Unicoi Outfitters Fishing Report - 2/4/22

This week’s theme is “launch the ark!” Yesterday’s 7 inches of rain have our region streams high and roaring right now.  

At least they are a bit warmer due to the warm precip.   Smaller streams will be fishable in a day or two, while the bigger rivers will take longer to shed all of that rainfall and runoff. Just be ready for another big chill tonite that will drop water temps again. At least it’s looking promising for next week, as we dry out and warm back into the 50’s.

My mid-morning recon today (2/4) showed the Hooch in Helen roaring and unfishable. Smith DH was high, 49F, with maybe 2 feet of visibility. An angler trio was fishing from or right next to the bank, and tossing into soft eddies. Hooch tribs Dukes and Spoilcane were high and ripping, 53F, with maybe 2 feet of vis.

Watch the USGS streamflow gauges, know your own safe wading levels, and go when it is safe again. Or stay on the bank until those flows drop some more.  Use bigger/brighter bugs in high, discolored flows and scale back down when flows drop and clarity increases.

HenryC says Lanier is slowly stirring. Spots are still a best bet, as stripers remain on deep bait. See his report for details. He put three real gooduns in the boat yesterday.

The good news is that this rain has recharged our streams, which were pitifully low. If we can get smaller, frequent storms, they would keep the flows up and the fishing better. We will see what February holds.

Check out our full report and Wes’ hot fly list on our website and Facebook page. Remember that all of these reports were pre-storm, so be ready to adapt your game to changing flows and water temps - which follow air temps.  Good luck and stay safe!

Wes’ Hot Fly List:

Dries: Griffiths Gnat, Parachute Adams, comparadun BWO.

Nymphs:

High water: Squirminator, girdle bug, peach egg, mohair leech.

Clean flows: three dollar dip, RS2, sparkle soft hackle, gold ribbed hares ear, WD40.

Streamers & warm water:

Muddy buddy, triple double leech, jiggy craw.

GA public waters:

Smith DH:

Hillis Lanier posted a nice report in the Small Streams Forum on the North GA Trout Online ( NGTO) message board. 

http://www.georgia-outdoors.com/forum

You can view it by googling the site, choosing “message board” and then choosing “jump right in.”  The bottom line is that he had luck on a frosty afternoon by drifting black zebra midges on 7X tippet in the skinny water.

Chattooga DH

Sautee and Dredger gave it a shot last Tuesday. They hiked in, over all of the downed trees from the storm, and gave the upper end a try. Despite a decent water temp of 44, it was real slow. Sautee caught a couple bows on a small hares ear, while Dredger was completely hitless. The low river flow provided very little holding water for surviving DH stockers. Their advice: cover ground and only hit the deep pools. Better yet, go waaay upstream or somewhere else til this fishery improves with March rains and restocking.

Toccoa DH:

The RSquared report:

“Six hearty souls from the Trout Unlimited: Cohutta Chapter #242 braved icy roads & temperatures in the low 20’s to spend this past Saturday on the Toccoa River for January’s Stream of the Month (SOTM).  The water was cold and clear. The trout were cold and lethargic. However, we had a great riverside meal of hotdogs and home-made chili and a roaring fire where fishing tales from more favorable times were told. We have a chapter trip every month. Come join us. Check out our website at tucohutta.org Rodney”

Hooch Tailwater:

UO teammate Grant checked in:

“I had a great day on the tailwater going after some wild browns. The fish were eating egg patterns, and some fish were taking some small, natural bugs. The biggest fish of the day was caught on a size 14 egg pattern with a 4.0 copper bead. I caught about 27 fish, but this one was my favorite. I came up on a deep hole next to a log jam while I was euronymphing. I made a tuck cast in between two logs that were down in the water, and I watched my sighter get tight midway through the drift. I set this hook and was able to get some great pictures of this fish! “

NC Waters:

Tuck DH:

UO friend RayV gave us a Tuckaseegee DH report:

“In NC I have lately only fished the Dillsboro DH Tuck and done well using #10 green Woolly Buggers and Black Pat’s or Girdle bugs trailed with micro peach or pink egg.”

