Fishing Report
Hey Everyone, I apologize for the lack of fishing reports. The Watauga river has been fishing great. Most of the fishing is nymphing. We are having a few periods of dry fly fishing, it’s not been everyday, but there have been some sulphurs hatching. Sulphur nymphs, midge pupa, and attractor patterns have been working well. Give us a call if you would like more information, or if you would like to book a trip. 423-202-5184
Tight Lines,
Huck
Hello everyone,
Welcome to Watauga River Guides. We’ve had a good week on the Watauga river. We are seeing some blue winged olives hatching, not big hatches, but we have been able to have some periods of dry fly fishing. Nymphing has been the most productive. We’ve been fishing some attractors such as egg patterns along with bwo nymphs and midges on long, light tippet. We have also been using some tight line techniques that have proven to be very effective even on picky fish. We have been adapting these tight line tactics to be fished from a drift boat while drifting as well as from anchor, which makes this style unique.
If you are planing your own trip be sure to have plenty of small flies. The blue wings are an honest size 24, but the fish will take a 22 bwo puff daddy. The midge pupa that we are fishing range from size 18 to 22.
If you would like more information about our guide service, or if you would like to book a trip, please call us at 423-202-5184 or email us at wataugariverguides@gmail.com. Hope to see you on the water.
Tight Lines,
Huck
Hello everyone,
We are off to another great summer on the Watauga river. We’ve had great river conditions so far this year. Nymphing has been great with good numbers of fish coming to the boat. Midges are the fly of choice. Long leaders and light tippet are key. We have July dates available. Feel free to give us a call if you would like to get in on the action. (423)202-5184. Or email at wataugariverguides@gmail.com
Hope to see you on the river
Huck
Hello everyone,
It doesn’t seem possible, but here we are and it’s almost May. Spring has been great on the Watauga. The flows have been consistent and the fishing has been good. The low clear water calls for good drifts, and light tippet. We’re still getting some fish on caddis, mostly on pupa. The fish are settling back in and taking mayfly nymphs and midges. I hope that everyone has had a great spring. If you have any questions about our guide service or would like to book a trip, please give us a call at 423-202-5184 or email at wataugariverguides@gmail.com
Tight lines,
Huck
The Watauga is fishing like a champ! Dry droppers and nymph rigs have been producing good numbers and great quality fish. Cicadas are hatching and we are seeing some activity on them. It’s not light out yet, but it won’t be long. May has been an outstanding month. I can’t wait to see what June holds. Please feel free to give us a call if you would like to book a trip.
Tight Lines,
Huck
We’ve been getting consistent flows from the TVA. Which is great for this time of year. Consistent flows of cold water keep the fish happy and healthy. Fishing has been good. If you’ve read the previous reports, you’ve noticed a trend. Long leaders, light tippet, and drag free drifts are key. Don’t forget that we take anglers of all skill levels. From first time fly fishers to veteran anglers. We have been fortunate to introduce many first time anglers to the sport over the last few weeks. So don’t be intimidated give us a call if you would like to learn to fly fish.
Tight Lines,
Huck
We’ve had high water for the last few days. The TVA has been generating Wilbur dam most of the day. Which is great for the fish. This time of year when temperatures get up into the 90s, high water provides more dissolved oxygen and cooler water temperatures. It keeps the fish healthy and active.
We’ve been doing well fishing midges on both dry/dropper and light nymph rigs. Small midges are the way to go. The hotter the weather, the smaller the fly.
We’re staying busy and still have some August dates available. Give us a call if you would like to get out on the water.
Tight Lines,
Huck
Fishing has been consistent on the Watauga river. The flows have been good. Which helps keep the water cold during these hot days. Midges are the main hatch right now. Light nymph rigs and dry dropper rigs are working well. Long leaders, light tippet, and long drifts equal success. We have had a great summer and we’re looking forward to fall. We do have some August dates available. If you would like to book a trip please feel free to contact us. Hope to see you on the water.
Tight lines,
Huck
It’s been hot for the last week. Thankfully the water temperature is cold. The Watauga river has been fishing good. It’s summertime rigs. Dry/droppers and light nymph rigs with long leaders with light tippet. Long drag free drifts are just as important as the flies you use. Midges are the name of the game right now.
Most of our guests have been booking half day trips in order to beat the heat. If you would like more information on our guide service, or if you would like to book at trip. Please give us a call or send us an email.
Tight Lines,
Huck
Summer has finally decided to show up in northeast TN. We are seeing temps get up into the 90’s. The good news is that our water temps stay cool year round. That keeps the fish healthy and happy. We’ve been doing well with dry/dropper rigs and light nymph rigs. Long drag free drifts and light tippet is key.
Half day trips are always more popular this time of year. A lot of our guests prefer to get out early and beat the heat. We have decided to add a half day with lunch to our trip options. The cost of the half day with lunch is $375 for two people.
The fishing has been great. Give us a call if you would like more information about our guide service, or if you would like to book a trip.
Tight Lines,
Huck
Summer is here in northeast TN. Fishing has been great! The Watauga has been fishing good on low water. Nymphs and dry dropper rigs have been the ticket. We’ve also been running a lot of half day dry fly trips on South Holston. Sulphurs have been coming off really good on high water. If you are interested in our guide service, or if you would like to book a trip? Please give us a call or send an email. We’d love to get you out on the water.
