Georgia's Delayed Harvest Streams Open Saturday November 1st

Fall Offers Great Georgia Trout Fishing Opportunities - Delayed Harvest Streams Open Nov. 1

Today's feature comes to us from the Georgia Wildlife Resources Division.

GAINESVILLE, Ga. -- Are trout streams calling you to go fish Georgia? Beautiful weather and fantastic scenery await you in the northern part of the state and beginning on November 1, fishing on five delayed harvest trout streams will open, according to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources' Wildlife Resources Division.

Trout streams are designated either seasonal or year-round. "Five year-round streams are managed under special regulations called Delayed Harvest," said John Lee Thomson, Wildlife Resources Division trout stocking coordinator. "The 'DH' streams have special catch-and-release regulations from November 1-May 14, and are stocked monthly by WRD and our partner, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. This combination of stocking and catch/release allows for good trout catch rates and high angler satisfaction."

The five trout streams managed under delayed harvest regulations are:

• Toccoa River located on U.S. Forest Service land upstream of Lake Blue Ridge in Fannin County (from 0.4 miles above Shallowford Bridge to 450 feet above the Sandy Bottom Canoe Access).
  
• Amicalola Creek on the Dawson Forest Wildlife Management Area (from Steele Bridge Road downstream to Georgia Hwy. 53).
  
• Smith Creek downstream of Unicoi Lake (Unicoi State Park).
  
• Chattahoochee River in Atlanta (Sope Creek, downstream of Johnson Ferry Road, downstream to the Hwy 41 bridge).
  
• A portion of the Chattooga River (from Ga. Hwy. 28 upstream to the mouth of Reed Creek) on U.S. Forest Service land bordering South Carolina.

"Remember, during delayed harvest, anglers on these five streams also are restricted to artificial lures with one single hook," Thomson adds. "When May 15rolls around, the general regulations to designated trout water apply."

In addition to the excellent fall fishing opportunities that these delayed harvest streams provide, other Georgia streams offer ample year-round trout fishing. These streams are:

• Noontootla Creek Watershed: This watershed offers high-quality, year-round fishing for wild brown and rainbow trout, with many of its tributaries offering a chance at a wild brook trout (a real plus since most other brook trout waters are closed to fishing after Oct. 31). Both Noontootla and its tributaries are managed under an artificial lure only regulation and have a 16" minimum size limit in order to "recycle" the 8"-12" trout that make up most of the population.
  
• Dukes Creek: This stream, located on the Smithgall Woods-Dukes Creek Conservation Area, offers year-round trout fishing by reservation (706-878-3087). All fish caught here must be released immediately and anglers can only use artificial lures with barbless hooks. The stream offers a great chance at a trout over 20 inches, so bring your camera for a quick shot before release. Best time to fish is after a rain muddies the water.
  
• Chattahoochee River: For good trout fishing close to metro Atlanta, the Chattahoochee River downstream of Buford Dam offers family-friendly, year-round fishing for stocked rainbow and wild brown trout. The Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area parks offer good bank, wading and boating opportunities. The river will be stocked through the fall months to keep angler catches high. Year-round harvest is legal from Buford Dam to Sope Creek. Anglers should note that there is an artificial lure only section between Ga. Hwy 20 and the Medlock Bridge Boat Ramp. Best fishing is at low flow when the river is clear to slightly stained.
  
  
• Some additional notable year-round trout streams include the Toccoa River downstream of Lake Blue Ridge, Tallulah River and the Chattooga River.

Anglers must possess a current Georgia fishing license as well as a trout license to fish for these beauties. By purchasing a license as well as fishing equipment and related items, you and your fellow anglers have helped fund sport fish restoration programs for years, thanks to the Sport Fish Restoration Act. This Act allows funds accumulated from a federal excise tax on fishing equipment and related items to be directed to activities that benefit recreational anglers. A portion of these funds is provided to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources based on several factors, including the number of paid sporting licenses. Sport Fish funds make the following activities possible: managing sport fish populations, raising freshwater fish in hatcheries and stocking them in public waters, maintaining and operating public fishing areas and building boat ramps and fishing piers, and much more!

Where can you get a fishing license? Buy it online or find a list of retail license vendors at www.georgiawildlife.com/licenses-permits-passes or buy it by phone at 1-800-366-2661.

For free Georgia trout stream maps, trout fishing tips and other trout fishing information, visit www.georgiawildlife.com/Fishing/Trout .

A NEW TWIST ON DREDGING TACTICS

Landon Williams developed a new leader formula while fishing Amicolola Creek DH:

After church Sunday, I slipped off to the Amicalola to enjoy the warm day. I was greeted by 9 anglers on the water at 1 PM spread along the entire reach of the Highway 53 stretch. I walked around for a bit and talked to a few folks who reported getting skunked or only catching/ hooking one or two. I stuck waders on and was on the water by 1:45. There was a group of three guys working the long fast run 200 yards up from the canoe launch who mentioned getting skunked as I was gearing up. So, I decided that's where I was going to start. 

