South Holston River Fly Fishing - December Update

Flows are changing!

The South Holston has increased the 1300 CFS and is now running an Average Discharge of 2200 CFS.

It looks like they are going to keep that going until Sunday. They are forecasting 813 CFS for the Average Outflow. Keep your eye on the app to see exactly what this looks like.

For fishing, this means that our boat anglers will need to add more weight on their rigs with the increase in water.

We expect that streamer fishing should pick up in consistency from the 1300 CFS flows we did have.

Our wade anglers are out of luck until Sunday it looks like. The Watauga is generating most of today and it looks like Saturday and Sunday will be lots of generation as well with an Average Outflow of 1300 CFS. This can be a good time to tie a few patterns or sit at the shop and tell a fish story or two.

When you can find the afternoons where the sun is out and the temperature gets into the mid 50’s like today the mountain streams can still come alive this time of year.

We also have some rain coming in on Sunday it looks like so definitely bring your rain jackets.

If you’ve got any questions, definitely give us a call!

(423) 573-5668

FIVE FLIES FOR DECEMBER

If you are fishing the South Holston or Watauga Rivers during this December, these are five flies you want to bring in your box.

This is the season of midges! As you can see, they are the bug of the month. They may not be the sexiest bug, however they make up a large majority of the fishes diet this time of year.

1. Olive Midge #18-20

A classic fly here on the SOHO all year. If you aren’t locked and loaded with lots of Olive Midges, you are definitely missing out.

2. Micro Olive Bullet #18-20

This fly killed it fishing in the fall and it’s been producing through the winter. It’s a low-key pattern that gets the job done. It’ll fish on both a bounce rig and in-line rigs. We typically are starting with a bounce rig on our guided trips.

3. Stripper Midge #18-20

For our wade fishing anglers on both the South Holston and Watauga, the Stripper Midge is a stealthy staple that is great for low-water applications. When the sun gets high and the fish get picky, this is a great option. It’ll fish on high-water too!

4. Morgan’s Midge #18-20

The Morgan’s Midge is a incredibly versatile dry fly. Obviously, it will work when fish are rising on midges but don’t be afraid to fish this during a Baetis hatch or black Caddis hatch! Fish crush them. It can be hard to see on the water, so definitely consider fishing a larger dry fly in front of it.

5. Jake’s Fluffer #18
Jake’s Fluffer is technically a Sulphur pattern developed for here on the South Holston, but it could easily be mistaken for Blue-Winged Olive or small black Caddis. It rides high and is a great fly to put in front of your Morgan’s Midge.

Lots of bugs and still finding plenty of happy fish! December is off to a good start.

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SALE + FREE BEER!

Starting this Friday - Sunday

This weekend we are having a Fly Box Sale! Your first beer is on the house while you shop.

Most items are at least 20% off!
The river is fishing solid, it’s a great weekend to get on the water and hit our sale while you are at it. It’s been super cold lately, but this weekend it’s going to warm up. Definitely take advantage of it while you can. We have seen some amazing hatches on cloudy days!

We are also going to be releasing our new “Cold Beer, Hot Flies” hat and sticker!

3 HOT FLIES

• Bullet Quill #18

• Micro Mayfly #18

• Jake’s Fluffer Sulphur #18

Want to come fish with us? Give us a call!

(423) 573-5668

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South Holston River Fly Fishing - November Update

A quick update for fly fishing on the South Holston River in November! As temperatures drop and fall foliage flows down the river, the South Holston continues to offer solid fishing opportunities.

Weather and Water Conditions
10 Day Forecast

Lots of solid fishing days ahead. Lows will be mid-30’s, highs will be mid 60’s. Be prepared for colder conditions in the morning and take advantage of this manageable weather before things get really nasty. Not much rain ahead, but we could use it. We got some over this past weekend but could use more. Our mountain stream levels have been very low.

South Holston and Watauga Generation Schedule

For boat anglers, the flows on the South Holston have been great. The Time Period has been 1 generator from 7AM or 8AM - 8PM or 9PM. The Average CFS has been around 1300-1400 and the Average Outflow has stayed around 733. At this time, the next few days look to hold this 733 Average Outflow.

