dry fly to imitate them. They emerged from the water to hatch some time ago and are now flying to the safety of streamside vegetation. In fact, this means you should have been fishing a nymph about two or three hours ago.

Things will get crazy when you see the Yellow Sallies flying down to the water. This means they are laying eggs and many will die on the water or drown while laying eggs. This manna from Heaven brings the trout to the surface in a chaotic frenzy. Watch for the Yellow Sallies to emerge and lay eggs around dusk. The action usually only lasts for about 30 minutes, but there’s nothing like it in the Smokies.

This is the first installment in our Advice from the Guides Video Blog. We’ve decided to take what would have been an article in our newsletter and do it as a video. Watch for future installments to include casting tips, streamer fishing, nymph fishing techniques, and more.

This month we’ve focused on Abrams Creek, the best wild trout stream to fish in the Smokies when the weather is brutally cold. Charity and I fished through the winter blast we experienced a few weeks back. The weather was freezing, but the scenery was spectacular and we always managed to pick up a few fish.

Advice from the Guides – Winter Fly Fishing on Abrams Creek from Ian Rutter on Vimeo.

This video is also available via YouTube.

What’s size leader and tippet should I use?

This varies depending on which rivers and streams you’re fishing. For most water in the Smokies we use a 7 1/2′ leader tapered to 5X. This is probably the best overall leader for the Smokies. We’ll sometimes use longer 9′ leaders on larger streams like Little River. Ultra short leaders of 6′ and sometimes smaller are best for the tightest, brush choked brook trout streams.

We don’t use anything shorter than 9′ long when fishing nymphs or dry flies on the tailwaters. 6X is pretty standard on the tailwaters, but most anglers are surprised to see that 5X will work most of the time.

Any time we’re fishing with streamers we use a short and stout leader. We consider 3X to be light tippet and only use it on patterns smaller than #8. If we’re using a floating fly line we generally fish a 7 1/2′ leader that’s tapered to 1X or 2X. When we fish big streamers with a sink tip fly line we’re more likely to use a 4′-6′ leader. Those are usually hand tied with two segments: a butt of 20 lb mono tied to a 12 lb piece of mono.

When should I consider using a streamer?

Very few of the anglers we take fishing use streamers very often. Most are unfamiliar with the techniques and tend to steer clear of the method.

Streamers are most effective on the mountain streams when water conditions are high and/or stained. Not only is this the best time to fish with streamers in the creeks, it is sometimes the best way to fish under those conditions.

Spring and early summer are among the most critical times to consider using a streamer. Spring rains and summer thunderstorms create high are dirty water conditions. Most anglers reel up and leave when this happens, but we’ll often toss the tackle bag in the car and head for the stream. This is the best time to have a chance to catch a big brown trout in the Smokies.

While bigger pools and long runs are prime targets for large brown trout, don’t ignore the same pocket water that you typically fish with dry flies or nymphs. Brown trout and rainbows will both take streamers in these spots.

Keep your streamers relatively small to catch more trout, but fish large flies to attract bigger fish. A #10 Black Woolly Bugger is the most basic pattern that attracts the most fish. Bulkier patterns like Zuddlers and Double Bunnies attract few strikes, but the fish that do tackle these large flies are generally pretty big.

I’m not catching any trout in a pool. Should I change flies or move to a new spot?

This depends on the situation. If there is nothing going on and you’ve fished the pool thoroughly then we suggest you move on. Unfortunately the situation is rarely this clear cut.

Most anglers asking this question are wondering about fish they can see but can’t catch. If the fish are actively feeding you should keep changing flies until something works. Sometimes the same fly won’t catch all the fish in a pool. Some trout may eat a bushy fly pattern while others are only fooled by sparsely dressed imitations. We usually keep several imitations on hand for a hatch.

In the spring we use parachutes, Haystacks, and standard Catskill style dry flies for a variety of patterns to imitate the same insects. This way when a fish refuses one fly we still have other patterns to fall back on. If a really nice fish rises to a fly but doesn’t eat it, we never cast that fly right back to him. The fish made peace with the idea that the fly would drift away and never come back; just like anything else in the stream. If you cast the same fly back multiple times you stand a good chance of arousing the trout’s suspicion. Change the fly immediately to something similar yet different. The chances are very good that the fish will eat the new fly.