Nan DH:

After an hour of futile web searches, Dredger wrote Duke Power Company about the high flows through the Nan DH river channel. He awaits the company’s response to his email.

Private Waters:

UO friends Ray and Kevin hit Nacoochee Bend last week.  Ray said: “Kevin and I fished the Bend on a chilly Monday and had a big time.  Mostly #18 and smaller soft hackles were most productive. We caught 15-20 fish with a few nice ones.”

Flat Water:

HenryC said:

“Lanier seems to be fishing a tad better these days. Here's the skinny...the spotted bass are fishing okay.  You can find them in coves and on points . Sinking lines are the ticket to these fish using either somethin else or coyote flies. The stripers are another story altogether. In order to get the stripers to eat you need to look for schools of deep fish and throw sinking lines to them. The key to this bite is to fish the best moon phase. That's when the action occurs. Here's a screen shot from yesterday... I had a good day, with three fish in the ten-pound range boated.”

https://www.henrycowenflyfishing.com/

Afar:

UO Helen manager Wes reported on his trio’s recent road trip “somewhere up north:”

“Israel, Jackson and I got away last weekend for a southern musky trip. Day one was brutal cold: 18 degrees when we got to the boat ramp and the high was only 31 degrees. We had ice in the rod guides all day but we toughed it out.  The team adapted our tactics to the conditions and moved a couple of fish.  We got a 36-incher to the net that afternoon!

We went and explored some new water on day two and saw some awesome scenery,  but didn’t encounter any fish. On day three we moved quite a few fish and we were able to net another thick and healthy musky. It was about 40-41 inches!

After several years of putting our time in, Jackson and I are getting a feel of where the fish are holding at certain times of the year and how to present our patterns and successfully hook and land fish. Most of the time musky fly fishing is SLOW and you wonder why you are doing it! But when you start to figure out a few pieces of the puzzle, all of that casting begins to pay off in one or more of these true trophies.”

That’s the latest from the soggy slopes of northeast Georgia.   Remember to check the flows before you go. Call or come by the shop for your post-flood intel and supplies. Good luck, folks. 

Unicoi Outfitters: Friendly. Local. Experts.

Tying Time!

The pouring rain today reminds us that it’s “a good time to tie!”  We have three great leads for you.

First, fly tying vets might enjoy this insider intel from our buddy Landon, who used to compete in local flyfishing competitions that upped his personal game. And he taught me how to Euro. He said that the France fly was a winter secret weapon. Learn this easy tie via Tim Flagler’s video at Tightlinesflyfishing.com

https://midcurrent.com/videos/how-to-tie-a-france-fly/

Second, tying rookies or wannabe’s might like to zoom into local favorite  Steve Hudson’s Saturday morning instructional sessions. Learn more at flykits.net and click on “the tying bench.”

https://www.flykits.net/flyfishing-books

Third, new tyers can learn from the Orvis master himself, Tom Rosenbauer. Sign up for the free Orvis Virtual Fly Tying 101 series of lessons at howtoflyfish.Orvis.com. The first class is on 2/10.

https://howtoflyfish.orvis.com/fly-tying-101

You might just enjoy this wintertime hobby as much as we do. Call, come by, or shop online if we can help you with tying supplies.

Unicoi Outfitters Fishing Report - 1/28/22

 

“Low and clear equals long and light.”  Remember that slogan and you’ll have more success on our thin regional streams. Right now longer, thinner (6,7X) tippet and tiny natural bugs will bring more looks than bright and bulky ones. The stream drift currently holds midges, BWO’s, and a few little black stones, so match those hatches. Try a dry/dropper combo in slow pools and runs during warm afternoons. A #18 Adams, stonefly, or gray caddis can float a tiny WD40 below it, even with a tiny tin shot crimped on your 2-foot tippet.

