Updated Every Tuesday:
9/18/12
Water Conditions:
South Holston Release Schedule
Hatches: Mayfly hatches are becoming more sporadic, especially the Sulphurs. BWO’s will start to play a bigger and bigger role on these rivers. The midge’s are going to be the staple on these waters for the next bit, but with fish starting to get that itch, egg patterns and streamers are not to be ignored either.
Fly Suggestions: I still would not go to either river with out a good selection of Sulphur emerger patterns and dries. Comparaduns and Cripple’s are great on top and by hanging a split case underneath you have the whole cain covered. Now is the time to move the BWO’s to the prominent spots in your fly box and to even keep your eye out for a new pattern or two. Comparaduns are always a favorite, but another one the fish seem to enjoy is the Klinkhammer emergers. Loop wing emergers or split cases make great droppers. For the midge hatch some of my favorite nymphs are zebras in both black and red; Rainbow warriors, Black Fly Larva and griffith’s gnats. Sculpin patterns and slump busters can really get some of the bigger fish moving.
General Information: Generation schedules have geared the fly fisherman towards the midge hatch with some running down river to hope to find some fish rising to bugs larger than size 26′s. One thing that can stream line your fishing time is to have multiple rods rigged for different situations. Without having to change rigs more fishing time is allowed and you might also find yourself fishing familiar areas with different techniques. One thing that is very important is to not forget your spare rods as you change locations. It can be a very stressful and even more costly mistake. If throughout your day of fishing you do run upon some rising fish, try to focus on one or two. Look for great drifts with longer leaders. Approaching fish from up river, allowing flies to be seen before leaders and fly line can greatly improve your odds.
Projected Conditions: Expect generous generation over the next few days with forecast for rain fading away look for generation schedules to be relaxed. As the weather continues to cool expect to see fish grouping up a bit more than usual and look for the browns colors to really start to shine!!
