S. Holston Tailwater/Boone Lake

The S. Holston sulphur hatch has been outstanding the past couple of weeks on the upper half of the river. During high water flows, the hatch has reached “blanket” status. The catching part is much easier during the lighter hatches with less competition from natural bugs. The beetle, ant, and hopper bite is moderate to good on most days. Overhanging trees or bushy banks near deeper water are producing best while tossing terrestrials. The draw from the low levels downstream in Boone Lake and afternoon high water flows, has produced cold flowing water 20 plus miles below the dam. We have caught smallmouth, largemouth, stripers, and spots mixed in with our brown and rainbow trout during our floats down low. This is a great time of year to float the river with us… Check out all the big browns caught the past few weeks below!

Watauga Tailwater/Boone Lake

Midges have dominated the scene for most of the river lately. During low water, nymph or dry dropper fishing mayfly, caddis, and midge patterns are producing best. The terrestrial bite is there on most days and can produce some awesome bites. High numbers of trout remain in the upper portions, but big fish are coming out of every section of river. When they release high flows, we have been tossing the big stuff with good success … See the pic below of the giant 28 in. brown trout landed in mid July! The lower river can produce a mixed bag of species, with some world class brown trout mixed in.