It’s not uncommon to fish over actively feeding trout and get a few dragging drifts. The more bad drifts you put over a fish, the less likely he is to eat that particular fly. The fish has seen the fly acting unnaturally multiple times so he is less likely to believe it’s real once it does drift properly.

Trout rarely resume feeding after you nicked them with a missed strike. However, if a hatch is particularly strong a fish may start to rise again, but expect the fish to be more discriminating in the future.

The more you fish a pool the more difficult the fish will become. There ia a point that even though fish are rising, you may do better to move to a new location with fish you haven’t already educated.

As fly fishers we have an advantage over natural predators like osprey, herons, water snakes, and otters. They have to catch their dinner with their claws and mouths. Skilled anglers fool trout into coming willing to a fly. All too often many anglers negate the advantages of a well tied fly and clear monofilament leader.

Put the fly where a fish will see it. This is a relatively simple concept, but one that is often overlooked. A fly fisher may have the best fly ever devised, but it is worthless if a fish never sees it. Anglers should strive to find the best spots to cast a fly. Feeding lanes are always the best place to cast a fly since these are the currents where fish find food most often. Most trout will not be found in excessively swift water or still water. Swift water requires a good deal of energy to hold in and still water doesn’t have enough current to bring a steady supply of food.

There's a lot of water out there and that fly is small. Be sure to put it where a fish can see it.

Take special care not to spook fish or make them aware of your presence. As soon as a fish has spooked you will not catch him. This is basic knowledge, but we often see anglers on the river who seem to ignore this fact. We have even watched some anglers wade through pods of rising fish to get a better casting position. Of course this better casting position was worthless once the fish were gone! If a fish runs away to hide it will never see your fly. Again, the perfect fly has been rendered useless.

Move slowly on the water and cast from a position where trout won't notice you.

Make accuracy a priority over distance when casting the fly. The ability to cast a fly far is a valuable skill, but that skill is nullified if you can’t hit a target. Even when casting from a drift boat a 30 foot cast usually works better than a 60 or 70 foot cast. Many anglers can hit a target at 30 feet but have more difficulty as the distance grows. Again, trout will not see your fly if it lands off target.

We often fish to pods of midging fish on our local tailwaters here in East Tennessee. The midge hatches are so prolific that most fish will not move more than a couple of inches for such a small offering. Casting accuracy is crucial in this situation where being off by about a foot might be about as effective as missing by a mile.

Ensure your accuracy by stacking the odds in your favor and only make casts that have at least a reasonable shot of hitting the target. Long casts also increase the chances of a sloppy cast that slaps the water and spooks the fish.

Short casts are usually better than long casts even when fishing from a drift boat.

Get a good drift so the fly looks natural on the water. Ever heard the old adage that good looks will only get you so far? That’s particularly true with trout flies. Even the most realistically tied fly will not look right to a trout if it drags across the current like a water skier. Anglers can do several things to make a good drift easier to accomplish. We’ve already mentioned shorter casts but shorter drifts are just as important. It is far easier to make a fly drift without drag for five or six feet than it is for 20 or 30 feet. Divide a run of water into several short drifts and you will increase your odds of covering a fish with a perfect drift. Another thing anglers can do is to plan ahead by anticipating drag and make the appropriate mend with the line before drag sets in. Mending line is less effective after drag has set in.

Give every drift a chance. We all make bad casts, but leave the fly on the water and see what happens. Worst case scenario a fish will not see the fly and you can pick it up and re-cast in a moment. Every season we see fly fishers pick up “bad casts” just as a fish was about to eat the fly. The fly was good enough to fool the fish, but the cast wasn’t good enough for the angler and he took it away when the fish wanted it. Let the fish be the judge and give every drift a chance, even if it didn’t meet your standard.

Dropping a fly to the water then picking it up quickly may also spook fish. Let the drift out of the zone you’re fishing. Even when fish want the fly they are less likely to come to it a second time if you picked it up before they got to it.

You've fooled the fish. Don't squander the opportunity!

