Elk River and Caney Fork Fishing Report

The Elk River: The fish are feeding on top and to nymphs. There are a bunch of stockers in the river right now, so be prepared to keep busy while trying to get the bigger fish to respond. We fished terrestrial patterns close to the takeout the other day and while there were some spots in the river that the fish wouldn't respond, it was worth keeping on lobbing these top water offerings.

What about terrestrials? We all have those patterns that sit up high in the water and look cool. But, getting a fish to hit one of those patterns piled high with foam and deer hair can be tough. As of late it seems a pattern that rides low in the water and has a bit longer legs bet met with better results. Getting the fly to ride low in the water has been an interesting experiment. The last pattern I tied was so low in the water no one could see it...no one except the fish.

The Caney Fork River: The stockers have been super responsive to small dries. It isn't a bad idea to tie a dropper off the bend of the hook either.  But, it's never a bad time when there is just a dry tied to the tippet and the fish are responding. So, some folks are reading this and thinking stockers are fun but they want to catch the big holdovers. There is only one thing to say, don't give up throwing the dry, because you never know what might be lurking under the next cast.

Terrestrials have been getting the best of some fish on the Caney as well. Hopper/droppers are also worth a try. Nymphs have been the meal ticket on this river. Really, nymphs under an indicator, with the right drift have been the meal ticket. I know friends, people who are reading this right now and everyone else who has been on the boat get tired of hearing me talk about mending, but a proper mend puts more fish in the net time than any other technique. So, get better at mending because the presentation depends on it.

There are a couple reports from Middle Tennessee. Trips are starting to pick up and just in time for better fishing. August has already been a productive month,  for those thinking about booking, now is really a good time to get on the boat and feed some flies to some fish.