by Karl Ekberg
The graces of spring are now upon us and the fishing couldn’t be better on the waters around us here at Chattooga River Fly Shop! The waters have warmed with spring rains to the mid-50’s and look to stay in the mid to high 50’s for a while now.
Fishing on the delayed harvest sections has been outstanding with large fish being caught with dry flies. The early spring hatches have been great. We have been fishing the riffles to the heads of the pools with the most success. Dry fly fishing the slower water areas when the hatch is happening has also produced great numbers of fish as well. Early morning and late afternoons, long swinging dead-drifts of flashback nymphs and emergers, has been the key to success.
Fishing streamers has also been very productive. Trevor’s Sculpin, Carolina Peach and Wounded Sculpin have all been working very well. Drifting and stripping all of these streamers have still been producing large fish.
As the hatches progress with the warmer weather, we look forward to seeing more Mayflies and Caddis. Please stop by the Fly Shop and check out the “Hot List” for hatch updates. Another large emergence is of the oak worms. These fine little creatures are a tasty treat that even the largest of trout cannot pass up as they fall from the trees into the rivers. Casting imitations of these into over-hanging bushes and dead drifting them with a twitching technique will be very beneficial to a large day on the river. Anywhere you may find these worms dangling from their silk lines from the trees, do not hesitate to stop and watch the worm finally hit the water and see what happens! The next process is to make your cast to the fish which just ate the natural. Do not worry about a delicate cast. Even splatting the worm on the water will be just as effective, as they fall out of the trees from far above. As the late spring temperatures rise, fishing the shady areas of the rivers will be essential, as the fish will move out of the high sun and warmer temperature waters.
Let’s all remember “leave no trace” to keep our beautiful streams and rivers how they should be. Check out our daily posts on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter, giving you the daily water conditions on the Chattooga River, and please share your big fish pictures with us!! We hope to see everyone out on the rivers!