Expect the strike. After reading the water, making an accurate cast, and getting a good drift it’s a real shame when you fool a fish but miss the strike. It never fails to surprise us when anglers say that they didn’t expect a fish to eat. Our response is, “Then why did you put the fly there?” There is no reason to make a cast if you don’t believe a fish might eat your fly.

Even when the fisherman had the perfect fly and the perfect drift he didn’t catch the fish because he was caught off guard. Our motto is “Be surprised when a fish didn’t come to the fly.” Act deliberately and have confidence in your cast and your drift. Try to anticipate the strike and be prepared for it.

The Pat’s Nymph is one of those flies that Smoky Mountain fly fishing guides just love. It has a buggy look that fish can’t resist and it’s relatively quick and easy to tie. While the Pat’s Nymph is good year round, it’s particularly good in the spring since it’s a good representation of several aquatic insects.

Hook: #12-14 Standard Nymph Hook

Underbody: .010 – .015 Lead Free Wire

Thread: 6/0 Black

Tail: Brown Hackle Fibers

Body: Any shaggy gray dubbing material like squirrel or muskrat. I particularly like Wapsi Sow-Scud dubbing

Collar: Brown Hackle

Step 1. Starting at the rear of the hook wrap the lead free wire forward, then wrap back over the first layer of wire about 50% of the way back. This makes the fly heavy enough to sink in turbulent water and also adds shape to the body.

Step 2. Wrap the thread on just in front of the wire underbody, then wrap over the wire toward the rear of the hook. Be sure the wire is locked into place by the thread. Strip a few brown hackle fibers from a feather and tie them in just in front of the bend. Clip the butts. A variety of hackles will work for this since dry fly quality feathers are not required.

Step 3. Twist dubbing fibers onto the thread. Dubbing wax may help, but this is not something we use. Be sure the body of the fly has a shaggy appearance. Taper the body. Leave about one and a half hook eye’s length between the dubbing and the eye of the hook.

Step 4. Tie in the hackle. Use either inferior dry fly hackle or hen hackle. Make one or two wrap depending on the density of the hackle fibers on the feather, then tie it off and clip the excess.

Step 5. Pull the hackle fibers back with the thumb and forefinger, then wrap the thread back over it and make a head. Tie it off with a series of half hitches or a whip finish and take it fishing.

The Pat’s Nymph is excellent in a number of situations when nymphs are required. It’s a heavy fly and sinks well. This is important in cold water or turbulent water. It also makes for one half of an excellent dropper rig along with another nymph. It can weigh down other nymphs like a #16 Beadhead Pheasant Tail or add even more weight to a big stonefly pattern like a #8 Tellico Nymph.

Some anglers are turned off by the scraggly appearance of this somewhat ordinary looking fly, but it should not be ignored. Its drab color scheme imitates a variety of aquatic insects and its weight gets it down where the fish are. We’ve even noticed that fish seem to like it more as it gets chewed up. One of our fishing buddies used to grind the fly under his boot heel before tying it on and claimed that made it more enticing to fish!

Our job as guides is to direct anglers to catch fish. Sometimes we come up with creative ways to get a point across. Regardless of whether we’re fishing small brook trout streams high in the Smokies or floating down a big tailwater in a driftboat we can distill the main concept to one word: Wait!

A guide advises an angler for the best drift

In the truest sense, fly fishing is a predatory exercise; the same as hunting. We catch fish through deception while hunters take down a deer or bird with a gun, but there are more similarities than you might think. A hunter does NOT just walk through the woods blasting a rifle or shotgun as he goes. He has to wait for the shot. There are times when a hunter sees a deer or a bird, but doesn’t take the shot. It’s either too far or isn’t a clear shot, so he waits for a better opportunity.

This can apply to fly fishers too. How many times have you waded up a stream, casting as you go with no real target? This alerts fish to your presence and diminishes your chances of catching trout. An angler will do far better to simply wade into position and decide where to cast. Sometimes it helps to move a step or two further to get in the best position for a good drift.  This sets the angler up for the best shot before he casts.

Trout live in moving water. If you think about it, they only see food once before they eat it. If a real bug comes down the river and a trout doesn’t eat it, he never will. The bug only floats by once. If an angler makes a cast from a bad position there is a good chance the fly will drag or the cast will alert the fish to danger. The first time the fish sees the fly he knows it isn’t real.

