Some bigger water

The transmission in my truck gave up on me last week. This really sucks, I had it rebuilt two years ago with a 6 month/6000 mile warranty that I have far exceeded. I'm too broke to have it fixed right now so its been walking and luckily finding a ride for me lately. Friday, Stu texted me and wanted to know where we were fishing at tomorrow. I told him I had no plans to fish, but instead to walk to the grocery store with my backpack so I could eat this week. Not what I had in mind when I bought my Kelty internal frame... He insisted on picking me up and going to the mountains. I informed him this meant taking me to the store on the way home and he agreed.

Originally I picked a tributary on the north side of the smokies we have yet to set eyes on. We ended up not going there due to lack of time and instead fished a section that is easily accessed.

It was drizzling very lightly when we arrived. We parked near a bridge above the confluence of two major feeders to one of the larger watersheds on this side of the park. Neither of us had fished this stretch of stream before though I had studied maps and was aware of the layout. After rigging up with my favorite dry fly for this time of year, the foam beetle, and a pheasant tail dropper we each started out on a different section of stream. I went below the bridge and Stu above.

It didn't take long before I had  a few very enthusiastic strikes on my beetle. And, I missed them all. I caught up with Stu fairly quick and then crossed the stream so we each had untouched water in front of us and didn't have to leapfrog. Nothing seemed interested in my dropper so I changed out to a green weenie and  soon had a tiny 2" rainbow to hand. A few casts later I landed another small rainbow. The trout seemed small for the size of the stream we were on.

I got my green weenie stuck in a tree while casting to a deep run beneath an overhanging tree. I decided to try a pink weenie instead and cast it into the same run. The fish laying in that run had ignored my green weenie but it liked my pink weenie. This turned out to be the average size I caught for the day

Everything was wet. Rock hopping was required and was more treacherous than usual.

You can see Stu fishing in the above picture. He got ahead of me because I took a little detour to check out the rock wall following the river bank. It is among the longest rock walls I have laid eyes on so far in the smokies.

The road for the most part follows the stream but not too closely in some places. I knew we would have to bushwhack our way back to the road, but how far depended on where we quit. We decided to call it a day when a family of otters came frolicking their way down from upstream, spooking every fish possible along the way. I had to figure out how to cross the stream without getting too soaked. I solved this problem by stepping on a slick rock in the middle of a hole and falling in the water. It no longer mattered how wet I was since now my pack of Pall Mall lights were soaked. To my surprise the bushwhack was really short, only a couple hundred feet. So lucky and unlucky at the same time. I managed to dry out a couple cigarettes for the ride home but the rest were, shall we say, a wash...

Little Creek, Big Rocks

I had to return to this stream. I gave it a try back in march while the water was still cold enough to need waders and I got skunked on this little rivulet. That doesn't happen very often and it left a bad taste in my mouth that's been festering for too long.

Yesterday I met up with my usual fishin buddy and brother in law, Stu, and we headed on up to the trail head where we were to meet up with "The angler formerly known as C4PZLOK" (sorry dude, I had to) If you are a Tennesseeanglers member you may have heard of him, or his more recent screen name, Fox. Fox is a regular contributor on the forum, seasoned angler, though fairly new to fly fishing and a pretty laid back dude. Introductions were made, jokes were cracked, rods got strung and then we started our way up the trail.

I'm pretty laid back as well until you get me on the trail. Stu always makes me walk in front so I don't keep poking the back of his head with my fly rod as I stare off into the forest like a kid from Southern Cal who never had so many trees. Though, I suspect its got as much to do with the spider webs strung across the trail.

We saw signs of bear and boar along the way, mostly in the lower part of the trail. Scat and paw prints on the trail were common. We found a mud hole as well.  Before long we arrived at the stream and started casting. It was a little slow at first, a take here and there but not much action. Fox fished a hole that looks like it has been marked.

I took off my pink weenie dropper and just fished a beetle and things picked up a bit.

