Little River Smokeout

[tnflyfisher]

Well, with the temps pushing close to 70 degrees in the mountains in December...I had to head over and wet a line on some of the streams in the park. I almost felt obligated with these weather conditions!! I had a good feeling that the trout might be active and if nothing else, enjoy a day in the woods and on the water. Now, as much as I enjoy fishing solo, I was fortunate to run into a motley crew while gearing up at LRO who invited me to join them. Little did I know that I would in fact fit right in with this cigar smoking, beer drinking, fly flinging gang of merry men... I however, for the record, do not fish with a $1,500 combo but otherwise, I was good...

The fish were definitely looking up on Sunday but unfortunately it did not seem like the bigger ones were. All in all, I had about 9 or 10 small bows while missing a nice fish on my second or third cast and later having a good fish actually break me off.. The nice part was that they all came on dries... As they say, good fishing, good company and a good smoke, makes for a great day overall...




Thunderhead8 working a nice run...


Bigsur looking for his next target...


Matt trying to nymph up a fish...


And here patiently covering a nice large pool...


Thunderhead8 again in another prime spot...


A couple of decent December bows on the dry...





Tight Lines,

[mattblick]

Great report Kevin. Days on the water just don't get much better.

But lets set things straight; you didn't run into us. We invited Thunderhead when he came into the store. Somehow bigsur found out where the three of us were going!

[bigsur]

Tnflyfisher
Thanks for the shots, it was a great day on the water! Below are a couple of shots from my embarrassingly bad picture taking spare phone I carry in the water just for pics. If you have an old phone with wi-fi you do not need phone service to take pics or to download to photobucket and such when back home or civilization! Leave the good phone on dry land!

Tnflyfisher caught more than me for sure, all mine were small and came on a new beadhead flashback #16 pheasant tail I was trying. You can see him at work below, Thunderhead8 and I admired his stance and skill as we confirmed to each other if we got that low we would need a man Friday to unlock us!

"Tnflyfisher workin it!"


Mattblick and Tnflyfisher are good fisherman and even better fishing buddies! As a TU member just like them; I see they represent the next wave of anglers and I am encouraged not only by their growing skill set, but respect for the park and the outdoors. These gentlemen drive for hours to spend time in the Smokies and this is a commitment of not just time but money to enjoy our sport! Those of us who live near the park should remember that next time you say "I only have an couple hours to fish and it will take me 30 minutes to get there!" Get out and get involved; that day may be the epic one you have been waiting for. Better yet take a friend or family member, it is easy to get locked in to just solo fishing all the time. Expand your horizons and maybe learn a new trick or teach one!

Now as an elder statesman with this posse and as with all fisherman their facts and memories are a little flawed. To begin with the shot of me stalking the water only confirms what we know already. I possess the physicality of Tarzan, the fleet foot of Mercury thru the woods, and the good looks and razor sharp wit of George Clooney! I am admired my men, oogled by women, and idolized by children everywhere! Let's face it...I am gorgeous....but in a manly way!

As far as the way this trip started Matt let me know he was coming down so we arranged to meet at LRO, Thunderhead8 called me during the week at work and joined our posse and Tnflyfisher was an unexpected great addition. It was a fun day and the best part was we had the park to ourselves. As Lilly Tomlin used to say on TV..."and that's the truth!"

"My day..a few small fish on nymphs..no complaints from me...the fish may feel different about it!"

[Bran]

Great trip guys!! Looks like you had an awesome day and some beautiful weather.

[Thunderhead8]

Nice post, Kevin! Clearly, you are as accomplished with the camera as with the fly rod. It was a great afternoon to be on the stream with great company.