Landing Dale Hollow Trout

 Anyone who fishes for trout on the Sipsey Tailrace can recognize the Dale Hollow Trout. Most are in the 10" size, which was the size I landed this morning on the Sipsey. Mine you; I'm not complaining, trout is trout. I was using my three-wt. fly rod, which is the perfect fly rod to land this size trout.   

I knew precisely the hole I would fish, the nymph, and the technique I would use before I left the house. I have been watching videos all winter on fishing pressured waters and how to fish such waters. To say I was prepared was an understatement. 

I like it when a plan comes together, and everything worked my way for the two hours I fished the Sip this morning.

I forgot the number, either 8 or 9 of these beauties I landed. I stop taking pictures after this last image. There was no need to take a photo of the same size trout, image after image. I was not amazed that all the trout I landed came from one hole. This place became my honey hole for the morning. 

The water was high when I arrived at 9:30. Several fishermen were already on the water, and I was so lucky to fish in the area I chose while I was there. Why didn't I try other spots? When you consistently land trout in one location, why move to another site and leave the one place you know has trout? I was trying to learn a new technique, and to break my concentration would have interfered with MY PLAN!

I was just thankful that I finally got to fish the Sipsey for the first time since last year and had success. I lost as many trout this morning as I landed because of strike detection. I'm still learning. Today was a warm-up for landing larger trout in the future. 

Fishing the Soft Hackle

The target fly last Tuesday on the Sipsey was Alan's Soft Hackle. I fished three different flies for the morning. The one that scored was the size 12 hackle, slowly retrieving it across fast water pockets. The hits were aggressive!!

Tellico Hatchery out of North Carolina stocked the tailrace a couple of weeks ago. This trout had been caught before as evidence of the red lip; nice fight on the 3 wt.

The heat factor before I left the tailrace was reaching the high 90's. The cold tailrace water felt good splashed on my face to help with the heat and humidity. Summer in Alabama is not my favorite time of the year!  A solid take tight lining the hackle got this trout's attention.

The IM10 Nymphing Fly Rod

The IM10 Fly Rod is probably the closest I will ever get to fishing with a Tenkara Fly Rod. The IM10 is a medium-fast action 10 foot, 3/4 weight, four-piece nymphing fly rod. It weighs in at a light 3 ounces. I seldom order a fly rod online but I took a chance on this one from Ebay because of the reviews, which were all positive. While fishing last spring and summer on the Sipsey I notice I needed a little more reach when nymphing the smaller pocket holes; my 9 foot Sreamflex just wasn't getting me the extra reach. 
This fly rod not only gives me the chance to nymph small areas easier but I have the option to use it for casting beyond tight nymphing areas. 

The quality on this fly rod is amazing, even down to the rod tube, alignment blank indicators, name tag insert, embossed fly pattern, extra rod tip blank, and the beautifully designed reel seat.

I couldn't wait to get out on the water and give it a test trail. It was an incredible 80 degrees in Jasper on Thursday so fly fishing was my top priority. With my 10 ft. Pelican loaded and my 10 ft. IM10, I started my bluegill quest on Walker County Lake. Everything was positive on this outing but the wind, which was horrendous at times even to point of water splashing into the boat. I had to cross the lake in whitecap conditions. So glad I had the battery fully charged, which was not the case when I left the lake. 

Now to the rod review; the first thing I noticed was how easy it loaded the 3 wt. Orvis Clearwater Line paired with my Battenkill II reel. I was even more impressed with how fast the line straightened out on the water surface as I completed the cast. The medium-fast taper action gave the right amount of bend action to make small bluegill seem larger. Yet it still has the power to handle much larger fish such as the spots on Smith Lake. I knew the extra length would give me a longer cast and it delivered. I will admit it took a little time to get used to the extra foot compared to my 7,8 and 9 ft. fly rods. By the end of the trip, the fly rod and I bonded nicely after landing a bunch of bluegill for the afternoon. 

Now the next test will be the Sipsey high sticking some of the pocket holes I like to fish there.