Jimmy Harris
Senior Member
Last week’s rains really “recharged” several regional fisheries and we hope y’all took advantage of them. The same weather pattern is forecasted for next week, so you have more chances to take advantage of storm surges, from headwater trout to river stripers and the few private trout waters that are still cool enough to fish.
Pond and lake bream and bass are still going strong and remain a best bet. River bass are totally dependent on water clarity, so keep a keen eye on those USGS river gauges and avoid those muddy storm surges for bass. But run toward them for our Helen stripers! Book a striper trip this summer and time it for a YooHoo event.
Here’s our latest intel - far and wide. It’s as far as the Rockies and as wide as Texas, so don’t miss the good stuff. Good luck this week. Remember your raincoats!
Wes’ Hot Fly List:
Dries: Stimulator, Parachute Ant, Micro Chubby, Humpy, Elk Hair Caddis.
Nymphs & Wets: Micro Girdle Bug, Squirmy Worm, Drowned Ant, Gold Ribbed Hares Ear, Improved Yallarhammer.
Streamers & warm water: Amnesia Bug Popper (for bream), Double Barrel Bass Bug,
Hybrid Changer, Finesse Changer, Sparkle Minnow.
Headwaters:
Blueline creeks have really enjoyed their recharges. Toss fluffy dries if clear and dry/ beaded droppers if the water’s stained. If there’s good color, you can go with a shorter, thicker leader (6 ft, 4X) to your dry to make the dropper combo easier to cast in tight quarters.
Ben hiked high up the mountains in search of Georgia natives. And he found some gooduns! He said the hot fly was a small jigged streamer. Are y’all ready for summer bluelining? Hopefully, this week’s daily posts have helped you.
The high elevation Smokies creeks are still rocking along. See Byron’s daily park prospects here:
https://littleriveroutfitters.com/
Stocker Streams:
It’s the home stretch for many streams on the weekly stocking list. Stocking frequencies are reduced by WRD after July 4th due to warmer waters, fewer anglers, and the hatchery space needed to grow 5-inch fingerling trout that will be next year’s crop of stockers.
Take your pick of techniques, from Powerbait to spinners to flies, and go have some fun. Turn a kid on to mountain trouting and you’ll have a fishing buddy for life. See the weekly trout stocking list, updated each Friday afternoon, here:
https://georgiawildlife.com/Fishing/Trout
Tailwaters:
Our buddy Mo: “Same drill as last week. Kurt and I fished the dam again this Sat and we enjoyed pretty much the same conditions and dry fly action as last week. We def picked up more fish on the dropper this time. Tiny midge imitations in olive dropped off the dry about 2 feet worked very well.
Throughout the day they were on and off sporadically with periods where fish were actively feeding on top, but we had constant action on the dry dropper combo. We saw more scrappy browns in the net too. The dry in size 16 again was the fly du jour on top. Both of us fished one in diff colors and they both produced equally well.
Had a blue heron stalk me for a while from pretty close. He wasn’t having any luck fishing that I saw. Stood still for a quick pic before spooking and flying off. It was a nice way to top off another great day on the Tailwater.”
Devin and his girlfriend had a good time on the Toccoa Tailwater. The combo of a small tan Hopper and Holy Grail dropper did the trick when tossed in the eddies underneath shady limbs.
North Georgia Private Waters:
Jake: Team Jake-Squared hit the Hooch last night (22nd) in the rain-stained water and hooked 5 stripers, landing 4. The biggest fish of the evening was estimated to be around 15 lbs. We had a great time fishing that storm surge.”
Caleb: “A friend and I took advantage of the stained water on Monday evening. We had a couple of chases and were able to bring one striper to the net on a big, Black Game Changer.”
Wes: “I made a half-day trip with David on Monday morning in the rain. The stream was dirty but remained just clear enough to still be productive. Black Girdle Bugs, and Squirmy Worms got it done in the off-color water. We had a big time with some plump, feisty rainbows.”
Warmwater Streams:
Dredger noticed that rivers north of the border were running really low, so he took a road trip last weekend for some evening action ahead of a rainy week. And was glad he did. He started with a Black/Yellow Slider but only had one look. He then switched to his ole reliable, a white Kent’s Stealth Bomber, and that got some attention. He ended up with a decent handful of smallies for two hours of casting, including a 16-inch acrobat that skied six times and made his evening.
Small Lakes:
Athens Jay: “I got my paddleboard out for a brief evening trip this past weekend. There were only a few spawning bluegill visible, but others were still hanging out in relatively shallow water. I started with a black/yellow Stealth Bomber with a brown Pat’s Rubberlegs dropper and got some explosive strikes on the Bomber and several takers on the Pat’s. I switched to a medium-sized black articulated streamer that I tied with contrasting light marabou on each shank and the results exceeded all expectations. Lots of fish were brought to hand in the magical final hour before dark.”
Reservoirs:
HenryC: “Little has changed on Lanier this past week. Water temps are still in the mid 70's and the fishing is okay. Bass and stripers are eating topwater but it's not the "epic" bite we are looking for. Humps, points, and seawalls are all producing some fish. I did see some schooling striper activity near the humps in 20-30' of water. They are up and down quickly which makes flyrodders jobs a little tougher. Best bet is a spinning rod with a walk the dog bait. Pictured is a fish taken this morning (23rd) on said outfit.”
www.henrycowenflyfishing.com
Landon: “No photos, but I took my noob buddy to Lanier. We fished from the bank Sunday evening and caught spots on a Zara spook by casting along long rocky points. I fished the same areas with a shaky head and caught several as well.”
Afar:
Atticus is on an extended western walkabout and sent in this report: “West of the Mississippi is on fire with large foam terrestrials!”
Jimmy: “Last weekend I had the good fortune to be visiting the Hill Country of Texas and the intelligence to have a fly rod with me. I've fished several West Texas streams over the years but, to my knowledge, I've never been on one with a population of Guadalupe Bass. The Medina River was going to change this.
My first day resulted in a mixed bag of beautiful sunfishes (known as Perch to all Texans) Guadalupe bass, and largemouth bass. To be honest, I spent most of this day sidetracked by the healthy population of carp in the river. Aside from one take, which I immediately fumbled, I couldn't figure bugle-mouths. On my second day, I made a mental note to IGNORE THE CARP!
This trip was where I introduced the Medina bass to Kent Edmond's Stealth Bomber. It was as if they had been waiting all their lives for this fly. I don't count fish but it was pretty consistent action all morning; everything on topwater.
Not only will I have a flyrod with me the next time we're headed to a family reunion, but I may also make a special trip just to spend more time on that river.”
From the north GA mountains down to Lanier, then west to the Rockies and south to Texas, there’s your latest intel. We hope it helps you to have greater success this week. Good luck, and share your own pics and tales with us. Let me know if I can aid your piscatorial pursuits.
