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Tyler Legg
Charlotte, NC, United States
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Welcome to THFF.com! Kick your wading boots off and stick around for a while. You'll find content ranging from NC fishing reports, videos, pictures, fly fishing news from around the state/country/world, humor, and even some irrelevant, yet interesting posts.
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Saturday, March 20, 2010
Great day to spend the first day of spring! We took off to Wilson Creek today to try the DH. The "creek" (it's more like a good sized river) treated me pretty well. If you have never been up there before, it's definitely well worth the trip during DH season. Excellent fishing to say the least.

I on the DH section around 11:30 AM to find fisherman spread out along the river every 20 feet. It reminds of the Davidson River on a bright, warm, sunny day. Not really elbow-to-elbow fishing, but still pretty crowded. Lots of folks enjoying the mid 70's. I was one of them! Some of the best weather we've had in months. A light breeze blew, especially in the gorges.

It took me a while to figure out that 5x was a little to big for the trout's liking. I switched to 6x with much better results. The first fish hooked was a 12" male brookie with a slightly kyped jaw. The brookies didn't look like they came from a hatchery. Pretty colorful and they lacked the mushy, drab colored appearance of other stocked fish. The next 2 fish were both brookies as well. The 2nd one was a little bigger, around 14". The next one was around 12". Then the real fun began when I started hooking into rainbows. The show one of the rainbow put on was absolutely spectacular! I hooked into one of the four bows and he exploded. Immediately after being hooked, he sky rocketed out of the water. This fish completely cleared the water, jumping about 4'+ into the air (I'm not pulling your leg). I've never seen a rainbow jump like this one did. Reminded me of a tarpon.

I talked to a guy who said he had a 21" brown trout hunker down right at his feet. He said he wasn't moving, so maybe the fish took him as a tree. There are definitely some big fish in Wilson Creek, but they're not really the brightest fish I've ever come across. You won't see wild trout doing this!!

I forgot the camera (I think I'm suffering from a disease where I forget the camera on every trip). Used dad's Blackberry, which takes pictures, but not the best. I'm determined to bring the camera next time. Of course I say that now....


Bringing a fish in (pretty good picture, the combination of a bad camera phone and sun beams made a cool looking picture...)





2 comments:

Jeff Hansen said...

Tyler, my name is Jeff Hansen and I found your blog researching flyfishing in western N.C. I'm from Idaho and will be visiting inlaws in Lenoir next week. Seems to be plenty of water to wet a fly...wondering what you would do? I'm interested in Wilson Creek or Watauga River...something with a little more size, but mostly just want to catch some fish. What about patterns, tactics, etc? Also, pretty confused by N.C.'s regulations and licensing? Any advice you could offer would be appreciated. Thanks.

Tyler Legg said...

Hey Jeff,

Wilson Creek is not far from Lenoir. Only about 45 minutes to the Delayed Harvest section of Wilson. That would by far, be my first choice in that area. Wilson Creek is a pretty wide river, but as you go upstream and gain in elevation, Wilson becomes smaller and smaller. It's a wild river. Very scenic to say the least. In some parts it might remind you of a western river.

The Hatchery Supported section actually closed on February 28th, so go on up to the Delayed Harvest waters marked by black and white diamonds. It gets pretty crowded during weekends, but during weekdays it's not bad at all. When you start seeing fly fisherman standing in the river, you'll know you've hit the DH section!!

San Juan Worms have caught the most fish for me up there. Most flies will catch fish as long as you have a good drift and don't spook them. Streamers also work very well. 5x-6x tippet (I'd lean more towards 6x) is a good size to use, as the water is usually pretty clear. Tie your fly of choice onto your leader with enough slitshot to get the fly to the bottom. I usually fish the fly under an indicator as the fish will sometimes take the fly lightly. These fish will typically grab your fly and sometimes spit it back out. I noticed that they would soon attack the fly again if you drift it over them for a second time. Dries also work here if you enjoy fishing dries.

There are large fish in Wilson Creek. It's not too uncommon to hook into a 19-22" fish. It's a fun river to fish. Not nearly as technical as the Henry's Fork though!!!

You'll enjoy Wilson if you decide to fish it. Very fun river to fish.

Hope this helps,

Tyler

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