As for the lakes, Henry C said daytime stripers are still spotty, spots are abundant on long points, and he’s the guest fly tyer on Monday’s (31st) Orvis Facebook live session with Tom Rosenbauer. Landon added that stripers are making nighttime guest appearances under the lights.

Y’all might wanna sideline tomorrow and let this North Pole front pass. Then, if not addicted to the NFL, warmth, and your recliner, get back into the fishing game when afternoon highs return to the high 40’s or better, starting on Sunday.  Air temps near 50F will push PM waters back up to the mid-40’s and give you a shot at some scores. And remember that tailwaters run a bit warmer thru winter.

Grab more flyfishing pregame intel on our Facebook page or at the Fishing Report tab on our UO home page. Good luck. We are at halftime of our winter game. So far, so good on our scores!

Wes’ Hot Fly List:

Dries: Griffith’s Gnat, parachute Adams, little black stonefly 

Nymphs: WD40, black copper John, three dollar dip, RS2, mini leech purple, twisted mayfly.

Streamers & warm water:

Sparkle minnow, micro changer, bank robber sculpin.

GA public waters:

Headwaters:

My noon circuit today had Spoilcane running 44F and Smith DH at 46. Hooch and Tooga temps are on their USGS gauge sites.

RSquared checked in:

“Michael and I fished my favorite little wild brown trout stream mid-week. ( I can do that now that I am retired from public education!) The water was cold and gin-clear. We could not even spook a fish from their lair under rocks and logs. However, just before dark we able to stick a couple. Michael got one on a bead-head hares ear. My only fish was deceived with a Frenchie tied on a jig hook with a tungsten bead. I also managed to break the mid-section of my beloved 3wt Butter Stick. It was a tough day!!! Rodney”

Smith DH:

Dredger hit it on Monday afternoon and did “fair” in low, clear, 42F water.  His small handful of bows liked the WD40 dropper the best. A few little black stonefly adults buzzed by in the sunshine (did you enjoy this week’s video quiz?), but no fish rose to them.  Only one fish hit his bright walts worm in a fast pocket. When the sun set at 5, he switched to dry/dropper and was thrilled with one fish that rose to his parachute Adams. 

Tip for DH stockers: slide up to a nice pool and camp out there.  Let the fish get used to you while you scout them out with your polarized glasses. Watch for telltale tale wags. Then move slowly and start drifting small stuff past their noses.

Dukes:

UO friend Mo: “We fished Dukes yesterday on a cold, sunny day. The temps were in the 30s all day. The stream was gin clear and cooold, and had fish glued to the bottom, barely showing signs of life. 

We spotted some large fins in several runs and sight-fished them with small natural stuff and egg patterns. After fooling a few nice rainbows, Kurt hooks into a hefty fish and nets it after an epic battle, and on 7x tippet. 

A big, healthy brown. Def a special treat since we haven’t seen many in the stream for a long while, esp this size. Several more nice fish came to hand throughout the day but we really had to work for them. 

They didn’t move much, we had to be on the bottom and hitting them on the nose with our presentations. Full winter mode dredging tactics.

NC:

Dredger went north yesterday (27th) and discovered that he brought the wrong recreational equipment. He shoulda brought a whitewater yak instead of a fly rod!  Nan DH was deep green, DEEP, and topped with standing white waves. He had evidently discovered the “bypass flows” that Marcus reported earlier.

Lacking a death wish, he employed plan B and settled in the Smokies.  The stream was low and clear and a cold 42F.  He was happy with four 8-inch bows in three hours, along with two herds of elk and two sets of big gobblers. The day was definitely not a complete washout. The WD 40 dropper did better than the frenchie and Walts anchor bugs in the skinny water. Trip highlight was the two elk yearlings frolicking during their evening “recess” with Mom at the NPS Cherokee visitors center’s  field.

https://vimeo.com/671301626

He vowed to check the Duke Power intel and report back on Nan flow plans.

