Fishing Fast Moving Water

My daylight fishing trip this week on Tuesday, May 8, fell through so the Sipsey Tailrace was my second choice, which proved to be the best choice. Here in Alabama we are finally getting those warmer days with some humidity mixed in. That is what Sam and I encountered Tuesday, a warm comfortable day with clear blue skies and a slight breeze in the gorge. Sam is the college student I met as I was suiting up. He told me he had never fished the tailrace; so I offered to let him fish along with me for the 4 to 5 hours we had to fish before the generators were turned on. I’m glad the trout were active and he got to experience landing a bunch of trout using his 6 weight and my 3 weight. He told me after we completed the trip that his next fly rod purchase would be a 3 weight.

One of many rainbow trout Sam landed before we left the gorge that afternoon; notice the two fly rods.

Reverting back to the title of this post, I showed Sam how to fish in fast moving water today. We fished some of the fast runs that I had fished before. The key to attracting a take when fishing water this fast is no drag at all. Some of the runs can be 10 ft. to 30 ft. long or more. I like to fish all the runs here standing where the fast water begins and letting the nymph float though the run as I release fly line to keep the nymph drag free. The current is going sink your indicator a lot in the form of false takes but the reward is when you connect with a true trout take. The lesson here is never take you eyes off your indicator when fishing any fast moving runs. I landed numbers of trout today in runs that was no wider than 2 ft. and as shallow as 2 to 3 ft. deep. I lost a lot of trout today because I had to play the trout back to my position at the start of the fast water. If I had waded to the trout to land them, then I would have scared the rest of the very trout I was fishing for. So to give me a landing advantage on my next trip I will be using my 4 weight to add a little more muscle to steer the trout to my net. The wading staff is a must when navigating the current to get into position to drift your nymph.

  Colorful gill plate on this bow; I remember hooking this trout at least 30 ft. down the run from where I was standing. It went airborne several times before I netted it.

What a fitting way to end the trip on this great tailrace today. We are blessed here in Alabama to have a place like the Sip to land rainbow trout!!

 

 

A Capital “P” for Persistence Thursday on the Sipsey

As I drove the 145 miles Thursday to fish the Sipsey, I was thinking how easy it once was to drive the 12 miles from our house in Jasper. The trip now is a bit more important than it was back then.

Partly cloudy skies keep the sun from penetrating the crystal clear waters of the area I was going to fish this day. The water level was somewhat low which makes the Sipsey more difficult to fish, and as always the pressure from other fly fishermen adds to the challenge.

This section is where my wading boots got the most use, fishing small pocket holes throughout the stretch. No surface activity at all caused me to stay down under with nymphs changing back and forth from tight lining to the indicator. I was using a furl leader today casting upstream and letting the nymphs drift slowly back to me. I choose to do this because of the super clear low water levels I encountered. The trout spook easily in these conditions and they had been hammered all morning by other fishermen.

I landed my first rainbow of the afternoon using a long 6X fluorocarbon tippet tipped with a size 20 tungsten bead-head midge.  My eyes had to strain a bit even with my magnifying glasses to thread the line through the eyelet of the fly. I seldom fish a fly this small but it was producing and I couldn’t complain.

The 4 weight today enabled me to get a little more backbone in the hook set, which I needed fishing those tiny nymphs. I wondered if this trout had spent a lot of time in the deep holes of the Sipsey causing it to have a very little color, but still beautiful. Persistence kept me focused this day through long periods of no takes. A couple more rainbows would touch the net this afternoon before I headed back home. 

I noticed this turkey hen in our backyard the other morning and ran and got my camera and took the shot through the window. I knew if I stepped outside on our porch it would spook. Not the best picture, which continues to make me search for a better quality camera. I hope you guys have a great week!

Fishing the Feather Light 2 Weight

For those of you who follow my blog know that I am a huge fan of Redington Fly rods; mainly because of their lightness and most important their purchase price. In my opinion, there isn’t a better quality fly rod for a reasonable price on the market than their classic series. I decided a few weeks ago to purchase their 2 weight Classic Trout mainly to fish some of the small streams in the Smokey Mountains.