An interesting flower I thought my daughter would like to see. Only one pic was worth a darn, I really need to get a little tripod.

I've never seen a caterpillar like this before. The Kidd described it as "Epic" and I can't disagree.

I also had just seen a big fuzzy chartreuse caterpillar dangling from a limb that I couldn't get a decent picture of. Seeing these caterpillars and little else in the way of bugs on the stream made me dig into the fly box for a green weenie when I saw another fly in there that made sense. I made one last year just messing around, and decided to make two more just in case it worked. They have just sat in my fly box for two years getting passed over for proven patterns.

After I dropped a glass caterpillar off of my beetle my catch rate went way up. Stu and Fox found the same success with green weenies and san juan worms.

We passed three rock cairns where I only recall there being one last time. Or there is only one in my picture from the last trip. I'm not sure but I think this might mark a manway over the ridge that drops into another stream.

The fish were greedy for chartreuse as we leapfrogged our way up the stream. I quit counting after 20 brook trout came to hand. Not a monster brookie day but respectable. We finished our day when we came to a place where the water cascaded over a rock formation that looked like swiss cheese. Stu fished the left side and I took the right. Two more brookies came to hand.

It is as good of a landmark as any to start from next time...

the foam beetle

As mild as the summer has been lately, make no mistake, the dog days are here. In the mountains, aside from the occasional stoneflies, there aren't any major hatches right now. While dry flies like the neversink caddis, poor man's stimulator, parachute and wulff adams, among others will still catch trout, the best bet is terrestrials. My favorite of these is a big black foam beetle. They will float any heavy stonefly nymph you can come up with, and your truck too. Maybe not your truck, but they do float well.

I have tinkered with a few different materials and styles the last few years and have finally settled on one that outdoes the rest. I started out tying the original peacock herl bodied foam beetle but that was too wimpy. A few trout teeth and it was done. Then somebody introduced me pearl chenille and rubber legs. I liked the durability but I also had fewer strikes. It just wasn't natural looking with the little plastic rectangles sticking out everywhere. Earlier this year I decided to try tying a couple with a dubbing underbody. I dug through my supplies and came across some Ice dubbing I hadn't been using. Bingo! The stuff is a bit difficult to use being synthetic but its durable, has a nice buggy look and not too much flash.

Teimco 2312 size 10-i prefer size 12 but i'm out
Black thread 70 denier
Peacock loco foam
Chocolate brown ice dubbing
Medium round black rubber legs
White para post

To start, cut the foam into a strip 1/4" to 3/8" wide and cut the corners of one end into a taper. Cut the legs into 1 1/2 inch lengths.

Wrap down the hook and tie the last 1/16" of the taper above the bend. Wrap it loose at first, tightening as you go to prevent cutting into the foam

Next comes the hard part. The plastic dubbing doesn't stick to the thread as well as finer dubbing materials, and sometimes comes loose while wrapping. I don't have dubbing wax so the way I found to beat it is to use a little at a time, wrapping up and down the hook in a few layers. Be sure to leave a gap behind the hook eye to tie down the foam.

Fold the foam over and pull it snug. Wrap to hold it down the same as earlier, loose at first and gradually tightening as you wrap. Don't trim the remaining foam yet. Next tie in the rubber legs. One at a time i fold them in half around the thread, pinch the tips between my fingers, pull them tight and place them with a wrap of thread.

Cut off a strand of para post, fold it in half and tie it on top of the beetle. I make a few wraps around it to make a true parachute post. Lift the loose foam and whip finish on the eye of the hook. Trim the foam, legs, dubbing and parachute post to your liking. I often use a drop of superglue to help hold things in place.

I like the peacock foam but it is expensive as far as foam sheets go. It also blends with the water so it makes the para post a must, but any closed cell 2mm foam will do. Hope you enjoy!

big creek

I have been keeping my eye out for the midnight hole for some time. I first heard about it when I moved here back in '97, but had no clue for years where it was. Last year while spending an evening gorging myself on the Great Smoky Mountains Landforms map I found it and spent some time doing my homework.

