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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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Sunday, September 25, 2011

Fall has arrived! Anglers across NC have been counting down the days. Delayed Harvest picks back up on Saturday, October 1st, giving fly anglers another fishing opportunity. Wild and catch & release waters have really been the only promising destinations, as always in the summer. Hatchery Supported waters, as a whole, have proven to be highly variable as hot summertime temperatures and harvesting have resulted in poor fishing. The combination of the delay of harvesting fish and cooler temperatures associated with DH season will open the doors for some spectacular fishing pretty soon.

To top it all off, the weather looks to be cool with crisp mornings by next weekend.

Remember, not all DH waters will be stocked the very first day (October 1st). However, most will be stocked within the following days. Check the NCWRC Stocking Report throughout the season for a weekly update on what waters have been stocked. They update the report every Friday at noon. The guys at Davidson River Outfitters do a great job of informing everyone on what waters have been stocked in the Asheville area.

Here's the long list of DH waters to chose from:

Ashe County
Trout Lake
Helton Creek (Virginia state line to New River)
Burke County
Jacob Fork (Shinny Creek to lower South Mountains State Park boundary)
Caldwell County
Wilson Creek (game land portion below Lost Cove Creek to Phillips Branch)
Haywood County
West Fork Pigeon River (Queen Creek to the first game land boundary upstream of Lake Logan)
Henderson County
North Fork Mills River (game land portion below the Hendersonville watershed dam)
Jackson County
Tuckasegee River (downstream N.C. 107 bridge to the falls located 275 yards upstream of the U.S. 23-441 bridge [marked by a sign on each bank])
Macon County
Nantahala River (Whiteoak Creek to Nantahala hydropower discharge canal)
Madison County
Big Laurel Creek (N.C. 208 bridge to the U.S. 25-70 bridge)
Shelton Laurel Creek (N.C. 208 bridge at Belva to the confluence with Big Laurel Creek)
Spring Creek (N.C. 209 bridge at Hot Springs city limits to iron bridge at end of Andrews Avenue — also classified as Mountain Heritage Trout Waters, please refer to the Commission’s Regulations Digest for additional information)
McDowell County
Curtis Creek (game land portion downstream of the U.S. Forest Service boundary at Deep Branch)
Mill Creek (U.S. 70 bridge to I-40 bridge — also classified as Mountain Heritage Trout Waters, please refer to the Commission’s Regulations Digest for additional information)
Mitchell County
Cane Creek (N.C. 226 bridge to N.C. 80 bridge — also classified as Mountain Heritage Trout Waters, please refer to the Commission’s Regulations Digest for additional information)
North Toe River (U.S. 19E bridge to N.C. 226 bridge — also classified as Mountain Heritage Trout Waters, please refer to the Commission’s Regulations Digest for additional information)
Polk County
Green River (Fishtop Falls Access Area to the confluence with Cove Creek)
Surry County
Mitchell River (0.6 mile upstream of the end of S.R. 1333 to the S.R. 1330 bridge below Kapps Mill Dam)
Ararat River (N.C. 103 bridge to U.S. 52 bridge)
Transylvania County
East Fork French Broad River (Glady Fork to French Broad River)
Little River (confluence of Lake Dense to 100 yards downstream of Hooker Falls)
Watauga County
Watauga River (adjacent to intersection of S.R. 1557 and S.R. 1558 to N.C. 105 bridge and S.R. 1114 bridge to N.C. 194 bridge at Valle Crucis)
Coffee Lake
Wilkes County
East Prong Roaring River (mouth of Bullhead Creek downstream to Stone Mountain State Park boundary line)
Stone Mountain Creek (from falls at Alleghany County line to confluence with East Prong Roaring River and Bullhead Creek)
Reddies River (Town of North Wilkesboro water intake dam to confluence with Yadkin River)
Elk Creek (portion on Leatherwood Mountains Development)
For more information on delayed-harvest regulations, weekly stocking updates, or trout fishing maps, visit www.ncwildlife.org/fishing.  

So, who's planning a DH trip in the near future?

Monday, September 19, 2011

The weather as of late has been highly variable, unseasonal, and really, just plain unusual. Late last week, a cold front swept through, erasing the hot, muggy conditions we've all grown so accustomed to. Behind the front, a meteorological phenomenon called cold air damming, or the dreaded "wedge" took hold. Discover what cold air damming is over on the Carolina Weather Blog. I'm confident we are done with the 90s across WNC. 80s will be considered "warm", 70s will be considered normal, and 50s/60s will be considered "cool"for the time being.