 I found out last week that it matches well with the rainbow on the Sipsey Tailrace in Alabama. I knew I would be landing trout in the 10 to 12-inch range and the 7 ½ ft. moderate action graphic rod got quite a workout that afternoon. I found this 2 weight to be a bit more forgiving than my 3 or 4 weight fly rods I fish with. I was surprised with the degree of stiffness it had which helped it handled a couple 12” rainbow I landed that afternoon quite well. True I didn’t horse that size trout in quickly using it but with a bit of patience I brought both to hand. I did lose numerous trout that day mainly because of a hook set and slow reaction time. Fishing a lighter fly rod could have contributed to the hook set issue. I kept forgetting I wasn’t fishing with a moderate fast action fly rod. The rod proved what I already knew when it came to placement and presentation of the fly using a 6X tippet. As most of you know the lighter the fly touches the surface film the better chance for a take; this fly rod meets that test. The slight breeze that afternoon didn’t affect my casting but I could see problems in moderate or heavy winds.

A lot of the bluegill I have caught on Laura Hill Lake in Lawrenceburg is smaller than what I am used to landing, so this 2 weight will compliment those well. The total weight of the Redington 2/3 reel and the Redington rod weights less than 4.6 ounces; my kind of combo for sure!!

Some of my Favorite Post From 2016

As I sit here today and scan through some of my blog posts from this past year, they make realize why I love to fish so much. I still remember every detail from the trips, the other fly fishermen I encountered and fishing with individuals who love fly fishing as much as I do. I thought I would share with you guys what I think was my top five outings for 2016; some you may have viewed and some posts you may have missed. I have to admit some of my 2016 outings may be hard to top for 2017 starting with a memorable trip with the grandchildren and my daughter in June 2016:
Grandkids + Mom Fishing with Pops

What made this trip special was lots of fish landed that day both from the boat and from the bank. My daughter grew fishing with me at the same age her children are fishing with me now. I'm glad the tradition will continue.

Putting a Dent in my Bluegill Quest

I’m sure I will find lakes here that will match the bluegills that Walker County Lake had swimming in it. I still remember the spots where I landed these bulls and of course, talking with the gentleman fishing for catfish.

Quality RainbowLanded On the Sipsey

This is one fishing trip I will never forget, mainly because I was able to do something I’d never accomplish on the Sipsey, land numbers of quality rainbow. The video footage link above sums up the trip!!

The Pond

This post carried me back to my childhood and the fond memories I had of my younger brother, Mom , and Dad. The only brother left out of five is my older brother Bobby.

Pushing the Redington 3wt. to the Limit

A memorable trip for sure landing this huge Spotted Bass with my 8 ½ ft. 3weight; I think I may better this fish when I visit Laura Hill Lake come spring.

Comparing Two Tailraces the Sipsey Verses the Caney

Before my wife and I moved to Spring Hill Tennessee this year 99% of all my trout fishing was on the Sipsey Tailrace below Smith Lake Dam in Jasper Alabama. The Sip as the locals called it was not the place that sparked my interest in trout fishing, but it was the place that taught me many of the variables that go into learning the sport. I had spent the past twelve years fishing the only tailrace in Alabama before we moved. I will miss this narrow tailrace, super clear water, unique runs, small pockets holes, tight seams, and dry fly action. In other words, trout was easy to find and catch, if you knew the fly patterns that brought success; I did! Come Spring I will apply what I learned over the years on the Sipsey to the tailrace on the Caney, located a little over an hour east of our house towards Knoxville. The Caney can be a challenge to fish, mainly because of the tremendous fishing pressure it receives throughout the year. I will need to adjust to a wider tailrace, much more water to read, fishing tiny nymphs as opposed to dries, different feeding patterns of the trout, and most of all learning the areas where the trout hold. I knew exactly where those places were on the Sipsey and in time will find those places on the Caney. 

I still remember the first trip I made to the Caney with my son-in-law right after he and my daughter got married twelve years ago. That was the first time I had fished for trout using the fly rod. The trip was memorable not for the number of trout landed that day but for the challenge. I spent most of the afternoon learning how to get the correct drift, fly presentation, reading the water, bug hatches, feeding patterns and through it all landing a few stocker browns and rainbows. I was really intrigued by all the factors that had to come into play to land a few colorful trout. I still remember that first rainbow landed that day, and admiring its brilliant colors. The drift, presentation, fly pattern, playing the trout once hooked, all had to come into play for me to hold that beauty for a few seconds before its release. That one trip convinced me that I would spend the rest of my fishing days fly fishing.

An area of the Caney near the dam, where most of the wading takes place; the Caney is much wider and longer than the Sipsey. I made two trips there while we were living with our daughter, one in August with my son-in-law and this one the last of September.

Fun on the 3 wt. ----landed a few more stockers fishing between a lot of other guys that morning. I have some work to do on this tailrace!!