Yesterday The Kidd and I finally made our way to the Big creek section of the Smokies. Having never been there before we had no idea what to expect. The parking lot was already full and finding a spot was a little difficult. We pulled in at 11:15 am and made our way to the trailhead. It wasn't hot but it was humid like it had just rained, so we started sweating immediately.

The trail at first follows the side of a ridge overlooking the creek in places, but for the first 1/2 to 3/4 of a mile the water is nowhere to be seen. Soon enough the trail found its way back to the stream and it was a sight to behold. big boulders often bigger than a car, Lots of pocket water, some small runs and hopefully lots of trout.

We stopped and checked out a couple of spots along the way not knowing if the midnight hole was marked or how close we were. The water was low so I wondered if it would look anything like the pictures I had seen on Google. We found a spot with a little waterfall and a fairly deep pool and the Kidd spotted a bird nest under a rock overlooking the water, with a few trout feeding in the pool below.

We hit the trail again and within a few minutes I spotted something familiar through the trees. The water was just as blue as the pictures I had seen and there were several trout visibly feeding in the pool in front of us. We weren't alone but were fortunate enough to get a good picture before the hordes showed up and it turned into a swimming hole. I was amazed that the trout didn't hide when everyone started jumping and swimming. They were apparently used to it and kept feeding, never more than a few feet away. One hung out so close to shore I was able to get an underwater shot of him.

Well that looked like fun so I decided I wanted to jump too. The Kidd wanted no part of it and was content to hang out, dip her toes and mostly avoid the cold water.  But me, first time here, and not knowing when I'll ever be back, I had to do it. The hard part was climbing the big rock (not visible) on the left. The 10 year olds were practically running up it compared to me at 36. I slipped and scraped my right shin while making the short climb up.

After I got that out of my system some lunch was ate, some drying out, and then we were off to find mouse creek falls. Its just a short half mile past the midnight hole and there were some really good views of the creek along the way.

At the falls I found some weird fungus growing on the side of a tree. There were alot of people down the path to the falls, and we had already had our fill of being in a crowd for the day, so we hung back and looked on from a higher perspective

I have read Don Kirk's book "Smoky Mountain Trout Fishing Guide" from cover to cover and still refer to it when I go someplace new. Occasionally I have found his assessment of fishing quality to be understated. On Big creek he wrote, "The quality of fishing on Big creek does not quite match the scenery" but the multiple trout I saw earlier said different. I brought along a fly rod and wanted to test the fishing once we passed mouse creek falls. My theory is that 60-70% of people turn around from there and head for their car, and the water above would be less crowded. We found an empty spot just a few minutes up the trail and I strung up the 'ol Temple Fork 4wt(RIP) with a Poor Mans Stimulator and a bead head pheasant tail dropper.

Don Kirk was partially right. This is one of the more scenic streams I've been on, considering proximity to the car. But the fishing I found to be awesome! In two short runs I missed three trout on the PMS and landed three on the BHPT. I only fished for around ten minutes before the incoming clouds went dark, and we thought we heard a little thunder. Not one to test fate while holding a 9ft lightning rod, I kept the tip low and we started our way back towards the truck. I hope to make it back one day soon to pierce some more lips and see what else this little big creek has to offer

protect your honey hole

I made a huge mistake last year. A neighbor of mine, an old man, was always asking me where I fish on my break. Eventually, me thinking he was a fellow sportsman, I gave him the location of the lunchtime pond. This little pond, 1 1/2-2 acres in size has been a honey hole of mine for quite a while now. Well, it turns out my neighbor isn't the sportsman I thought he was.

 He had been bragging about how good the fishing is there, and said he and his buddy had been going often. This didn't send up any red flags at the time, I was happy for him. Until he told me earlier this week that his buddy kept 45 bluegill that morning. i knew they both would go, and that they kept fish, but 45? I tried to sit with him and explain that a pond that size cannot sustain him and his buddy fishing like that, and asked that they throw some back every now and then, to which he replied "I don't put nothing back"...

