I’ve had some rough days thus far in my limited fly fishing career. The Clinch River and Smoky Mountain National park have been my “home” waters, and I rarely catch anything. The last few trips have changed that, thanks to some help from a few fellow fly fishers.
So this morning, I started on the Clinch and after a bit moved up to the “kiddie pool” below the dam where there are lots of trout, but normally pretty small. I caught quite a few, mostly less than 8 inches long. Both rainbows and browns, with the last brown being the first time I’ve had to use my net. I didn’t measure it, but it’s the largest fish I’ve caught on a fly rod so far.
I went, had lunch with my wife, and then made a snap decision to run down to the Smokies. I fished the Tremont creek, an area I’ve been skunked before. For the first time, I started “seeing” the stream. If I figured there was a fish behind a rock, I’d normally get a strike. I ended up with two brookies about 4" each. Not much, but still fish.
I’ll work on size next time, but for this trip I’m stoked that I caught all 3 species in one day, and I was able to catch fish on two different waters that have given me so much trouble. I think all that work I’ve been doing on casting is starting to pay off.