We have had a great summer, but the last couple weeks have been hot (for here)! Warm water and trout don't mix. Local streams have been hovering close to 70 degrees and anything over 65 degrees is bad for trout fishing. Trout shut down in warm water. They try to conserve any energy they have. Their metabolism slow down, so they don't eat and any undue stress on them can kill them...like catching them! Just be careful if you fish around the Boone area and check the stream temps.
The tailwaters in E.TN are still fishing well. The summer pressure and hot weather has slowed the fishing down a bit, but it's still pretty good. The big browns are up river and if you can manage them on 6X, you can get them! Nymphing is the primary game, but if there are higher flows, streamers are being eaten. We are still catching an occasional striper or two down low on both of the tailwaters. They are a blast on a fly rod if you've never caught one, but they are also hell on the trout! The tailwaters are always our go to, and they will do nothing but fish better from here on into the winter.
If the warm days have you down, don't fret, we will be seeing a cool down (and rain) over the next couple days and it wouldn't be surprising if the dog days of summer are over! This is an exciting time around here for fly fishing. The browns will be starting their pre spawn calorie boost and that is one of the most exciting times of the year....Stay Tuned!