Fishing Deep Slow Runs

Cold fronts, rain, and high winds have kept me off the lakes for the past week so the Sipsey was my go-to fishing fix. The deep runs of the Sipsey were my target for the afternoon trip. With my 9 ft. 3 weight Streamflex in hand I proceeded to wade up the gorge towards the deep channel of the Sipsey.  I was rigged with my dry dropper, in the form of an Adam with a size 18 Midge.  

Boulders and logs dot the bottom in this deep run providing an excellent ambush area for trout to feed.

A hungry midge feeder

Lots of patience and a slow drift was the key to get takes today. The trout were not interested in the dry and were hitting the midge light. At times the take was so light I missed numerous hook sets.

The midge bite slowed so the bead-head nymph took over at the end of the trip. The partial gill plate didn’t stop this bow from attacking the nymph as it floated over a submerged log.

I am thankful I made this trip last week because I had a mishap at the gym Monday that will keep me off the tailrace for some time. I fell leaving the platform area where I walk on the treadmills. I wasn’t watching what I was doing and missed the last step on the platform and turned my ankle and sprained my wrist; both are kind of black and blue. The trainer told me I would not be able to walk on the treadmill for weeks, so staying off this ankle is going to be a boring experience for me. He said the less walking I can do the faster the ankle will heal; really a stupid thing I did, but I have realized I need to pay closer attention to steps from now on.

Testing The Furled Leader

Today I was back on the Sipsey to continue evaluating the furled leader. It passed the test last week as I used it high sticking pocket water. The main characteristic of the leader that really got my attention was its low memory. Once you remove it from the package and give it a slight stretch it is ready to fish without any coiling as opposed to a mono leader. I also noticed that I could control the placement of the tippet much better with this leader mainly because of the added weight of the strands that make up the leader. Also, the grey color of the leader helps me know exactly where my tippet was during the drift through the pocket water; superb leader for high sticking.

For today’s trip, I wanted to see how it would react when nymphing and dries were added to the mix. I arrived late today and had a couple of hours to give it a try. With no hatch occurring I decided to wade into position and let a nymph drift through a small run I hadn’t fished since last year. I was using a size 14 beadhead nymph and begin working it through the run. What I notice almost immediately was how much slower the drift was with this leader. The light 6X tippet stayed in front of the leader throughout the drift. Very little mending was needed because I was just letting the leader/tippet drift with the current. As I made cast after cast I would set the leader/tippet in position at the top of the run and the rest of the way it was on its own drift. I did notice at times the leader would overtake the tippet and fly in the fast sections of the run, but after a quick mend, it would correct itself and continue the drift.

Today was one of those outings that caused me to try numerous nymph patterns until I finally connected with a bow. This was my nymph trout for the day that help prove that this unconventional drift method really worked. Two other trout were missed that helped boost my confidence level.

I moved to another area of the tailrace to cast the leader using a dry fly. There was a small midge hatch occurring in a shaded deep run close to the opposite bank. The trout were surface feeding, but not what I would call aggressively. The midges were tiny so I tied on a size 20 Renegade. The white hackle on the Renegade helped me see the tiny fly much better. I was downstream from the hatch activity and casting upstream into the feeding zone. In other words, I wanted to see how the leader performed on a downstream drift coming back to me. As I made numerous cast upstream, I kept noticing how light the tiny little fly would touch the water. As the fly touched the water I would watch as the dry would float back above the leader/tippet without any mending, this I liked. The takes were always close to the spot where the trout were feeding. Using a 4 ½ ft. tippet enable me to get the fly in the feeding area without the furled leader being noticed; I was spot casting. I discovered this technique while watching videos from Jonathan Barnes, who uses the furled leader for all his fly fishing techniques. This downstream drift was my favorite technique I tried today and is one I will continue to use on future trips.



This rainbow along with others landed and lost was brought to the net using the downstream technique. I let this rainbow have the Renegade, which was deep in its throat. I hope it will survive to fight another day.   

Battling Gusting Winds on the Sipsey

I have fished in windy conditions a number of times on the Sipsey but this past Wednesday had to be the worst. I met Jay at the Pump Station parking lot around 10:30. I have followed his blog “The Naturalist’s Angle” for a number of years. It was good to see him again and get to fish with someone who loves fly fishing as much as I do. The water level on the Sipsey has been up and down for the past months, and today we knew we would be fishing high water. In fact, we waited for a half-hour to get to fish at a suitable level.