I tried my standard Euro-nymphing rig first there and caught a couple of fish out of the shallow pockets in the sun towards the tailout. However, I found it very difficult to get down in the heart of the fast deep water up at the head of the pool with the Euro set up, even with my dredge rig of the long 6x leader. So I decided to try something that popped into my mind. It is, in a sense, very much like Dredger's long 8 lb. leader with an indicator but maybe a bit more extreme and modeled more after my 6x euro leader. I put my reel with a floating line on and got a new 7 ft. leader (I don't think it makes a difference what) and chopped it back to the part of the tapered leader where it is about 15 lb. test. Next, I added 4 ft. of 10 lb. test mono, which is what I applied the football indicator to so it would slide up and down. 

From this stretch I made a "jam stop" of 5 overhand knots on top of each other to make a big thick part of leader. This serves two purposes, to keep the indicator from sliding all the way down. I've had it slide down before on leaders, even through knot sections. Also it allows you to easily set up the next part of the leader. I got a long 12-14 ft. section of 5x flourocarbon and made a clinch knot and slid it up over the jam stop and seated it down. At the other end, I surgeon knotted a 3 ft. section of 6x flourocarbon Trouthunter tippet. From there I did the traditional 2 fly rig with an unweighted leech and peach egg. I also put 2-3 split shot 12 inches above the first fly and kept it in place with an overhand knot between the shot and the fly. 

How did  this setup work there? Wonderfully! I hooked 19 fish in 2 hours out of that long run, all scrappy and hungry rainbows.  I've fished that run a good bit and even with Dredger's 8 lb. leader setup, it has seemed that I've had to use 4-6 split shot to get down there. Even then I felt like I could never get down deep enough in the heart of that run without making the leader ridiculously long and painful to cast. Yesterday was the first time I've ever felt like I fished that spot thoroughly well. This is a very extreme and specialized setup for limited spots but it sure worked well yesterday and maybe could on a couple spots on the Chattooga and the Toccoa DH. 

Amicalola DH Report

I just got off the phone with Nick Jamison of the DNR who has fished the Amicalola recently - the Ami's a stream we don't get to that often and doesn't get a lot of press here, so I thought I'd pass along Nick's info.

Nick fished there this past Sunday, and was surprised at how few people he saw fishing - there were a lot of cars in the parking area, but most of those folks were out hiking according to Nick.

Most of his fish came to a green-bodied soft hackle fly that he ties in size 14, fished deep. He did see a few fish rising mid-afternoon when some black stoneflies were emerging. Nick had a good day, landing 10-15 fish in just a few hours.

Nick's observation was that the others he did see fishing just weren't having such good luck, but attributed it to them not fishing deep enough. Nick was saying that you really need to be aware of the flows...according to Nick, with the gauge at 1.4 and above you'll need a good bit of weight. And he also reminds us to constantly adjust the weight and depth you're fishing when you move from one spot to another - good advice for nymphing on any stream!

Something else Nick has noticed about the Ami is that the stretch above the Highway 53 bridge doesn't get a lot of pressure yet it has a lot of seams and good holding water. He thinks the size of the water is intimidating to some anglers and recommends looking at the water as if it were four separate Smith Creeks and fishing each one separately.

Good advice from someone who knows...why don't you check out the Ami and send us a fishing report!

Amicalola and Smith Creeks Delayed Harvest Reports and Tips

We just received a fishing report from Dredger's recent trip to Smith Creek that resulted in a "good handful" of both browns and rainbows. The recent rains and subsequent flows mean plenty of habitat and underexploited fish in riffles and runs.

Got Pheasant Tails? The November stockers are getting smarter and are moving less as the water temp drops. The December stockers (Amicalola last week and Smith this week) are naive and will eat Y2K bugs. In the spring, pull out your Adams and caddis dries, on the hook bend tie a four foot dropper down to a #6 shot and a Prince nymph, and fish those same spots for more active fish who will "look up" too, in warmer water when bugs hatch.

Tip: At the Amicalola DH at Highway 53, fish it like it's five Smith Creeks running parallel. Fish each one and then move across the ledge until you're in the adjacent Smith Creek. By fishing across the Ami before fishing upstream, you might catch a few more with your short-line techniques in each current seam and pocket of slow water among all the fast chutes.

And on those big pools and deep runs above you at the fishing piers, be ready for 10-15 feet of leader and lots more weight if you're serious about digging fish outta those holes.... Tough casting and tough fishing, but good catching.

Always remember to change your weight and depth of indicator as needed with each new pool, run, or riffle. I change those before I change flies. That's why I use removable shot and easy-sliding indicators.

There is no one "right way" of fishing, but this has worked for me and I hope it helps ya'll.

Biologist Nick went to the Amicalola DH at Highway 53 and fished the ledges for a few hours Saturday. He said he watched four other anglers "fish over" the fish and then leave. But, after an adjustment, he had a good day.

He started with some split shot in front of a leech with an egg dropper and had no luck. Seems that the egg was too far away from weight and was floating too high in the water column. As soon as he put a small shot between the flies, too, he started catching rainbows. The theme is that the cold water now has fish hunkered right down on the bottom. Anglers have to get down to them and also have to detect more subtle strikes. Hopefully Nick's tips will help a few more anglers to enjoy some winter trouting success.

Both Amicalola and Smith Creek DH's offer some good opportunities to metro anglers willing to drive a bit farther north than their normal Hooch tailwater destinations.