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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.
Have a question, comment, fishing report, or a few suggestions regarding THFF or fly fishing in NC? Feel free to e-mail me at wncflyfishing@gmail.com
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Thursday, December 9, 2010
1. It has been downright cold here in NC! Charlotte shattered the previous record low of 14°, dropping to 12° Tuesday morning. The mountains were much colder. We are finally "warming up" though. Instead of low to mid 30s for highs, we have now rebounded into the lower 40s. The good news is, most areas are forecasted to reach the lower 50s this weekend, which will feel like spring. Temperatures here in NC have rivaled temperatures in Missoula, MT. Yeah, it's been that cold. Bad news is the cold is returning next week. Looks like it could be colder than what we saw this week. Snow cover from the Great Lakes region and possibly the Ohio Valley should help towards shooting some seriously cold air into the southeast.

2. I know a lot of you are trying to figure out why I talk about weather in a lot of my posts. It does seem irrelevant, given this is a fly fishing blog. Weather has so many contributing factors and always has an effect on fishing. For instance, during hot weather, trout, which are coldwater fish and need oxygenated water to survive, will seek out more favorable locations on the stream such as highly oxygenated riffles and plunge pools. Conversely, during the cold months trout will slow down, hang close to the bottom, and do their best to conserve energy. Trout and anglers alike have to adapt to such extremes. As anglers, we have to change our techniques if we want to have a successful day. Those changes might be as subtle as downgrading to a slightly smaller fly or as much as fishing lower waters instead of the colder, higher water. So, in the end, checking the weather before you head out the door to go fishing is always a good thing!

3. Fishing will slightly improve as temperatures rebound into the mid 40s to lower 50s, depending on where you are. Tomorrow looks like it will be the best day out of the week, with highs in the 40's and sunny skies.  The water will still be very cold and the fish will be lethargic and secretive. By Sunday, the weather goes downhill again. If you plan on fishing anywhere near the NC/TN border later Saturday afternoon through Tuesday of next week, keep a close eye on the weather. According to the weather guy, it looks like the mountains are in for a heck of an upslope snow event. A winter storm watch will likely be issued in the near future. 8-10" with localized totals of up to a foot are possible on favored northwest facing slopes. Much colder air will flood into the region as well. If you like fishing in cold and snowy conditions, this weekend will be perfect! Just don't forget to pack the snowshoes and the snow chains!

4. Nymphs have been the dominant patterns as of late. Not much hatching out there. You may see a few small BWOs or a few midges, but the fish likely won't key onto them as the hatches will likely be sparse. Keep those nymphs small (#16-24 "ish") and use enough splitshot to get them down to the bottom. With it being so cold, trout are not going to move much in order to grab a meal. You'll have to get the fly right in front of them. Good luck!

4 comments:

Mark said...

Yeah, thanks to Al I traded in all my winter clothes for bermuda shorts and t-shirts. Now I'm freezing to death down here...

Tyler Legg said...

What was A-Al G-Gore th-th-thinking! Man it's been cold!

southern culture said...

Good thing my road is on the nw side of the mountain close the tn/nc border. At least i got out yesterday because I am pretty much screwed this week.

Tyler Legg said...

Yeah, unless you have a snowmobile it'll be hard to get out...

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