The wind was blowing so strong out of the south that it was difficult to get a good drift at times. We did see some limited midge action after lunch in some calm water closer to the banks that proved productive using smaller dries.

Jay landed the first rainbow dead drifting a size 18 beadhead midge pattern in somewhat calm water. All the trout taken today were in the stocker size, which was a lot of fun on our 3 weights. One can really diminish the excitement of landing smaller fish on the Sipsey if they are using anything above a 3 weight. Most of the trout caught here are 12” and under; one very seldom lands trout in the 15” range and above. 13” to 15” are considered special here.

I started the topwater action midafternoon after seeing a small hatch in some calm water just off the opposite bank from me. This rainbow nailed the size 20 dry in fast action. We both lost numerous trout during the afternoon because of a slow hook set; these trout were fast!!! We continued to land trout on top right up to the horn sounding telling us it was time to leave. This was the first time Jay has had the opportunity to fish the Sipsey up close and have success. Do you think he might be coming back???

    

Making the Most Out of Time Well Spent

I couldn’t have asked for a better day to fish the Sipsey this past Friday. The temperature was in the low seventies with overcast skies most of the day. You notice I said most of the day, which meant I was going to give it my best today for the six hours I was given. I feel every time I visit this place I am making up for the lost time in trout fishing. As most of you know I only started fly fishing for trout some ten years ago on the Caney Fork in Tennessee with my son-in-law. Little did I know on this one trip that my fishing perspective would change forever for me? The fly rod now consumes 95% of my fishing experience. The trout on the Sipsey get all my attention now during the late fall and winter months, where in years past I would be fishing for bass on Smith Lake.

I have said this before but I will reiterate it again how I wish I had found the fly fishing passion when I was younger. So every day I am “GIVEN” now is time well spent landing trout like this beauty with its colors all aglow for Christmas.

The water today was high when I arrived at mid-morning. As the day unfolded it begin to reseed. Two generators would be running about an hour before I would leave late afternoon. I’ve learned especially for us older anglers that one doesn’t need to stand an entire wading trip. Snack breaks, fly changes, and a pause just to soak up the beautiful scenery can be excuse enough to find a seat. On the Sipsey those seats come in the form of numerous large boulders scattered up and down the gouge.

This image explains why we as trout fishermen love this sport so much. I could still see vivid colors on its gill plate as it swims back into the fast run it was taken from.

A complete contrast in the color scheme here with this healthy bow; it inhaled the nymph so hard I thought I had hooked a rock. The current was the key to today’s trip; the trout were holding in small seams where there was structure such as rocks and fallen timber. One never knows how the trout will react from day to day on the Sipsey. Today numerous trout were in the mood to inhale a number of patterns I cast their way, which made the day special!!   

Landing Rainbow in Logjams on the Sipsey

I finally made it back to the Sipsey Tuesday to connect with the new stockers that were released in the tailrace a couple of weeks ago. I was met this morning with a slight mist and cooler temperatures in the high 40’s, which is a drastic contrast from the hot humid weather I face here in the summer.

As I was suiting up I was wondering if I should wait to tie on a fly before seeing if there was any type of hatch occurring. I do love to land trout here on top and lately that hasn’t been the case, but that little voice kept telling me to suit up, and fish the nymph. My last outing here had me fishing high water and today was supposed to be different with no generating and the guys at the dam held true to their word, generators off all day.

I begin casting today at a set of logjams that span 30 to 40 yards in fairly deep water up the gorge. The water was super clear making it easy to see my prey with my polarized glasses. This area is not fished heavy, simply because most like to fish in shallower water here. This area has depths of 5 to 6 ft. The trout like to use the logs as cover and dart out and nail a fly pattern as it passes over.

Dead drifting nymphs over the logjams and letting it drop produced this dark-colored rainbow.

A deep cut on the gill plate of this trout tells me that there is more than trout swimming in this tailrace.

 I wish I had been using my video camera for this particular rainbow; lots of air jumps. No way was this trout going to let me whole it for the picture, but it did manage to stay still long enough for me to get this water image shot before it swims away to freedom. I landed a number of trout today, but what really frustrated me was losing so many fish on this outing. I guess it may be time to change from my 3 weight and go with my 4 weight on my next trip.  