On the other hand, if the angler casts from the best position possible there is a good chance the cast will be a good one. A trout is likely to eat a fly on the first cast if it has a good drift. Hunters rarely get a second shot. Deer or birds take flight and the opportunity is gone. This happens with trout too, but many anglers don’t realize this since they never saw the fish in the first place.

Charity gets a good drift from a good position

Most nights after guide trips we tell each other about our day on the water. One of the most common recurring stories is when an angler misses a strike and says, “I didn’t expect one to be there!” Of course we told them to put the fly there, but even if we didn’t we always like to ask, “Then why did you put it there?”

A hunter never shoots his rifle at random, only to be surprised that he hit something. A fly fisher should be the same way. It’s a simple concept, almost too simple, but only cast the fly when you think you’ll get a strike. Our motto is “Be surprised when a fish doesn’t eat your fly. Never be surprised when you get a strike.”

Most anglers see a pod of rising trout as a sure thing. The best way to fish over a group of fish is to pick one and fish to it. There are two ways to pick a fish. You can either choose the one you think is biggest or choose the one you think is the easiest to catch. In either case you should focus on that one fish. Most anglers cast at the whole group. This often results in the fly drifting between fish instead of drifting to a fish.

Don't "flock shoot" rising trout. Pick one fish and cast to it.

Treat your fly rod like a loaded gun and you’ll catch more fish. Choose you casts wisely and don’t cast indescriminately. Position yourself for the best opportunity and don’t cast until you know you’ll make a good one. If you follow those rules you should get more strikes, so don’t be surprised by your success. Enjoy it!

Success! A nice brown trout is the reward when everything is done right.

Don’t miss this chance to fly fish in Western North Carolina in May—truly one of the most beautiful months of the year and arguably the very best month for fly fishing in our area!!
Charity taught this class with Starr last spring and it was a great success!

Participants may choose between two levels of instruction:
·     Beginning angler – advanced beginner  or
·     Intermediate-Advanced Angler

Beginning students will learn or review:
- basic casting skills plus specialty casts for Western NC trout water
- 3 simple fly fishing knots that are all you need to fly fish
- Fly selection/basic stream entomology
- How to “read the water” and locate fish

Intermediate-advanced students will learn:
- Advanced casting includes curve cast, reach cast
- Improve the distance and accuracy of your cast
- How to get a perfect drift
- Advanced knots and how to tie droppers
- Advanced reading the water techniques
- Video taped analysis of your cast available
- Special Saltwater casting and fishing class

All students can participate in fly tying instruction

The third day of the class will be a full day guided trip with one guide for every 2 students.

Cost:   $950 (double occupancy) includes:
- Wine and cheese reception both evenings
- All instructional materials
- Waders, boots, rod and reel
- Delicious meals for the entire weekend – Friday evening through lunch Sunday
- Two nights lodging in Lake Logan’s beautiful cabins

Terms:  $250 deposit required
(not refundable if cancellation occurs less than 60 days from class date. This is a new Lake Logan policy, not ours).
Balance due 2 weeks prior to class.

Call R&R Fly Fishing or Brookside Guides to make your reservation. Space is limited.

Call Starr Nolan at Brookside Guides  – Toll Free:  877-298-2568  Cell: 828-215-4234
Call Charity Rutter at R&R Fly Fishing – Toll Free: 866-766-5935   In East TN: 865-448-0467

1. Dress for the Occasion – There are few things in the world more miserable than being cold and wet and this is the number one reason why most people avoid fishing in the winter. Cold and wet are standard conditions on a river in the winter. As outdoor professionals we rely on the creed, “There is no such thing as bad weather, just bad equipment.”

Leave your cotton socks in the drawer. Wear wool socks which are warmer. Long underwear is essential. We like capilene tights with something heavier over them. Heavy fleece pants are excellent. Turtle neck or zip neck undershirts are a good base layer. Wear a warm shirt over that plus a good jacket. Windproof fleece jackets are among the best since they block any breeze from chilling you. However, a light windbreaker or rainjacket worn over a heavy fleece jacket or pullover will achieve the same thing.

A warm hat will do more to keep you warm than almost anything else. A simple stocking cap will work fine and is often the most effective piece of head gear. Be sure to wear something that keeps your ears covered and warm.