Private Waters:

Wes’ Bob-Dylan trip! 

“I had a Nacochee Bend trip this week and had a great day with Bob and Dylan. The water is starting to get low again so make sure you have a clean drift to up your success rate. Most fish were fooled on small nymphs near the bottom. Black midges and hares ear’s worked best. We were able to catch a couple fish eating emergers just under the surface in the afternoon on soft hackles.”

Middle GA:

Athens Jay emerged from holiday retirement:

“It probably sounds crazy to be planning a float trip for bass on a Piedmont river while watching January snow fall. But after a months-long dry spell, I couldn’t say no to an invitation from a trusted friend. It was a cold start but the sun finally came out and we even got to do some wading around the shoals. Some fish were quite aggressive. Big dark streamers fished on a sink tip line worked best. I had best results casting upstream and dead-drifting. But my companion caught fish activity stripping big articulated streamers. Be careful, flows are a little high and water is murky. Falling in over your waders makes for a chilly afternoon (yeah, I did). But putting your hands on spunky wild shoalies does warm the soul.  Finally, I broke the ice, literally.“

Flat Water:

Henry said the stripers are still deep during the day. He’s had a few scattered shots at shallow fish early and late, but it’s been inconsistent. The better bite is spots in 5-15 feet of water on Cowen’s Coyotes tossed on long points.  Take an intermediate and a full sink outfit and look for the bait balls on your screen and the birds in the sky.

He’ll be tying his mullet fly on Orvis Facebook live at 3PM Monday. Details here:

Henry Cowen - On Monday January 31st at 3pm I was invited to join... | Facebook

www.henrycowenflyfishing.com

Landon (aka Nanook)  finally checked back in:

“Andrea said “You need to go fishing” Who am I to argue?! Typical dock light report. Bigger average size but fewer fish on lights compared to the last time we tried in November. Somethin’ else flies on intermediate lines were the ticket.”

Capt Mack should have a new Lanier report posted soon. Last Friday’s report was spot-on.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/category/Fishing-Store/CaptainMacks/posts/

Reminder: don’t miss your chance at nearly a week of fishing the West  Yellowstone region, including a Madison River float trip. And there are 14 great runnerup prizes. Details on GATU’s annual Dream Trip raffle are here:

Georgia Council of Trout Unlimited

Good luck, folks. Dress warmly, dodge the frozen mornings, and employ your summer stealth games on warm winter afternoons. Call or come by the shop for your pre-game supplies and scouting reports.

Unicoi Outfitters: Friendly. Local. Experts.

PS: good luck to our old Dawg Stafford!

Pop Quiz

 UO pop quiz time:

1. What is it?

2. Do you have a few in you box for any warm winter afternoons you encounter?

There might even be a few opportunities when it warms next week.

Your Dream Trip?

Hey folks, don’t miss out on the GATU Dream Trip raffle for five days of fishing the West Yellowstone region. Please consider the opportunity yourself and also share this note with your friends.

Tix are $10 each plus a small processing fee and can be purchased online here:

https://georgiatu.org/

The winner and a friend receive five days of fishing in the West Yellowstone region with our friends, Georgians John and Laine McGarity. 

They spend each summer in their beautiful cabin outside town and John fishes nearly every day. Our angling quartet spends a week with them nearly every year.

Additionally, there are 14 nice runner-up prizes (fishing trips, fly rod, reel, stocked fly boxes, gift cards) so you have plenty of chances to win. The full list is on the raffle web page.

Thanks for considering. If you decide to purchase some tix, consider crediting your favorite GA TU chapter during that online process.  If you’d like a different number of tickets than the menu offering, scroll down to the last option and enter your desired number.

