GADH Farewell

GA DH LAST CALL

This week provides your last chance at some exclusive catch & release fishing for Georgia’s delayed harvest (DH) trout waters. 

On Saturday, May 15, the regulations revert to the general statewide rules and anglers can keep their legal daily limit (8 trout, but only 5 on the Chattooga due to the reciprocal fishing agreement with SCDNR).

So toss your dries now and then take your kids, armed with some nightcrawlers and Powerbait, next weekend. Turn them on to trouting with some quick success. In due time, they might get interested in flyfishing.

PS: although the DH regs end for this season, there are often fish left in those streams for weeks afterward. And, water temps permitting, several are still stocked by the agencies for weeks after DH season.

Why do DH regs end? It’s by design. Summer water temps limit trout survival. The DH program is used in marginal trout waters and serves two sets of customers: 1) release fans during cold weather and 2) harvest fans just before those trout succumb to warm water and a low natural food base (ever notice that May’s DH trout get skinny?).

So go soon and release,  and then return with a kid to make memories and take home supper. It’s all fun, so go have some during this beautiful spring! Come by either UO store if we can help you out.

Hank Goes National

Are you on the hunt for spring stripers? Let Henry help! Tune into the latest Orvis podcast with Tom Rosenbauer and listen to Georgia’s adopted Brooklynite, Lake Lanier guide Henry Cowen. Henry’s tips for finding and feeding freshwater stripers in both reservoirs and rivers are priceless.

https://news.orvis.com/fly-fishing/podcast-how-to-catch-freshwater-stripers-with-henry-cowen

And if you forget what Henry said, it’s also in his new book, a true bargain at $16.99. We have some for sale.

https://shoponline.unicoioutfitters.com/fly-fishing-for...

Congrats to our flatwater friend, Henry Cowen, for hitting the national scene again with his benevolence. With Hank the Yank’s intel and a stout eight-weight outfit, you’ll be ready for the spring striper run near you!

https://www.henrycowenflyfishing.com/

Bolo Bugs!

BOLO Bugs!

Start looking ahead to spring, especially on warmer tailwaters. My DNR law enforcement buddies taught me that BOLO means “be on the lookout.” Since it’s mid-February, it’s already time to BOLO bugs on warm days like our last two. One of the first spring hatches in north GA is the gray caddis. Although these two videos are several years old, note their dates. I had some good late winter days on top, indeed!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O9Hq00edl8s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNqunYBUWUU

Tie or buy those elk hair caddis in sizes 14, 16, and 18. If you’d like to get real fancy, put a green egg sac on the end of the abdomen via a small green ball of dubbing. More importantly, watch the bugs and imitate their behavior with your fly: surface popping emergers, dead drifting, freshly hatched adults, upstream skittering bugs, and dead drifting, expired adults at dusk, riding low in the film.

Although you’ll still be going deep for most trout this month, dust off your dry fly box and reinsert it into your vest or sling. You’ll be glad you did.

Don’t forget the Gink, dessicant, and some hope for an early dose of dry fly action. BOLO those bugs!!!

Call Unicoi Outfitters (706-878-3083) if you need more advice, flies, or supplies. Good luck!

Fish Story

We always enjoy a good fish story, especially when it hits close to home. What’s your favorite fish story?

This story certainly hit close to our home, and we thought we’d share Jessi’s “beginner’s luck” tale with y’all. She was fishing at “Headwaters on the Soque” with her guide, “George.” We know George MacMillan as our friend Coach Mac, who has also guided for Unicoi Outfitters since 1998.

If you’re a beginner and hook the fish of a lifetime, it’s always nice to have a veteran coach in your corner. Congrats to Jessi and 23-year veteran Coach Mac on this “fish of a lifetime.”

We hope you enjoy Jessi’s story as much as we did! Feel free to share your own memorable fish tales with us.

Dropshotting for Deepwater Denizens

Here's Hunter with a quick video breakdown of the dropshot style rig we use for nymphing in high/heavy flows.

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=234528114811298

This technique allows you to use more split shot than normal without the stress of breaking off an entire rig if it catches bottom, and creates a slightly different presentation of the flies in the water.

Got any questions? Send us a message or give one of our shops a call and we’ll help you out.