Tight Line Fly Fishing

Hello everyone,

I’ve been getting quite a few questions on tight line fly fishing. There are several names and similar techniques, euro nymphing, Czech nymphing, mono rig, to name a few. Each of these techniques are similar in that you are casting and fishing with only the leader, not the fly line. I am calling what we are doing tight lining, or tight line fly fishing because we are not limiting this technique to one style of fishing. This is often thought of as a wading tactic. We have been working and tweaking this technique to be fished from a drift boat both from anchor and while drifting. Nymphing is the first thing that people think of with tight lining. You cast out and maintain contact with your nymphs as they drift. With this rig you have the ability to control the depth of the fly, which we want to be near the bottom. You feel the flies bouncing across the river bottom and make depth adjustments without changing the rig, but by moving your fly rod and tightening your line. The beauty of this system is the amount of control that you have over your presentation. It is this control that allows us to fish each water type, depth, and speed efficiently. This is not only a nymphing technique, streamers and even dry flies can be fished effectively using this method. We have been working with several proven leader formulas, tapers, and combinations to best suit our needs on the Watauga and South Holston. If this sounds like something that is interesting to you, please give us a shout at 423-202-5184, or wataugariverguides@gmail.com. We do lessons as well as guided fly fishing trips.

Tight Lines,

Huck

Watauga River Fly Fishing Report

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

Watauga River Fly Fishing Report

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

Watauga River Fly Fishing Report

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

Watauga River Fly Fishing Report

We had a great week on the Watauga. In typical April fashion we had a crazy mix of weather. The fish still cooperated no matter what the weather threw at us. We fished nymphs, dry-droppers, and had a period of dry fly fishing that was the icing on the cake. Midges, caddis, and blue winged olives along with attractor patterns worked well. Just keep an eye on the generation schedule. The TVA ran water a couple of days last week unexpectedly. Remember when you’re looking at the schedule, that it is Wilbur dam that you need to check. If you are interested in our guide service please feel free to give us a shout at 423-202-5184 or wataugariverguides@gmail.com. I hope to see you on the water.

Tight Lines,

Huck

Watauga River Fishing Report

Hello everyone,

I hope you’re well. We have enjoyed some mild temperatures and good flows on the Watauga river. Nymphs have been the game. We’ve been catching fish on midge pupa fished deep under an indicator. We are starting to see a few dries hatching, not enough to be predictable, but it’s a good sign of what’s to come in the next few weeks. If you have any questions about our guide service, feel free to email us at wataugariverguides@gmail.com or give us a call at 423-202-5184. We hope to see you on the river.

Tight Lines,

Huck

Watauga River Fly Fishing Report.

Hello everyone,

I hope that you all are doing well. We’ve been fishing the upper Watauga river on high water. The bite has been consistent. High water nymph rigs have been working well. We haven’t been seeing many rising fish yet. Midges have been the majority of the insects. Attractors are working well also at times. The weather has been better than average and the river hasn’t been crowded. Give us a call if you would like to get out on the water. 423-202-5184

Tight lines,

Huck

Watauga River Fishing Report

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

Watauga River Fishing Report

Hello everyone! I hope that spring has been good to you. We’ve been staying busy on the Watauga River. Let’s cut to the chase. The fishing has been excellent. This years caddis hatch did not disappoint. We had good numbers and solid fish coming to the top to eat big bugs. Now we are having sulphur hatches in the late afternoon on low water. The nymph fishing has been on fire. With all of the added fishing pressure from the maintenance on the South Holston there have been fishermen everywhere. We have been using some nymphing techniques that are outside the box with great results. In closing, I hope that spring has been as good to you as it has to us. If you would like to book a trip, please feel free to contact us. I hope to see you on the water.

Tight Lines,

Huck

South Holston river fishing report

The wether in February has been good to us. We had consistent flows on the South Holston river providing great fishing opportunities. The closed sections are back open and we can fish the entire river again.
Blue winged olives have been hatching. We’ve been having some opportunities for dry fly fishing. Blue winged olive nymphs and attractor patterns have been working great on a nymph rig.
Give us a call if you’d like to get out on the water.

Tight Lines,

Huck

Watauga River Fly Fishing Report

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

Watauga River Fly Fishing Report

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

Watauga River Fly Fishing Report

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

Watauga river fly fishing report

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

Watauga River Fly Fishing Report.

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

Watauga river fly fishing report

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

Watauga River Fly Fishing Report

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

South Holston river fly fishing report.

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

Watauga River Fly Fishing Report

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

Watauga River Fly Fishing Report

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