FISH CATCHING TRAVEL

The Great Smokey Mountains.

Our great bear hunt was not successful, but I still give the trip a big fat A.  We really loved Ashville North Carolina, a nice city that was just big enough with a great downtown.  Plenty to keep you busy if you want to visit.  Our plan was to spend time in the city and the Great Smokey Mountain National Park.  And as part of our travels we visited the town of Sylva which is on the Fly Fishing Trail.  Who knew?

***************The Wade Right Fishing Belt and the new Madre Sling.

For all your wading needs.

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A  young bull.

Our first day we headed to the main park area to look for bears.  We saw turkeys and whitetail that day, but I am not surprised it wasn’t much.  The main area of the park, and one of the best for seeing bears had folks, lots of folks.  The main roads are paved and the traffic was nuts for off season.  Our parks get busier and busier.  So while it was so-so on the animal viewing the woods and mountains are awesome.  Much different than the west.

It was elk madness day 2 morning.

We also visited Cherokee on the reservation, which I actually visited when I was a freshman in high school.  We did projects on the reservation and also a little tubing, which the area is famous for.  And speaking of the Mountains, it reminded me of the show Moonshiners, which I thought was made in the area, which it was.  We stopped at a little local store for drinks and learned that one of the guys came in the store.  Not a big moonshine fan, it will make you have naked babies, but we saw a few distilleries.  Whether beer or moonshine it is the latest rage in many places we visit.

The herd was on the morning chew.

The second day we chose a route that was in the real woods of the park, and saw a total of one other vehicle.  As we hit the area to search here came the elk, and more elk.  They came filtering out of the woods and we parked and they let us watch them as they fed.  But no bears.  From that point on a 20 mile plus drive over the eastern divide, and while we did not see any more animals it was one cool ride.  The only other thing on the animal front was the Boss did see an eagle.  But lets be real, pretty hard to get a bear to cooperate.  But we sure enjoyed the day.

If you are a fly fisherman this is the place.  And most important, so much of it is spring fed with no reliance on snow fall!

Plenty of stuff like this with access!  Water, water, everywhere.

The evening before we met Will at the Yacht Club, trust me it did not have anything to do with Yachts, while have an adult beverage.  He told us about an area he went to college where they are nuts for fly fishing.  After our morning drive we headed to the town of Sylva, what a great choice.

It was not just elk.  A nice whitetail buck.

He was hanging with his girlfriends.

Long beards.  These 2 guys were strutting down the road and having the occasional set to.  Feeling their spring time oats!

The biggest elk we saw, he was keeping to the cover.

A couple of smalls who thought they were tough guys.

Looking for post winter elk before they head for the hills?  Here is the spot, a misty morning high meadow.

I knew there was good fishing surrounding Ashville, but until I saw it I had no clue.  There are rivers and creeks, and I mean lots.  Trout, smallnouth, and even muskie in the French Broad which runs right through Ashville.  When we got to Sylva we stopped at the Tuckseegee Fly Shop, which is also the name of the local river and those guys were great.  The area is known as the Fly Fishing Trail and there is all the fly fishing a guy could want.

From small streams to big rivers that are perfect for a drift boat, they have it all.  But the thing that was impressive, was the shear amount of access.  The west is great, but it does not hold a candle to that area of North Carolina for true public access.  And of course there are plenty of lakes in the area, in other words perfect for multi-species anglers like yours truly.  I could go on, but you get the drift, I will be heading that way again soon, enouh said.  So check them out and you will see what I mean.

Tuck Fly Shop | Bryson City | Sylva | Waynesville | Fishing Guides & Gear

It is the best fly shop I have been in and had most of what a fly fisherman or tier could need.  I did restrain myself but did pick up a thing or two.

Fly Fishing Trail | Sylva | North Carolina Trout

If you fly fish take a look at this.  In all the places out west I have been this easily tops them for access and information.  We saw miles and miles of fishable water and only 2 or 3 fishermen, such a different situation from most of the more famous places I have been.  It is a dang good thing I did not take the fly rod, or she might have just left me there.  The thing I really liked about the area, there was so much different types of waters, streams, lakes and rivers to fish that no matter the conditions there were definitely fish to catch somewhere every day.  Many of the streams had both trout and smallmouth and were the kind I like, small and isolated.  And nothing like being able to fish for musky without driving to Canada.  And it is exactly the same time drive time to Durango from Victoria, and I have made that one a bunch.  Can you say road trip?

While we did not see any bears, that will come soon enough as we are headed to Alaska chasing brown bears with biologists in June, the area was a great place.  As usual the park was packed, that has become the norm in most of the places we have visited the last few years and now comes with the territory.

That is the highlights, I could not recommend the area any more highly, whether to fish, or just the great scenery and cool towns.  Whether Asheville for the big city vibe, or Sylva for a great small-town visit, plus the parks the area has it all.  The only thing left to do is load up the stuff and head on back.

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Tomorrow the weather is going to deteriorate some, but I hope to be on the lake at daylight.  Looks like it will blow out of the north at times over 30mph with some rain the next few days, but it is March on the Texas coast.  Late in the week will be a day or two on Travis chasing bass and whites.  And soon I will have my hands on the 2 new sizes of Knockin Tails and it will be off to the Gulf for some wading.  Plus, there is a fishing thing or two to talk about next report.  It is about to get busy around here so keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines