Guide Teo Whitlock displays my brown trout, a dividend of staying at the South Holston River Lodge |
When the temperature hits 95-degrees and the humidity
reaches similar heights, a mountainous weekend retreat begins to appear quite
tempting. It’s the always-cold temperature of the Holston River that makes this
fishery so very unique. The South Holston River Lodge offers anglers the
opportunity to catch and release rainbows and browns during float trips.
Watching a dry fly being gulped down by a hungry trout during a summertime sulphur
hatch challenges any angler to react quick enough to set the hook. Using a 9-foot 5-weight Sage One fly rod spooled with
weight-forward floating line and a 9-foot 4X tapered leader, I begin to make
false casts. “Unless you are an expert fly-caster you really only need to
roll-cast or do some high-sticking to catch these fish,” said guide TeoWhitlock. My wool
yarn strike indicator and the girdle bug fly (or stone fly nymph) with a #10
hook is ready for action. “We identify a good place to fish by paying attention
to feeding lanes and depth changes.” Whitlock positions the boat and then drops
anchor. One
backcast and the fly enters the water. Whoosh. It drifts right through the
strike zone before I can say Tennessee mountain trout. Lodge manager Jon Hooper is sitting in the
back of the boat and offers some gentle chiding and coaching. Another drift,
the indicator goes under for a split second, and I completely miss the fish
when I left the rod. On the next drift I anticipate the trout rise more and set
the hook on a fine 16-inch wild brown trout. The lodge champions
conservation by practicing catch and release, so each trout is placed back into
the River.
To view past blog entries from the S. Holston River Lodge click here.
Wow! I am really impressed by the way you detailed out everything. It is really going to help me a lot. Thanks for sharing your thoughts so clearly.
ReplyDeleteWell thanks, but that's my job as an outdoor communicator. Let me know if you ever want me to come for a visit and put my talents to work for you and your lodge!
ReplyDelete