Smith-Continued

[Dougfish]

49 lbs of dead weight.

Tow strap on the back and tow that thing up the hill

I considered that.

[Woolly Bugger]

#25 -- 38 Hot, Sunny, Gas $2.79

I'm trying to time the sulfur hatch up neat the damn dam, so I tried to leave early enough to get there by 3, but stopping here and there along the way, it was more like 3:30 when I started to gear up. I don't usually go on a Sunday, but I knew Monday was scheduled with dr. appts., yes plural, one for a follow up on cholesterol and the other an annual dermatology inspection.

Anyway, I was surprised to find only a few fishermen on the way up to the damn dam parking, and shocked that nobody was fishing up there. Tons of kayakers putting in and shuttling down.

I looked down at the water and could see lots of splashes from rising trout. I geared up quickly, noticing that I forgot the batteries for my socks, and hit the water. I only had to take a few steps out to make my cast to the fish. Bam, fish on, second cast! Caught another on on the next cast and took a photo.

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same fish, but I liked the water in this shot!  

Cast and repeat for the next hour, when things slowed down dramatically, there were still plenty of bugs, but the fish stopped rising regularly and it was difficult to find willing targets.

Ephemerella invaria

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Prettybrown, I only caught two rainbows up there, and I conked them on the head with my priest and placed them in the cooler for the raptors.

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I worked that spot until about 6:30 and relocated down river to a spot where the bugs were still enticing fish to eat.

Buy the time I started fishing the lower run, the fog was forming on the water, making it difficult to see the fly 30 feet away as it rode the waves of the run. I found a couple of browns that were well over the 10" slot, and I kept a pair of nine inchers.

After catching a half dozen or so, I snagged a tree and broke off, by this time it was too dark to bother trying to tie on another fly, so I packed up and headed to the boat ramp for a beer and to watch the last of the paddlers come in.

A couple in an aluminum canoe came in, they were both sopping wet as they had taken a spill at fish camp. They had been fly fishing and had caught many fish, but while trying to navigate the rapid they flipped, losing sunglasses and shoes. The rest of their gear, including pairs of hip waders, were salvaged.

I finished my beer and headed home arriving at 10 PM.

 

[Woolly Bugger]

#25 -- 39, hot and sunny.

Again, I tried to get up to the river early to catch the afternoon sulfur hatch up at the damn dam, but it was 2:00 the time I was able to leave. I arrived at 3:30 and the hatch appeared to be in full swing. With a cooler of ice, I was planning to keep rainbows for the raptors down in Charlotte.

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The fish were a bit picky, refusing my offering. But I managed to put four in the cooler in less than an hour, I released all the browns. Three were just under a foot, and one was pushing 15 inches, which was a pretty good fight on the 2 wt.

The hatch started to wind down and the rises became less frequent, and the fish weren't as eager to smash my fly. Up at the parking lot I ran into a pair of anglers who were from Brevard, and I was puzzled why they would come from the Davisson to fish the Smith, but they said they had been doing it for a couple of years and enjoyed the varity. I think he was put off when I showed him my keepers.   

I moved downstream for a hatch that starts later. I wasn't planning on keeping any more, but when I deep hooked a brown, I culled it too, and then added one more to reach my limit for the trip.


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[Woolly Bugger]

#25 40 Hot, sunny, threat of thunderstorms.

Plan was to get my Waterrower exercise in early and then head to the river to hit the 2:00 sulfur hatch. I got through my warmup and was just starting my 5k when the tank blew the seal and water shot out covering the floor. I've been aware that this can happen after about 8-10 years, but it was still a surprise. I started back rowing on regular basis after my last annual checkup, with high cholesterol numbers, my doctor wanted to put me on statins. I declined saying that I would exercise more and change my diet. I eliminated bacon, butter, and fried foods. I was rowing 6 days a week on average, with the longest streak being 10 days. I've rowed about 750 kilometers, and at my 6 month follow up visit, my cholesterol numbers were down over 20%.  So, I had to order the glue for the repair, and it took a while to get on the road, and once again I got to the river later than I wanted. There were still bugs poppin' off and fish rising.

The main run was occupied, so I went low and got into a fish on the first cast! The action was nonstop for a couple of hours and it finally started to slack off around 6. My knees and feet were frozen from the cold water, so I called it a day.

My upcoming trip to Alaska has a no felt rule, so I picked up a pair of Orvis's Ultralights with sticky rubber as touted by Tom Rosenbauer on his podcast. I was expecting them to slip on the Smith slime, but they did better than expected even without cleats.

 

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[Woolly Bugger]

#25 -- 41 Gas $2.89 Mid 80s Scattered clouds


I keep trying to hit the beginning of the sulfur hatch and I got there today just at the bugs started to pop. Just a few minutes later the fish began to rise.


Third cast and I was into a fish. Couple of cast later and I had another one. I though this was going to be easy. But then the challenges came, first it was refusals, followed by them totally ignoring my fly. I downsized, upsized, changed patterns 2, 3 times, added 2 ft of 6x. No dice, still getting ignored or refused. Sure I picked off another fish here and there, but the were being especially snotty today. My knees began to lock up from the cold water, and I had a rainbow to put in the cooler, so I took a break to warm up.

I swaped out my socks for the electric ones, that sure felt better as I headed on down to the lower reach to see if the fish were less snooty down low. I quickly got into eager takers and my count climbed out of the single digits to a dozen, and the tally continued to grow but good things don't last forever and the hatch was pretty well over by 6:00.