Don’t forget our spawning sections are closed until February 1.
This means that the full day generation is likely to hold. Boat anglers rejoice. Wade anglers head over to the Watauga. 

The Watauga River has been maintaining 240CFS throughout most days. With the South Holston generation, this is your best bet for sure. Check out Hunter Bridge and Lover’s Lane Bridge for decent access.

Fly Recommendations

Nymphing remains productive. Midges are the hot ticket as of late and this should continue until the spawn really gets going. With plenty of BWOs out, definitely give your favorite Baetis patterns a try. Just know, the midge nymph bite has been better for us. #18-20s. Copper bead!

For dry flies, most BWO patterns have been effective in size #18-20. Puffdaddy. Comparadun’s. CDC Thorax Emerger.

The Morgan’s Midge has been a great fly to add behind the larger dry. It imitates the small black caddis we are seeing very well.

For streamers, keep it simple with Wooly Buggers and small Dungeons. We like white and olive.

South Holston River Hatches:

Cloudy days. We’ve seen some epic hatches in the last week when the conditions are right. Typically it’s starting on the upper end around 11AM. We are seeing rising fish all the way down to Weaver Pike. On the best days, we see some Sulphurs, plenty of small black Caddis, and many BWOs!

South Holston Fly Fishing Guided Trips

Consider booking a guided fly fishing trip with our experienced guides. We can get you down the river, very safe and super fun! All levels of experience are welcome. This is a great time of year to do a half day trip in the heat of the day, especially with part of the river being closed for spawning.

We refer to our shallow water in-line fly fishing rigs for the South Holston and Watauga quite a bit, and that's a little different than our high water rigs. In this video, Forrest goes over what factors to consider.

LEADER

For the leader set up, typically we are going to use a Scientific Angler Nylon Trout, 9FT 5X or 9FT 6X. There's some people that will fish a 7.5FT leader, especially if it’s windy. We like to get our flies as far from the fly line as possible if there is no wind. 

FLOWS

Our flows, typically when we were fishing this rig on the South Holston, are 0-400 CFS generation. If a generation pulse comes through, we can still fish this shallow water rig. This rig works equally well on the Watauga River on the minimum recreation 240 CFS flow.

RIGGING

1. Tie 18-20 inches of 5.5-6.5X tippet to the end of your leader of choice.

2. Cut that tippet in half and tie a Triple Surgeon’s knot.

3. Leave a tag piece from your Triple Surgeon’s knot and tie a fly on that.

4. Tie a fly on the bottom of your tippet as a point fly. 

In the video, Forrest ties on an unweighted Pheasant Tail and Stripper Midge onto the rig. These are a few of our favorite flies for low-water fishing on both rivers. 

INDICATORS

On this rig we use three different types of indicators.

Yarn: 90% of the time we are using yarn as an indicator. It’s more stealthy and sensitive to strikes.

Oros: Anglers that struggle casting yarn, heavier flies, adding split shot, windy conditions

Airlock: Same use cases as Oros, some folks just like Airlocks better. 

DEPTH

Typically, we run this rig about 35in deep. If you touch your right shoulder with your right hand, then extend your left hand, that should give you a good idea. It's different for all the various water depths that we are fishing, but that's a good depth to start at when wade fishing or floating the South Holston and Watauga. 

FLOATANT

We always apply High-N-Dry Liquid Floatant or Gel to keep the yarn floating for longer.

When you dip the yarn in the liquid, before letting that yarn indicator hit the water, we like to give it a few false casts. This helps dry off the indicator so it does not get over-saturated.

Always keep a brush for your yarn indicators. We sell some now at the store for a few bucks! It helps fluff up the fibers and dry off the indicator when soggy.

CONCLUSION

If you guys want to see a video on how to build this Dorsey system, click here! Please reach out to us with any questions you have. 

Guided Trips on the South Holston and Watauga are still rolling! We are always willing to spend some time “in the classroom” on guided trips if you are looking to jump up the learning curve on both rivers. 

(423) 573-5668