Raffle proceeds fund the GATU kids fishing camp and TU’s conservation efforts here in north GA.  Unicoi Outfitters is a proud supporter of GATU Trout Camp.

https://m.facebook.com/watch/?v=364448584230412&_rdr

Thanks a bunch. Good luck fishing for a Dream Trip!

Winter Trout Wrangling

GADNR trout biologist Sarah Baker grew up in Idaho and is a mighty fine trouter herself. In case you missed her great compilation of winter trout fishing tips last week, here they are again. Special thanks to Domenick at troutbitten.com and Katie at fishuntamed.com for the original content. Scroll way down that January 14 GAWRD fishing report to find those links.

https://georgiawildlife.blog/2022/01/14/georgia-fishing-report-january-14-2022/

Good luck with your winter trips!

Unicoi Outfitters Fishing Report - 1/21/22

Nora Mill Dam photo credit: “Sautee”

Come, join us on our sleigh ride into the “dead of winter.” The next six weeks can be as slow and inhospitable for GA trout fishing fans as the dog days of summer are. But there is hope for the dedicated few who venture forth on these chilly days. Read on and learn of the two keys to winter trouting success.

Before going forward, we want to be honest: this is a real tough time for rookie soloists. The combo of 1) cold weather, 2) icy water, and 3) sluggish fish can really turn off new flyfishers. They will enjoy this sport much more if they wait for spring or, better yet, take our following advice.

The two keys to winter success are 1) follow the sun and 2) go with a pro.  First, follow the sun’s warmth and fish during middays, when you can feel your fingers and toes. Watch the USGS stream gauges for those midday water temp spikes, when fish will be most active.

Second, go with a pro. Buddy-up to a veteran angler with winter experience.  They can be friends from your Facebook group or Trout Unlimited chapter (aka “free fishing guides”). Or you can cash in that holiday gift certificate and take a trip with a professional flyfishing guide. At this time of year, their knowledge and experience are priceless and will save you from going fishless. That intel will carry over to the rest of your flyfishing career, too.

For this week, think small, low, and slow. Use small, natural bugs on light tippet, get them deep, and drift them slowly through pools and runs to find some subtle strikes. Hooksets are free, so use them on any twitch or hesitation of your sighter or indicator.

The system works, as you can see in our extended version of this report at unicoioutfitters.com. 

Good luck. Dress warmly, wait out the morning black ice, buddy-up with a vet, and enjoy a great cure for cabin fever.

We’d like to welcome a few more friends to our short list of UO angling addicts. Our friends gang’s reports and pics really add to our guide intel and give all of you the details you need for weekend success. Thank you, newcomers Rodney and Marcus!

Wes’ Hot Fly List:

Dries: Parachute Adams, cream midge.

Nymphs: black copper John, Zebra midge, WD-40, sparkle soft hackle, hare & copper, peach egg.

Streamers & warm water:

Sparkle minnow, clouser minnow, micro changer.

GA public waters:

Headwaters:

We welcome RodneyT to our reporter team. Rodney just Retired, so we’re relabeling his handle as “RSquared.”  ATL westsiders take note.! You can find him and his fellow angling addicts at the Cohutta TU chapter. 

https://www.facebook.com/tucohutta/

He reports:

“Low, clear, cold water in our National Forest is causing the wild trout to hug the bottom. Pheasant Tails, Frenchie’s, & Prince Nymph’s tied on jig hooks w/ tungsten beads & dragged along the bottom without an indicator have been working on wild rainbows & Brookies this past week.  It’s not hot action, but we’re catching enough to keep us focused.”

Dukes:

RonW: “Dukes served us up a nice slice of humble pie today (1/9)!Apparently they don't eat San Juans or squirmys in the rain anymore.Let me rephrase....they won't eat my San Juan. Made 20+ drifts at the road hole and nothing....Moe steps in and gets connected on the 1st cast with the San Juan. Creek was starting to color up when we left around 2. 

