Bill and Jason on the River

Bill and I have been trying to get a trip on the books for a while, but bad weather and high generation had made scheduling a trip tough. Finally the conditions were right and Bill traveled in from Alabama. On this trip Bill brought his son Jason who flew in from Northern California. We loaded up the drifter and began this float on cold clear water.

The weather was cloudy and storms were supposed to arrive on the river just as we were scheduled to finish the trip. With the looming weather in the area the fog came and went throughout the morning. The fog provided a little cover and Jason used it to his advantage. Jason was on fire and within just a few minutes he had a fish in the net.

A few casts later Jason brought a rainbow to the net and then on his next cast he brought his first brown boat-side. Jason's slam came very early in this trip and then he continued to put fish in the net with regularity. Jason was the numbers guy on this trip.

Bill quickly got up to speed on our type of mending. We discussed slow waters at length, since the water releases have been down, this was good time to learn the right mends.  It can be tough to stay with a slow drift for a long period of time, but the results can be outstanding. We were fishing waters that had been super-productive just 2 days before, but on this day there didn't seem to be a fish anywhere within casting distance. Slow water and slim-pickins was our story for about 30 minutes. With the heavy fog I couldn't see any rises in the long pool. Then a wind came and blew out the fog. At the end of the pool we could see some rise-rings.

Bill dropped the nymph in the top of a rise-ring and the fly settled. A fish ate. Bill was on the hookset quickly and when the fish felt the pressure it turned on the its to began a slow run. The fish had some real power but didn't make a blistering run. Instead the fish took power runs and rubbed the fly on the bottom at every chance. Bill kept the rod tip up and played the fish perfectly. During the fight the fog rolled back into the pool.

After several minutes we began the end of the fight and Bill got the head of the fish coming to the top of the water. Then he slipped the fish into the net and Bill had the largest trout for his personal record book. We took the hero shots while keeping the fish revived and released the fish back into the river to catch on another float. 

Storms began to build as the wind began blowing pockets of cold air onto the river. We brought out the foul weather gear as we entered the last section on the float. Jason was still catching fish and Bill was coming back around after catching that beast of a brown. Finally the wall of rain came and thunder struck over the ridge. The weather that had been looming all morning finally caught up with us. We reeled up the lines and stowed the rods. Then we began the run to the takeout ramp. After all the scheduling conflicts Bill and his son Jason got on the water together. Bill and Jason I am looking forward to April when hopefully we can get on the water and have another good day. And Bill, welcome to the Southeastern Fly 20+ Club.

To see the latest fishing report click here and for more booking information see our rates page.  If you are a seasoned angler or have never picked up a fly rod and want to set up a day on the river just email or call/text 615-796-5143 to book a day on the water.