Tight Lines,
Huck
After months of rain. We are starting to see low water again. The Watauga is fishing well. Today they were a little spooky in the flat water, but were very willing to eat in the riffles. Midges and sulphur nymphs are working best.
As the weather gets hotter, we are having more requests for half day trips. This is a great option to beat the heat. If you have any questions about our services or if you would like to book a trip. Please give us a call.
Tight Lines,
Huck
We’ve been on both rivers in the last week. Both are fishing great! The TVA is flowing 1900cfs on the South Holston river and it is great. We have no idea how long this flow will last. But, we plan to fish it as long as it does. Nymph rigs are bringing lots of fish to the boat with some nice size in the mix. Sulphurs are hatching in the afternoon. Providing some opportunity for dry fly fishing. June has been outstanding. Give us a shout if you’d like to get out on the water.
Tight Lines,
Huck
The rivers have been fishing great! Last week we floated the Watauga river and the South Holston river. The TVA had flows up and down last week. Last Monday had one full day of high water on the Watauga. The nymph bite was outstanding. Lots of fish to the boat with the biggest measuring just over 17 inches. The next day the TVA sluiced 1000cfs on the South Holston. The fishing was incredible. Nymph fishing was some of the best fishing I’ve ever seen. Sulphurs hatched all afternoon which lead to awesome dry fly fishing. The rest of the week was a mixture of low and high water on the Watauga. Both fished well. When the water came up each day we would give it about a half hour to clear up then get back to fishing. Looks like we are going to have high water for the foreseeable future. With sulphurs hatching in the afternoons it’s a great time to fish. Give us a call if you’d like to get out on the water.
Tight Lines,
Huck
The spring bite is on! We’ve been having some great days on the Watauga river. The TVA is still generating around the clock. The consistent flows have made for some outstanding fishing. Nymph rigs have been the most productive. Switching over to dry flies while the fish are rising. We have rain in the forecast this week. Changing back to sunshine over the weekend.
As of May 1st. Tennessee has reopened all businesses. So, all lodging and restaurants are back in operation. If you need any help with accommodations, please don’t hesitate to ask. If you would like to book a trip. Please give us a call or send an email. If we don’t answer immediately, we’re probably on the water. Please leave a message and we will return your call ASAP. I hope to see you on the water.
Tight Lines,
Huck
With all the bad news right now. You’ll be happy hear that the fishing has been great! The TVA is still generating. The flow has been ~1700 cfs which is perfect. The nymph bite has been excellent. Lots of fish coming to the net. We are starting to see sulphurs. We’ve had some really good dry fly fishing during hatch periods. The streamer fishing has been good as well.
If you’d like more info about our service. Or, if you would like to book a trip. Feel free to give us a call or send a message. I hope to see you on the water.
Tight Lines,
Huck
We are still running trips. We have been in contact with the Tennessee Valley Authority and the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. Both agree that fishing trips are well within social distancing safety guidelines. We are taking every effort to keep all of our equipment clean and sanitized. If you have any questions or concerns please feel free to give us a call.
The rivers are fishing great. The TVA has been generating on both the South Holston and the Watauga rivers. The flows have been great for floating. Nymph rigs and dry droppers are hands down the top producers. Streamers are getting bit as well. If you prefer quality over quantity. Streamers are for you. Dry fly activity has been heating up as well. We are getting very close to the legendary caddis hatch on the Watauga river. These bugs will typically start to hatch around the 2nd week of April.
During these stressful times I can’t think of a better way to “social distance” yourself. Please give us a call or an email if you have any questions or if you would like to book a trip.
Tight Lines
Huck
423-202-5184
It’s been another great week of fly fishing on the Watauga river. The TVA dropped the water last Friday and Saturday which gave us an outstanding blue winged olive hatch. The flows have been back up to 1700 cfs this week which is great for fishing from a drift boat, but not so good if you are a wade fisherman. Blue winged olive nymphs and midges are working well most days. Blue wing puff daddies are getting them during hatch periods. Give us a call if you would like to know more about our guide service, or if you would like to book a trip. We have a few days open in March and April.
Tight lines,
Huck
We’ve had more consistent flows from the TVA this week. Weather temps are back up into the 60s. The fishing has been great! We’ve been floating the Watauga river. Getting good numbers of fish in the net. We’ve been nymphing most of the day. Midges are working great on a nymph rig. We’re seeing some sporadic blue winged olive hatches in the afternoons. BWO sparkle duns and puff daddies are working good when the fish are feeding on top. Streamers are moving some fish. All in all, it’s a great time to be fishing the Watauga river. We still have a few dates open in March and April. Give us a call if you’d like to get out on the water.
Tight Lines,
Huck
We had another great week of fishing on the Watauga river. Consistent high water flows have the fish feeding well. We are seeing blue winged olive hatches almost daily. Which has been bringing several fish to the surface. Nymph rigs are working great when the blue wings aren’t hatching. If you’re more interested in catching quality over quantity. The streamer bite has been good as well.
I also want to talk about the 4th Annual Bill Beazell & Allen Robbins river cleanup. This event will be this Saturday March 7th at 8am. Meeting at Ingles in Elizabethton to clean the Watauga. Meeting at the Bluff City boat ramp to clean the South Holston. Afterward we will be having BBQ and prize drawings at State Street Brewing in Bristol at 5pm. If you can, please make an effort to come join us in cleaning these rivers that we love. If you have any questions about the river cleanup or our guide services. Please feel free to give us a call or send an email. I hope to see you on the river.
Tight Lines,
Huck
