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#21

Local Trip Reports / Re: Is it April 15th yet?

Last post by Woolly Bugger - April 06, 2024, 09:31:20 AM

Nice work! I guess you'll have to return those taxes for signatures and what not, maybe file extensions, and make two or three more trips...     

#22

Local Trip Reports / Re: Is it April 15th yet?

Last post by Phil - April 05, 2024, 15:31:24 PM

I'd be happy to do that guy's taxes for the opportunity to fish his stream!

#23

Local Trip Reports / Re: Is it April 15th yet?

Last post by Big J - April 05, 2024, 13:50:55 PM

Is that an outdoor research shirt you are wearing?

No, it's some cheapo flannel jacket.

#24

Local Trip Reports / Re: Is it April 15th yet?

Last post by The Dude - April 05, 2024, 08:42:13 AM

Is that an outdoor research shirt you are wearing?

#25

Local Trip Reports / Is it April 15th yet?

Last post by Big J - April 05, 2024, 08:33:43 AM

Tax client's health hasn't been the greatest (90's) so I offered to come grab his tax documents for a couple hours of fishing his trout stream.  Arrived at his place in the morning.  Talked half the time about taxes and other half about his life, farming, and fermenting practices.  Fermenting talk led to him giving me some 3 year old fermented ramps which were surprisingly not bad.  Headed down to the stream in sideways blowing sleet and realized wet wading was a stupid decision but away I went.  Sleet and rain was sporadic in the next 2 hours, but fish bite was constant.  Best day I've had there with probably 40 plus fish in that short time period.  Extra water in the stream helped.




The mill stones












Stocker surprised me.  Fish was a good ways from stocked waters.




 

#26

Local Trip Reports / Re: Smith-Continued

Last post by Woolly Bugger - April 02, 2024, 20:25:41 PM

#24 -- 33 

I took a load of trout to the raptor center in the morning. They were well received by the technicians, who were especially glad to have some fish for the birds as they were completely out. After heading back home and fixing lunch I headed up the rod to the Smith. I skipped over some spots and saw a raft coming out of River Walk as I headed up the road to fish the ramp run.
As I was gearing up Matt of Lucky Strips Guide Service pulls up and starts chatting me up. He had just finished a 1/2 day spin trip from RW to GR and was just checking things out.

In the waster I swung up a couple of punes but they weren't really looking up or that little extra 80 cfs push was having a negative effect. I got a bunch of grabs as I worked down to the bottom of the run. I refused to nymph, but that would have been a better choice that day.

#24 -- 34 low 80s, cloudy, sunny, partly cloudy and windy early but calm in the evening.


Howard and Howard were fishing down low. I started way upstream from them and swung for a while without any hookups but after about an hour I observed some fish rising to unseen bugs, and I swung them up. They were about 8 inches and I thought about harvesting some for the birds, but they were just too pretty to bonk.

Moving on down, casting the 2 wt. I hooked some better fish, some pushing 11 inches, along with more of the usual smaller fish.

After catching 8 or 9, I took a beer break at the LH bench and Howard the Short came by and we chatted for a while, he and Howard the Tall had caught "about 8 apiece" and were just about done for the day. I stepped into the run and swung up some decent fish there too. Then Howard the Tall stopped by and we talked for a bit before he headed up the trail.

I moved on down to the T pool where things appeared to be a bit slower. I missed a fish or two, but then had a hard take and I stripped in the best fish of the day.

#27

Local Trip Reports / Mm Yeah

Last post by Onslow - April 02, 2024, 15:42:37 PM

Tranny has been defiling my locals over the holidays.  Headed off to a stream I know he would not fish.  This stream has been featured many times in my TRs, and the stream treats me very well.

Today, I planned on pushing up closer to the Parkway. This was also the first time ever fishing earlier than 1PM.

Slow it was.  Just terrible. Managed just a couple browns and brookies by the time I ascended the first escarpment.

Ray of hope

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There some low gradient water between the two high gradient sections.  Finally, some catching.

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Now I was in new territory.

Way out in the outback, still the footprints of others

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As the creek became plunge pool again, the fishing went south.

Obstruction

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Nope, headed to the steep slopes to flank.

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Perfect 10 hole, but zero bite.