Fleece gloves are the last piece of essential gear. We prefer the fingerless variety that still allow us some dexterity for tying knots and stripping fly line. Try to find gloves that only expose your fingertips, not the whole finger.

2. Head to the Best Destination for the Conditions – Not all rivers fish the same in the winter. Tailwaters fish much differently than natural freestone trout streams.  Extended cold snaps will keep the water temperatures extremely on mountain streams where you might even find a skim of ice on the bigger pools of water. Tailwater rivers will always have moderate water temperatures. Sometimes the water temperature is similar to what it is in the spring so tailwaters are always the best choice on the coldest days.

Many tailwaters like the South Holston in northeast Tennessee will have phenomenal Blue Wing Olive hatches during foul weather. However, some tailwaters will have massive midge emergences on sunny days. While fish will feed aggressively on these miniscule midges during these times, they can also be maddeningly selective. If the weather has been relatively mild for several days we often fare better fishing in freestone streams where the fish are rarely selective and feed more aggressively as the water warms.

3. Don’t be Afraid to Fish with Extra Weight – Trout in freestone streams aren’t likely to rise when the water is in the 40’s or colder. Tailwater trout are notorious for rising only during reliable insect emergences. Both of these facts make the point that you will have to fish a nymph to have a real opportunity at hooking fish in the winter months.  Furthermore, extra weight that gets your fly close to the river bottom will improve your odds of drawing a strike.

Fish will not move about in the current when there is little or no food to be intercepted. For this reason fish will lie on bottom to conserve their energy and often won’t even be on the lookout for food drifting above them. A fly that is tumbling along the bottom is in the only place where a fish will likely eat it. A fly that drifts only a foot higher in the water may not even get a fish’s attention.

Use small split shot and crimp them on your leader 4″ – 10″ above your fly. This is an easy step that remarkably few fly fishers take. I can’t remember how many times one small split shot made the difference between a slow day of fishing and a day of reliable hook-ups.

4. Be Sure to Fish the Fly at the Proper Depth – This concept goes hand in hand with fishing extra weight. A heavy nymph fished too shallow is just as ineffective as an unweighted fly. The best policy is to fish your nymph rig about 30″ – 36″ under a strike indicator. This is a good average. If you’re not drawing strikes or hooking bottom, make the distance longer until one or the other starts to happen. Hooking bottom about one time in ten drifts is acceptable when the fish are moving slow. This shows you that your fly is consistently getting deep. Hooking bottom any more than that will only serve to cause  aggravation as you repeatedly have to get flies off the bottom and perhaps retie your whole rig.

One rule we have is “If you’re not hooking fish, try to hook bottom.” Gradually fish the fly deeper until you either start getting strikes or snag bottom. Again, the occasional snag on the bottom is a positive, but repeated hang ups are reason to shorten it up.

5. Fish at the Appropriate Time – Much of the best activity will occur in the middle of the day so try to time your schedule to coincide with that. Show up too early and you might just get cold while fish aren’t feeding. Show up too late and you might miss the best part of the day.

Eat a big breakfast and hit the water around 10:00 – 11:00 AM when the day has started to warm up. If it’s a clear day the sun will begin to stir some activity. Some of the best fishing takes place from noon to mid-afternoon so taking a lunch break may cause you to miss the best part of the day. Keep some snacks your jacket or fishing vest along with a bottle of water. A small thermos of warm coffee or cocoa is even better. This allows you to grab a bite or have something warm to drink without taking a long break during the most productive time. Fishing will usually begin to trail off around 4:00, sometimes later on tailwaters, but it’s typically dark shortly after 5:00.

Another timing issue to consider when fishing tailwaters is hitting the rise and fall of the water right. This is a huge consideration on tailwaters in the Southeast where water levels change daily, but not so much a factor on Western tailwaters. Insects will often start to hatch very well as the water falls. Short pulses of water from generators will also stir up some activity. This is only occurs on a few rivers where a short pulse is done to keep a minimum flow without sending a big wave of water that requires anglers to get out of the river for their safety.

