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 

Daylight Fishing on Smith Lake

At 5:20 AM Thursday morning the boat was in the water and I was making my first cast on a submerged rock ledge right next to the launch. No need to start the big motor when some of the best topwater action is located right down the bank from where I launch the boat. Tuesday and Thursday are my main fishing days of the week and this Thursday morning I had the long bank to myself; why Tuesday and Thursday, Monday the lake or any lake is just getting over the weekend traffic, Wednesday has more individuals off work, and Friday can be classified as a long weekend day.  I can go on Tuesday and Thursday and see only a boat or two from daylight to 10 AM. I usually call it quits by 9:30 to 10 mainly because the bite has stopped and the humidity is getting thick.

 

I seldom fish this bank without landing some quality spots or largemouth using my favorite bass popper. I have landed some nice bluegill using the Boogle Bug as well. I had a couple of boomers on this trip and one was loosing my black Boogle Bug to a larger bluegill which got me tangle in a brush pile. I hated to lose the big gill, but I hated, even more, the loss of my $5.00 popper.

My first largemouth of the morning taken no more than 30 ft. from the launch.

This spot gets up early to eat breakfast!

This largemouth went airborne numerous times while trying to break free; the airborne thing can get the blood pumping!!!

The quality bass bite went cold after the sun peaked over the horizon, so it was time to break out the 3 weight and go after the bluegills.

 

I like to use dries on this lake and this morning the smaller spots were willing to nail the Wulff time after time. Amazing the fight this size fish can produce on a 3 weight. This is why I love fly fishing so much because the small fish can make a trip just as exciting as landing a large fish if one is using a lighter combo.

  Only one counter today, two other counters manage to break free—I don’t know how you guys feel about losing good fish, but if I have lose the fish that I work so hard to take my offering, then let me skip the fight!

One of my favorite areas on Ryan Creek, not only for the fish but for a large amount of muscadines this huge vine growing on the rock wall produces in the fall. Notice the rock bench someone built on top of the rock wall. A great place to soak up the beauty of this awesome lake!

 

Stocked Trout the Life Blood of any Tailrace

 



 

 

 

 



I know I’ve shared with you guys on numerous occasions about the trout that is stocked in our Sipsey Tailrace here; but I’ve never really shown you the exact way the trout get released into the tailrace.

First stop after they are loaded into the refrigerated tanks for transfer to a tailrace or lake, in this case the Sipsey Tailrace at the base of Smith Lake Dam. All the trout that are released into the Sipsey are either from Dale Hollow Hatchery in Tennessee or from the Steelville Hatchery in Missouri. The best stocked trout come from Steelville, simply because of the size and health of the fish once they arrive at the Sipsey. The Dale Hollow hatchery delivers the same numbers, but a bit smaller than the Steelville Hatchery. The number of trout released vary from month to month; the most could be 3000 and the least could be as few as 1500. 

After being released from the tanks the trout travel over a 100 feet down through a 10” pvc pipe to drop 40 plus feet into the cold waters of the tailrace. You would think that this ordeal would kill most of them, but 99% survive. The water temps in the heat of the summer never get above 60 degrees and in the winter in the low fifties. Stocking occurs every month, so there is always an abundance of trout for the angler to land. A lot of trout reach the 18” mark which is considers a prize. My largest taken on the Sipsey has been a 16” who knows I may reach that 18” mark one day.

The following clip shows you the size trout that comes from the Steelville Hatchery in Missouri.   

This clip shows the size trout from the Dale Hollow Hatchery in Tennessee. This truck was going to deliver 3000 trout to the Sipsey Tailrace the following week. The clip shows the Dale Hollow Hatchery truck releasing trout at the dam at Center Hill Lake. My son-in-law filmed this segment while we were waiting on our guide to join us in his drift boat to fish the Caney that morning. This tailrace is fantastic to fish because it is stocked with browns, rainbow and brook trout. I try to fish this place at least three to four times a year.   

  



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.

 

Fishing the Tail end of May’s Bluegill Spawn

I am falling behind on my bluegill fishing this year, mainly because of the weather and the fertilizing of Walker County Lake. Heavy rains and cold fronts have put a damper on the bluegill fishing as well at Smith Lake. I will continue my quest, but I have to admit it will be tuff to reach my 50 fish limit for this year. If I do make the limit all the fish will come from Smith Lake. I found out yesterday they have dumped another two tons of fertilize in Walker County Lake, so that will ruin my chances there for the rest of the summer. They fertilize every six weeks.

With all said I did manage to land some nice gills at the end of this full moon spawn on Smith recently. Most all the beds I found in the coves were vacant with the exception of one or two bluegills at times still guarding beds. Those were the ones I targeted with my popper. 

I spent very little time in one area, because I was looking for as many productive bedding areas as I could find. This particular place was kind of unique in that the bluegills had selected a small area between these two boulders to spawn. There were only 5 beds here with only one big bull still guarding a bed. I could see the fish in the super clear water, but getting him to take the popper proved a challenge. The fish would swim up to the popper for a few seconds and then back to guarding his bed. I finally decided to just let the popper sit for a while, which I assume annoyed him enough until he finally nailed it. I wish I had this one on film; he put up an epic fight on the 3 weight.

It was like him saying “get the hell out of my space”!!!!

Under the tree limbs and next to the rock wall is a favorite bedding place for bluegills on this lake. I picked up one nice bluegill here with only 3 beds showing. I have found it very strange that only a few bedding bluegills will occupy areas in this lake. Usually when one finds bluegills bedding you can bet there are lot of beds with numerous fish guarding them, but not on Smith.

The three big bulls on top were worthy of the count today, with some small fish as an added bonus. Even the smaller fish can make you think you got a counter on for a while using the 3 weight. That is why I love fly fishing so much it gives the angler a chance to experience the thrill of the fight a bit longer. I never overkill when fly fishing, I always try to match my tackle to the prey I am pursuing. With today’s catch I am now 42 away from my quest.