Don't know if you've been there in a while but there must have been a microburst that came through. There are large hemlocks and other tress  everywhere that are snapped in half, some a few feet off the ground and some  20 ft off the ground. Looks a tornado came thru there, so be careful. Hopefully some of those trees will drop into the creek and make some fine, new trout habitat.”

Smith DH:

See the Marcus report, below.

Dredger got his chores done in time Wednesday (19th) to spend the last three hours of daylight at Smith DH, running a chilly 42 F at 3PM. It was still over forty, so he had some hope along the melting snow banks.  

Alas, he had nary a strike on the first half of his trip. Frenchie, squirmy, egg, Walts- nuthin’ on his first dozen bugs thrown!

Til he found what they wanted: a #18 hares ear on 6x tippet, dropped closely off the back of his heavier anchor fly. The handful of fat, lively bows saved the trip and helped him to save face.

Near dusk he ran into an old friend, Dennis, the Smith Creek Sage.  Ole Lefty said he’s been having luck this month on the tiny stuff: size 20-24 gray and black midge larvae and pupae. He said he even caught some on midge dries during sunny afternoons. He had over a dozen to hand that afternoon. You can take his intel to the bank!

Chattooga DH:

Sautee took a return trip with a new buddy late last week. He said the fishing was nice, but the catching was fairly slow. He caught a few rainbows again on his brown squirmy, hares ear soft hackle combo. Highlight of the day was his spinfishing buddy Scott’s 22-inch, Kyle-jawed rainbow that nailed his rooster tail.

NC/Smith:

UO friend Marcus: “Channing and I drove up to WNC in the hopes of getting snowed in. We fished the Nanty DH Saturday only to learn they are "bypassing" as the kayakers said. We managed to double up on brookies and swing a few rainbows to the net in the raging flow.

Sunday we stayed near the cabin and waited for the rain to turn to snow. We fished the creek behind the cabin, and hopped in the truck to hit some different public accesses to that same creek. We found some beautiful wild rainbows, with some of the larger ones pushing 14". Snow came in hard Sunday evening, thus giving us our snow day! 

We played hooky Monday and took our time getting back home. We still had the itch, so we hit Smith DH. Fishing was tough, as the snowy banks had the fish spooked something proper. But we still landed a few.

We had a blast in the snow and rain, catching some great fish, all while staying safe. Couldn't be more thankful! Cheers from Marcus and Chan!”

Private Waters:

UO Helen manager Wes:

“The bend fished well this week after the snowstorm. The key right now with the cool water temperatures is depth. Ensure you have enough weight to get down near the bottom. Eggs, small stoneflies, and midges have been the best producers.”

Awesome UO Guides Stefan and Como:  “We teamed up on a multi-client trip this week. It was cold, but the fish were eating! Hot flies varied but junk patterns, midges, small bwo’s, and Euro jig streamers  worked best.  Client Rick got a really nice rainbow to top the day. Our party probably landed about 40 fish.”

UO company manager Jake is at The Bend right now (2pm Friday) guiding a client. He had a few seconds to text me a pic of a whopper rainbow they just landed.  Enjoy.

Flat Water:

This just in from HenryC:

“There may be a little better fishing in the PM and especially at last light on Lanier. Other than that, bass can be caught on points using sinking lines and small coyotes. They're not in 2' of water but you can see them chasing bait some in 5-10' of water.”

www.henrycowenflyfishing.com

Capt Mack should have a new Lanier report posted soon. Whether you’re tossing flies, bait, or lures, this Lanier veteran’s intel on prey/predator whereabouts is always solid:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/category/Fishing-Store/CaptainMacks/posts/

Good luck, folks. Dress warmly, enjoy a big breakfast while the black ice thaws, and meet your expert winter fishing guide astream as the sun shines. We’re still a lot warmer than Wyoming, right?  Follow the sun, go with a pro, and send us your pics!

Unicoi Outfitters: Friendly. Local. Experts.