Fishing Against the Odds

Never think you have this great sport of trout fishing figured out. That is what I find out every time I set foot on the waters of the Sipsey Tailrace. The trout may be wiling to take a certain pattern one day and the next it could be something completely different. I know the holidays always bring out a lot of fishermen either on the lake or on the tailrace. The tailrace was covered on Labor Day with fly fishermen from all over the state, not a good day for a retiree to fish anywhere near the place. Neither is the day right after the holiday, but Tuesday was the only day I had to fish this week, so I gave it a try this morning. I did the walked up to access seven, which is right at the dam to set up for my first cast around 9 AM. I knew I was fishing against the odds today. No activity at all  as I approached the waters edge so I started with a size 18 Zebra Midge, which produced a couple of rainbow early. I like to use smaller flies on days when no activity is present. After landing the two rainbow the drought set in and didn’t let up until right before I left at twelve.  

As I made my way back to access five to leave, I saw this nice rainbow moving in some pocket water right below where I was standing. I started casting my nymph trying to get a decent drift to entice a take; but the rainbow was having nothing to do with the indicator nymph combo. Time to change patterns and method of presentation. I decided to tight line my nymph down and across the pocket which allowed the nymph to pass through the pocket with less time for the trout to inspect the fly. On my second cast I saw the rainbow slam the nymph in the super clear water. The take was savage, and the fight was a stretch for my 3 wt. One of the fly fishermen near me was kind enough to take the shot of this beauty. This fish was one of my better trout from the Sipsey this year. Seeing this nice rainbow take my nymph was an awesome experience and a fitting way to end my morning outing.

 

Speaking of pocket, I will be out of pocket for the next couple of weeks; Cathey and I will be making a trip out west starting tomorrow; so no post for a while. I will be carrying my fly rod and hope to wet a fly especially in Yellowstone.

 

Making up for Lost Time

I was back on the Sipsey today using a different tactic while fishing the ¾ mile stretch from the dam to the pump station. I wanted to fish the faster water that is about a foot deep above the pump station. At times it is difficult to see the trout in these areas, but trust me they are there. In fact I landed a 15” rainbow about a month ago in gin clear water about a foot deep here. I never saw the fish take the fly.

It seems lately I just can’t get enough of this place which is a good thing for me, because every time I set foot in these cold waters here I feel I am learning yet another valuable lesson in fly fishing. In other words this place is the training grounds for bigger things to come for me before the year is out; another post in the future. I started fishing here 8 years ago and I have loved every minute I have spent on its waters. My only regret, I have told you guys this before, is not fly fishing the Sipsey when trout were first introduced here in 1974. So now I’m in catch up mode to recover some of that lost fly fishing time.

What a great way to spend the morning!!!!

Trout is not the only fish species swimming in these waters 

The Trout like Variety This Morning

My plan today was to be at the tailrace at 7 AM, but that just didn’t happen. I sit up the night before and watched the Cowboys, a 1972 John Wayne movie that didn’t end until 12:30. I could have recorded it but it was just too good to stop watching for the second time. I finally made it to the waters edge at 9:30 the next morning.

The humidity had already kicked in even at 9 AM, causing a haze of fog to cover the water surface. If one is on the tailrace early the fog is the main obstacle you have to contend with in the heat of summer. At times it makes it really difficult to see your indicator or dry fly. So the 9:30 arrival was kind of blessing in disguise.

The water today was extremely low with a slow flow most of the way up the channel. The generators had been turned off at 4 AM so the water had settled down quite nicely. I really like to fish this place when its low like today, because it give me a chance to fish areas on the other side of the channel that I never get fish.

My first trout of the morning on a beadhead nymph, which I thought was going to be my pattern for the morning; not the case. The trout today were into a smorgasbord of food choices. I must admit I’m not up on my Entomology aside from recognizing a midge, mayfly and possibly a gnat, but trust me none of those were on the menu. After the bead head went dead, experiment time set in.

Super clear water made it easy to see trout moving from deep pockets to current seams. The seams are where I had the most success. Feeding would decrease as the sun broke through the cloud cover. I am not a fan of fly fishing in the sun!!!

This rainbow was a little camera shy after a size 14 soft hackle was removed from his mouth.

I had plenty of company around me all morning. Some fishermen would leave and others would show up to try their hand at landing some rainbow. I talk to fly fishermen from Tennessee, and numerous cities all over the state. One guy traveled from the Alabama Gulf Coast just to fish the Sipsey.

Sorry for the bad camera work, which doesn’t do the colors on this trout justice? Most all the stock trout on the tailrace have very little color, this one was an exception. The size 20 renegade got its attention. Numerous trout were brought to hand today on various patterns throughout the morning which proved to me if the bite is slow keep experimenting.