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The sky was looking funky. Considering how far back in the bush I was, and how piss poor the fishing had become, I chose to not press up escarpment #2.

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Had to hoof it down the stream a good ways, picked up an old logging path, but it broke off due to a landslide.  Walked a bit high in the open hardwood, then picked up a logging path again.  Took an 1 and 15 to exit.

I'm very concerned about the increased traffic on this stream.  Welp, it was good while it lasted.
 

#28

Local Trip Reports / Re: Smith-Continued

Last post by Rhody - April 01, 2024, 09:15:34 AM

Get the 40 count and remember Christmas isn't that far away.....
I need the XXXL size staff both for height and overloaded weight permit needed.....

#29

Local Trip Reports / Re: Smith-Continued

Last post by Woolly Bugger - March 30, 2024, 17:38:28 PM

#24 -- 32 Mostly sunny with a few scattered clouds upper 70s. Gas $3.36


I should have know better, its a holiday weekend but I went up to the river anyway with plans to whack a few more trout before I make a deliver to the Raptor Center. I stopped in at a nice little roadside run where I can usually swing up a couple of fish, but with that extra 50 cfs the wading is a little dicy and my knee started to complain so I didn't get to venture too far down. I hooked into a nice little brown that jumped before breaking off as I played it. I thought that it just unbuttoned, but once I inspected the tippet I realized that I had a wind knot and the fly broke off. Alex had his Hooligan with a couple of dudes anchored upstream. I headed out to another ez access spot, didn't even bother looking at the mirror plant.

There were three trailer rigs and several other trout bro vehicles in the lot but the run was empty so I jumped in. I got a few bumps and tugs as I worked my way downstream. A nice NRS Fishing Raft came down behind me, a dude with his pregnant wife and a toddler rounded out the crew. I hooked a pune and let it go before catching one that qualified as food for the birds and I whacked it but somehow it slipped from my grip, and I watch it float away on the swift current. Damn it. 

Back to casting and a few more bumps, then I stuck a low hanging tree branch, I grabbed my wading staff and powered over the knee-deep water to retrieve the fly. As I untangled it from the branch I saw my wading staff float away, awe crap! I was having issues with the clip as it would sometimes slip off the belt loop, and I was getting ready to replace it with a more secure carabiner. Too late for that now, and I was on the far side of the river without a staff to navigate back across the river. I carefully made my way back, that ended the fishing for me.

The couple with the NRS drove off in their Tacoma pulling the raft on a Road King trailer.

I've got a backup staff ready to go and an old metal one too at home, but I'm going to make another DIY staff to have on hand. I'm searching for some rubber handle grips with an inside diameter of 3/4" but google isn't helping me too much other that pointing me to a supplier that will ship 40 of the correct size to me for a price.

#30

Local Trip Reports / Re: Smith-Continued

Last post by Woolly Bugger - March 29, 2024, 22:05:06 PM

#24 -- 31 Gas $3.29 Partly cloudy upper 60s and WINDY


I checked the Windy App last night and I knew it was going to blow hard, but I went anyway. As I drove through town I saw a gaggle of trout bros, dressed in spiffy new waders hovering around a FlyCraft that was on top of a vehicle parked at the Historic Center, oh, great, everybody is out on a holiday.

I checked the boat ramp lot and there was a Tacoma with a nice dented rear quarter panel with a trailer and three other trucks parked alongside. I moved on up to the MP and there were two trucks there too.

I rigged up the 5 wt to battle the wind and began my hike in. Fishbug was coming out and reported a half dozen or so on a small streamer. I ran into a couple of NC trout bros coming up from "several miles below" one had caught several but the other was struggling. Both were casting bobber rigs.

I took the newly cleared path to avoid the mud of turtle creed, thanks Doug. I swung my soft hackle at LH and them moved to Big Pine where I caught a pune. It was about this time that I noticed that the river was higher than yesterday, and I checked the app to see that they had increased by about 50 cfs. A raft was coming down and I didn't want to get caught mid-channel so I moved on down further where I caught nothing. The raft came on down and I hollered, "Are we having fun yet?" They replied in the affirmative and continued to cast their bobber rigs. I decided that it was time to photograph flowers and butterflies and drink some beer and eat a sandwich.