6. Read the Water Differently – Reading the water is an essential skill for success on the water. However, there are more factors to consider when fishing in the cold weather. Shallow, riffles that are productive in the spring may be completely devoid of fish in the winter. Look for slower currents downstream of the riffle. This type of water is more conducive to find fish feeding on the small midges and nymphs that trout seek in the winter. Also look for deep slot where you can’t see bottom. These are excellent spots for sluggish trout to lie when they aren’t feeding aggressively. Avoid shady stretches of water. This is more important in mountain streams than it is on tailwaters, but may still be a factor. Bugs and fish both seem more active while the sun is on the water. Midges and caddis are more active in the sunshine than shade. This important only on sunny days. Overcast days often find fish behaving the same in most sections of the river and Blue Wing Olive mayflies usually prefer such conditions.

Fish the sunny spots on mountain streams

7. Temper Your Expectations and Enjoy the Fishing – A day fishing in the cold weather is rarely as productive as the warm days of spring or the mild days of autumn.  Learn to take pleasure in the extra solitude that the cold weather provides and find delight in the occasional rising trout you find. I’ve always thought that a fish caught in foul weather is worth three caught on a nice day and a rising trout caught in the winter is worth ten caught in the winter or spring.

One of my favorite fly fishing memories was catching a hatch on Abrams Creek in Great Smoky Mountains National Park as snow started to fall one February day about 10 years ago. I had caught several fish on beadhead nymphs before realizing some splashes on the water were rising trout, not something falling from the trees. I don’t remember how many fish I caught or how large they were, but I do remember the rises and the world slowly turning white. I was the only person on the Cades Cove loop road as I passed scattered groups of whitetail deer grazing in the meadows.

Many fly fishers and fly tyers are turned off by small flies, but there is no reason to be intimidated. Yes the flies are small, but the strike indicator is just as big as it is for a #14 nymph. Furthermore, small flies are generally less complicated to tie than larger ones.

Skull & Bones

The Skull & Bones is our “go to” midge pattern. We’ve used it extensively on tailwaters in the Southeast, but we’ve also used it with success on Montana’s Madison River and we’ll occasionally trail one under a dry fly in the Smokies. This fly works great on its own, fished in tandem with a second nymph, or under a dry fly.

Hook:       #18 – #20 Scud hook

Bead:        5/64″ or 2 mm black bead

Thread:   Black 8/0

Body:       Black Ultrawire, Small or X-Small

Wing:       Z-lon, Midge Grey

Collar:     1 or 2 strands of peacock herl

Step 1. After threading the bead onto the hook, wrap your thread onto the hook behind the bead. You can wrap all the way to the bend of the hook and back up but we generally avoid doing this to prevent too much build up on the hook and keep the body slim and slender.

Step 2. Tie the wire onto the hook behind the bead. Hold the wire tight at an upward angle as you wrap thread over it. This will keep the wire on the top of the hook. Wrap all the way to the bend of the hook.

Step 3. Wrap the thread to the head of the fly. Tightly wrap the wire forward. Stop about 1 bead’s distance back from the bead. Tie it off with the thread and clip any excess.

Step 4. Tie in a small strand of Z-lon fibers. You may have to divide a strand of fibers in half. The wing should be clearly visible when the fly is complete, but it shouldn’t be too bulky either. Wait to clip the excess until the rest of the fly is complete.

Step 5. Tie in one or two strands of peacock herl. A #18 generally requires two strands, but this is sometimes too bulky for a #20. Wrap the herl around the thread about 5 or 6 times, then wrap around the hook about 3 times. Wrapping the peacock around the thread will reinforce it and make it less likely to break when you’re fishing it. The bulkiness of your peacock will dictate how many wraps it takes to create the collar. You want enough to fill in the gap nicely without creating unnecessary bulk.

Step 6. Tie off with a couple of half hitches or a whip finish. Clip the wing so it is short and stumpy. It shouldn’t be very long.

Take it fishing!

This fly fishes very well on its own in rivers with robust midge populations like the Clinch River here in East Tennessee. If only a few midges are hatching we’ll fish it in tandem with a sow bug pattern or another nymph like a #16 Beadhead Pheasant Tail. We usually fish the Skull & Bones as the top fly.

