By Galen Kipar
The French Broad River offers many things. Soon, it will offer more than just a place to wet your feet or walk the dog. With the growth of Asheville’s downtown and newly expanding river arts district, the French Broad River is becoming more and more colorful. The number of yellow, orange, red, and lime green tubes, kayaks and rafts in sight are growing exponentially at every bridge crossing. We anglers often refer to tubers as “the rubber hatch,” while hoping the booze cruise doesn’t result in a litter-fest. A festival of events will continue to embark on the river’s banks as Asheville grows. I think we all need to believe that it will be a good thing. With awareness comes attention and care. Water, in my opinion, is our most precious and overlooked resource; hence, the expression “it’s water under the bridge.” With hope, I believe more people enjoying the river will yield more people caring about the river. At that point, we will hopefully see people packing out more trash than they bring in.
While more people using and caring for the river is a good thing, there is a not-so-shiny, side of the coin. If you are a angler, you’ve heard it a hundred times from the proverbial native veteran angler, “20 years ago, you could reach down and grab a fish with your hand, there were so many…” It is a biodiversity scenario of cause and effect. More people equals less wildlife habitat. In general, pressure will alter the behavior of wildlife. Animals adapt to their environment, whereas, most people change their environment to suit their needs. Will the growth of Asheville affect the fishing on the French Broad River? Yes it will. The question is: Will the outlook be positive or negative?
As an Ashevillian angler, you may be asking yourself, “is the fishing good on the section of the French Broad that runs through town?” Yes, we catch trophy smallmouth throughout the year on town sections despite the crowds. We have floated by 12 Bones so many times, we even partnered with them so we can serve hot BBQ on the river. However, as a guide service, our goal is to give clients the best experience available. Sometimes this means taking them to the water that gets the least amount of pressure.
In pursuit of less pressured, visually dazzling water, Asheville Fly Fishing Company is pleased to bring you a new kind of adventure trip in 2017. AFFC is the only guide service in Western North Carolina and East Tennessee to now offer a combined whitewater, smallmouth bass trip. Because this water is scarcely accessible and filled with Class III & IV rapids, it gets very little pressure from anglers. These trips offer excellent Smallmouth Bass fishing and flow through some of the most beautiful sections of river found in the eastern US. Until now, this has been the water we fished on our days off. Now we would like to share it with you!
Galen Kipar is a guide and owner at Asheville Fly Fishing Company. He is a problem solver who enjoys the connections and process just as much as the pull. Reservations: (828) 779-9008 Information: AshevilleFlyFishingCo.com