 I made a huge mistake in trying to be all neighborly and now the pond is being punished for it. I don't think its possible for them to fish it out completely, but it may not be worth a damn for very long at this rate. I have noticed a decline in my bluegill catch rate this past week, except for friday which was much better, but I had to work for it. Luckily they don't seem to want to walk very far from the truck.

Trashing the pond bothers me as much as the excess keeping. Part of me wants to say I'm not cleaning their mess, but I sure as hell don't want to walk by it either. I'll break down and clean it, hopefully not repeatedly. He's really coming across as an asshole.

fight for the right

once again here in tennessee we find ourselves up against the giant known as TVA to keep our trout hatcheries open. the same folks who brought us electric power, economic development, and altered river ecosystems now want to bail out of keeping up with the fisheries they have spent so much time and money creating. this fishery is reported to have an economic impact in tennessee of $73 created for every $1 spent. that is one hell of a return any way you look at it. i don't have a personal economic interest in keeping the hatcheries open but i do love to fish these tailwaters. i also currently work 50 hours a week so attending the meetings and breaking down the film aren't a valid option for me. i am not always the best informed but there are some people who are, have the ability to attend these meetings and stand up for the rest of us who can't. what they want us to do is make our voice heard in other ways by contacting tva and our local senator. the tva comment period is only open until tuesday june 10 so speak up!

more info
LRO forum
TVA info

contact
TVA public comments
Senator Lamar Alexander

poor mans stimulator

Like alot fly anglers I like to tie my own flies. I can't honestly say it is any cheaper than just buying them from the fly shop. I like to try my hand at harder patterns just to see if I can do it. Then I usually just end up either simplifying it or tying something else. Defies logic, I know.

So I am always looking for a productive fly that is a little different than the cookie cutter offerings found in shops and online. The best way to do that is to tie them yourself and experiment a little. Also, I have a preference for what are often called guide flies. They use few materials and are easy to tie. For example, I don't tie legs on any of my pheasant tails. Just a bead, wire and pheasant. Simple. While filling my fly box for camping a few weeks ago I tried tying a new pattern, or rather a dressed down version that could be considered a variation of a stimulator or elk hair caddis. It is similar to both yet not like either. Maybe I should be calling it "Punk's Poor Mans Stimulator"...

Recipe: Size 12 scud hook
Ultra thread 70 denier, cream
Small diameter monofilament (I recycle used 6x tippet)
Beaver dubbing, sulphur yellow
Bleached deer hair, cleaned and stacked
Grizzly hackle

 It can be tied in a variety of colors. I tied it on dry fly hooks and scud. The scuds land with authority and the take was often instant. I thought they outperformed the dry hooks, and it still floated well. So far I have had success using it in the mountains, and the clinch river during a sulphur hatch.

This fly has fast become one of my go-to flies for summer mountain fishing. Hope ya like it!

an introduction

hola! welcome to my first foray into the blog o sphere. my name is shaun but you can call me punk for short. i'm a punk rocker who gave up the punk rock life when my daughter was born. i'm originally from southern california, and have called tennessee home since 1997. i grew up fishing as a kid, mostly for trout, and thats one thing that hasn't changed. i started fly fishing seriously about three years ago and fell in love. i am not your traditional fly fisherman, i prefer cut off shorts to waders(except in winter!) and a cadillac tramps t shirt to patagonia. i fish in the great smoky mountains often, as well as some of the surrounding streams such as the tellico watershed. i love to hit the tailwaters around here, the clinch below norris dam and holston below cherokee. i use a kayak to reach the best waters and least crowds. but the place i probably fish most often is a little pond close to work on my lunch break.

i am a member on a couple forums but i try not to be a post whore. i don't do forums for a pat on the back, i'm there to get help and help others when i can. i fish often and this can be a place for my reports, and some that don't make the forums. i'm open to comments, speak your mind. questions? go for it.

hope you enjoy