With the lower river muddy from the rain I passed on hitting spots down there and headed home.



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[Woolly Bugger]

I forgot to mention that on the last trip there weren't any other anglers that I saw from below Bassett on up to the damn dam and on the trip before that only one or two fly fisherpersons, and a couple of "kids" (young adults) who were wet wading    up on Riverbrook road.

It's crazy that there weren't more fisherpeople out on the water. 

[Woolly Bugger]

#25 -- 42 Gas $2.89 Threatening Thunderstorms 90 degrees


The radar indicated that the storm would pass to the south. On the road up to the damn dam I saw only one fisherperson wading up pass the Lemon Hole.

I didn't want to venture too far from the car as I could hear thunder from over the ridge. Fish were rising and there were still some bugs popping off. I got up there late in the afternoon as the WaterRower Glue kit had arrived at noon and I went about the repair. Other than some drippage the repair looks good and I think it will hold. Time will tell, I'm going to reassemble the rower this moring and will give it a tryout this afternoon.

I caught eight or nine before is slacked off and the fish stopped rising. I missed a few, pulled the fly right out of there mouth, set the hook way too early on these fish. I was casting downstream, and they would turn and follow the fly before taking it, I quickly tried to set the hook, but all I did was pull the fly away before they had a chance to taste it.

I moved down to a lower reach, drank a Chalada or two and fished for another hour, and added four more to the tally.


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I only caught one rainbow, shoulda kept it for the birds, next time!

[Woolly Bugger]

#25 -- 44; Gas $2.89 partly cloudy mid 80s

There was lots of traffic on the river today, it looked like three rafts on the upper and two more floating the lower, plus a couple of anglers in a canoe. I hadn't seen this river pimp before...

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I saw a couple of aglers on the road up to the damn dam and some kayakers, but nobody was up top when the bugs came off at three. The water was boiling with rising fish, but that didn't last long. Time for some 2 wt fun with dry flies.

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Work continues on the hillside, that casement at the top is an impressive structure. They removed a lot of dirt down to bedrock. In a year the river will revert to the old flows. 

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Cheers

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[troutboy_II]

Thanks for the report, but back away from the next beer and tomato juice. It really isn't a way to get your veggies. A poor man's  Spodiody, on the other hand is. Only use Welsh though. It has the proper Methodist approval stamps and can be consumed on Sunday without going to h.e. Double hockey sticks! 

If you can afford the bourbon and red wine for the original, you're not wading, your "man" is rowing you. But I digress...

TB

[driver]

Chelada in 12oz cans!!! I only ever see the 24oz. I love micheladas

[Woolly Bugger]

Chelada in 12oz cans!!! I only ever see the 24oz. I love micheladas

I may have to try the homemade version...

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[Woolly Bugger]

#25 -- 45, Gas $2.89 sunny and warm

The sulfurs appear to be winding down. I was surprised to see a number of anglers on the river today, including two that were in my spot, I didn't see them right away because there was a family with a dog that decided to take a plunge into the frigid waters. Some came in after being bribed, while others were shamed into it. Crazy.

Realizing that my spot was occupied, I had to take the second choice. Fish were caught, but the hatch petered off in less than 30 minutes. I was getting ready to drive to another spot when I realized the lower run was now vacant and I waded on down, there were still some bugs and more fish were caught, but I really had to work for them. I fished on till about 6 and then headed on down to the boat ramp for a beer or two and some lower river action.

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Three rods, two reels, and nobody in sight?

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I've never seen a tangle like this before. Family showed up a little later, dad was still in the river.

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two dudes floated the lower...

[Woolly Bugger]

#25 -- 51 Gas $2.89

Checked the radar, looked good, drove on up, situation changed. Opps, no old man stick in the car, that will limit my wading! Donned my rain jacked and planned on nymphing in the rain, but as soon as I got to the water fish started rising. I tied on a comparadun and caught a handful of brown trout before the hatch petered out as quickly as it started.

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I swung up a couple on a soft hackle and called it quites, drove on up to the damn dam to take a look at the progress being done to the hillside.

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Then I drove on down to the canoe access and had an ice cold Chelada!

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The birds were working over the river, so I hit it for a bit and managed to entice a brown on the dry fly despite not seeing many bugs on the water.

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[trout-r-us]

Thanks for the pics of the damn dam work. 👍
Was up at the overlook with my wife on Sunday and was trying to explain to her about the landslide and the work being done.

Your pictures are with more than a thousand of my words. 🙂

[Woolly Bugger]

#25 -- 52 Gas $2.86 Sunny with a Thunderstorm.


As I was walking to my spot loud thunder boomed from over the ridge behind me. It sounded violent, and I didn't want to venture too far from the car, so I moved upstream to an easy access. Fish started to rise just after I arriver and I caught three in quick order, brown, rainbow, brown, and then the wind picked up and I knew that a heavy downpour would arrive shortly. I headed back to the car to seek shelter as the rain pelted in torrents. For the next twenty minutes I listened to Cut and Retie podcast episode #119 featuring Tom Rosenbauer and Sean Colmbs, it was hilarious, not your usual corporate Tom as he cut loose and answered listener questions.

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After the rain finally stopped I got out and checked the river. Oh crap!

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I headed on downstream to check out some other spots, but there weren't enough bugs hatching to get the fish excited.

Ran into EJ who was doing a personal late day float, he asked me if I wanted to join in, but I declined as the 3 wt. rod I was fishing wouldn't be the best to fish with out of a raft and I headed home.