It’s not unusual for us to fish it under a dry fly. We’ll fish it under Sulphur patterns when the hatch is sporadic. It is heavy enough to sink well, but not heavy enough to sink a #16 Sulphur Comparadun dry fly.While it’s not our top producer in the Smokies, we’ll occasionally use it as a dropper when rising trout seem to ignore everything else. It’s hooked enough tough fish on Little River that we keep a few in our vest. Be sure to use 6X tippet with this small fly.

Yarn

Yarn is our favorite strike indicator for several reasons. First of all it easy to use as much or little as you want to vary the size of the indicator. Yarn also sits up off the water which makes it easy to see. Since it is light it is also easy to cast and lights on the water without making any disturbance. There are some drawbacks to yarn strike indicators though. If you are fishing big, heavy nymphs or using additional split shots to fish flies deep in swift, turbulent water the yarn might not stay on the surface. It can get pulled under by currents in this type of fishing situation. Yarn should fish small nymphs #14 and smaller in this type of water and can even support a micro split shot.

We always put a little bit of fly floatant on our yarn before fishing it. Regardless of claims made on the packaging, we’ve found that a dab of floatant keeps the yarn floating longer and keeps it riding high on the surface where you can see it.

We attach the yarn by putting a slip knot in the leader. A slip knot allows an angler to either remove the yarn or move the placement of the yarn with relative ease. This can put a crimp in your leader when you remove the yarn. This doesn’t generally bother us when nymphing, but this is one thing that seems to irritate many anglers.

Pinch On / Stick On

Pinch on strike indicators are perhaps the easiest to use for novice anglers. They come on a sheet and a fly fisher simply has to wrap them around the leader and go fishing. Adhesive keeps it in place. While they are easy to use they have a number of drawbacks. The adhesive limits their ability to be adjusted. When you do move them or remove them from the leader the adhesive leaves  some of the foam on the leader. These strike indicators work well for smaller nymphs in the range of #12 and smaller but don’t hold up larger nymphs or heavy rigs in turbulent water.

Foam Footballs

Styrofoam indicators in the shape of footballs or spheres are particularly effective in swift water with riffles and pockets. These come in a variety of sizes and it’s a good idea to keep several sizes on hand if you decide to use them. Larger, heavier flies require a bigger indicator and smaller nymphs cast better with a smaller indicator.

These types of strike indicators are usually quite easy to adjust for depth and don’t generally leave any impressions on your leader. They do have a tendency to hit the water with a plop, so they aren’t the best choice for fishing nymphs in quieter waters or places where fish might be exceptionally skittish.

We prefer to fish these indicators when the combination of weight on the fly and turbulent current will sink most other styles of strike indicator. For this reason we don’t usually fish the smaller sizes, but favor the medium to large sizes. Plenty of weight on the leader combined with a bulky strike indicator makes for tough casting. We recommend keeping casts short and either using a roll cast or short lob to get the flies in the water.

Putty

Putty strike indicators aren’t as common as they once were, but they can be useful in some circumstances. An angler can mold as much or little strike putty as he needs on his leader or tippet. However, putty indicators aren’t known for their ability to float very high and we’ve found a small amount of putty is best for small flies. Putty weighs more than the foam style or yarn indicators and will certainly come to the water with a plop if very much is used. However, a small amount on a leader can be fished discreetly and is a reasonable choice for anglers fishing small, light flies over midging trout or fish sipping emergers just under the surface.

Dry Flies

Perhaps the best type of strike indicator for midging fish or those sipping emergers is a dropper rig. A small, yet bushy dry fly like an Elk Hair Caddis or Royal Wulff will easily stay afloat over a midge pupa or soft hackle. Furthermore, many anglers are surprised at how often “selective” trout will eat an attractor pattern. Tie 12″ – 24″ of tippet to the bend of the hook of the dry fly. On eastern tailwaters a #18 – #22 midge pattern is good, but emerger patterns or unweighted nymphs are good choices depending on the hatch situation. Many accurate dry fly patterns like Comparaduns are effective dry flies that will also support a light nymph or emerger.

Larger bushier dry flies are better in tumbling freestone streams. Stimulators are an excellent choice and will support a host of beadhead patterns to fool fish in streams everywhere. The benefit of the dropper rig is that the dry fly is often just as effective as the nymph.