Technically, Fall starts Friday, although I think it's safe to say summer ended last weekend. Temperatures are on their way down. We should start seeing the first snow flakes of the season across the highest terrain next month.

The cooler temperatures are definitely welcomed by the fish (and us humans). The cooler weather will gradually give way to warmer temps as we progress throughout the week. With that being said, unsettled weather is expected over the next few days as the battle of the cool and warm airmasses ensues. The fishing conditions will likely go up and down as a result. If you are out on the river, keep an eye out for rising water this week. With storms in the forecast, water levels could rise with little to no warning.

Terrestrials continue to work well across the Carolinas. Beetles and ants are probably the most widespread, but a hopper or inchworm will almost always produce. The terrestrials will continue to be common until the first frost kills them off. Depending on the location, the first frost can occur anywhere from late September through mid November. Higher elevations usually see the earliest first frosts. I would carry some terrestrials with you for another month (give or take a week) depending on the weather. Keep an eye out for green caddis. They are starting to hatch, which means fall is moving in. A #14-20 Green Elk Hair Caddis should work well. Drop a small #16-22 soft hackle behind the EHC if you'd like. As far as nymphs go, Copper Johns, Pheasant Tails, Princes, Lighting Bugs, Hares Ears, Red Fox Squirrel Nymphs, Caddis larvae, and most other generic nymphs should bring fish to your net.

Delayed Harvest waters will be stocked soon. Most will be full of trout over the course of next weekend. I will post the stocking schedules as they are updated. If you're a diehard DH angler, hang in there, DH is on the way!
Friday, September 9, 2011


Mark your calendars! The WNC Fly Fishing Expo is right around the corner. Complete with a slew of programs from expert anglers, plenty of exhibitors, some of the best BBQ in the area, beer tasting, and more fly fishing gear/fly tying supplies than you you can shake a stick (or 5wt) at.

I was asked again to do tying demonstrations, so I'll be hanging out during the latter part of Saturday AM (fishing from dawn until about 10:30 of course) and doing tying demos Saturday afternoon until about 5pm.


The Expo will be held on November 5th and 6th at the WNC Agricultural Center in Asheville. $10 at the door, kids under 16 get in free.

Sunday, September 4, 2011


A lot of rain heading towards the Carolinas. Areas across WNC are likely going to see 7-9" of rain, with pockets of 10"+ in some areas. Rivers and streams will be blown out fore a while.

If you plan on fishing over the next week or so, use extreme caution when in and around rivers. Attempting to wade would be life threatening. Currents can easily sweep the strongest and heaviest individual off of their feet in a split second.

For more, check out the Carolina Weather Blog.

Friday, September 2, 2011

Yesterday marked what will probably be my last bluelining excursion until next spring. The window of opportunity to head to the streams is slowly shutting with a busy schedule ahead. Will it open again long enough for me to sneak back to these high elevation streams before they freeze over this winter? Time, as they say, will tell.

This particular trip yielded plenty of colorful specks, all of which are preparing for spawning. The males are already beginning to display their colors, kyped jaws, and on some, decent sized teeth for a 7" fish. It's a bit early for fall spawning in most places, but at these high elevations of about 5,000ft+, it's all behind schedule. Fine by me! Colorful brookies galore!

Arriving at the stream at 10:00AM, it was in the 60s. Perfect fishing weather in my opinion. The temps heated up a bit as the day progressed, but the fishing did as well. Great day on the water. Glad I got out to fish yesterday, as early next week, most streams are going to be blown out. A lot of rain on the way. Check out the precip map to the left.

An Extended Body Inchworm and a Green Weenie was all I needed for the day. While fishing one particularly large pool below a sizable waterfall, the EBI sent 10 fish flying to the surface, all bumping heads in the midst of a mad frenzy. One lucky fish (well, lucky for a split second, until he realized he screwed up) was brought to hand. Although he was 6", this fish looked as if someone splashed a multitude of different colors onto him.

The day continued to be productive. Here's some photos from the trip:











Fat male brookie.

Small stream, but plenty of fish. Just have to know where to look for them.
 

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Stocking Schedule Changes!

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