smaslar's blog

Using bamboo fly rods have long been considered the premier method of chasing fish.  Fishing with a bamboo fly rod, however, is more than just trying to get a hook in a fish's jaw.  Bamboo fly rods, which are usually custom made, are not only effective, but also beautiful, comfortable, and historic.  Following is a brief exploration of why you may want to fly fish with a bamboo fly rod.

1. Durabilty.  Bamboo fly rods, because they are solid throughout, are more resistant to crushing than graphite rods.

2. Better Roll Casting.  Small stream trout fishermen take note!  Because of bamboo's inherent action, roll casts are more effective with bamboo.

3. Rarified Air.  Some of the most famous flyfishers and celebreties have used bamboo.

4. Heirlooms.  A finely crafted bamboo fly rod makes a fine heirloom.

5. Smooth Action.  Because of the flexibility of the bamboo, progressive actions can be achieved to provide super smooth casting.

6.  Reserve Power.  The reserve power of a bamboo fly rod is far superior to a graphite rod.

7. Comfort.  Bamboo fly rods are much more "castable" than graphite, which means you can cast all day long and not wear out your arms and shoulders.

8. A Sense Of Community.  Bamboo fly rod enthusiasts form their own, unique subculture in the fly fishing community.

9. Sense Of Satisfaction.  If you choose to make your own bamboo fly rod, you will have a greater sense of satisfaction when you catch fish with it.

South Mountains State Park, located about 20 miles south of Morganton, NC off of NC 18, offers many activities, including horseback and mountain bike riding, camping (near the car, horseback, family, and backpacking), hiking, a large waterfall, and many miles of trout fishing.  Additionally, it is the most accessible trout fishing opportunity from the largest city in the area, Charlotte, NC.

The trout fishing at South Mountains State Park primarily occurs in two streams - Jacob's Fork and Shinny (pronounced Shiny) Creek.  These two small streams, each classified as Wild streams above their confluence, merge together about two miles into the park.  Below the confluence, the stream is called Jacob's Fork, and it is managed under Delayed Harvest regulations, from the park boundary to the confluence.  Click here for fishing regulations/information.

South Mountains State Park used to offer better fishing opportunities than it does now, as it is a victim of it's own popularity.  Because the park is so close to Charlotte, NC (about a 1 hour 15 minute drive from NW Charlotte), it consistently receives a large number of visitors.  Additionally, the park has been renovated and promoted greatly, making it a very nice park to visit, but less of a fishing destination due to the crowds.  The park even features special events, as shown in a previous blog.

Shinny Creek, classified as Wild trout water, features stream bred rainbow and brook trout.  A short distance above the confluence of Shinny Creek and Jacob's Fork, a path breaks off to the right of the main path, and follows Shinny Creek.  This is the best way to access most of this creek for fishing.  An alternative approach is to hike up the stream from where the main path crosses the stream near it's confluence with Jacob's Fork, though you will eventually come to some steep terrain as you move up the stream.  Additionally, there is some backcountry camping on Shinny Creek.

Jacob's Fork above the confluence of the two creeks, classified as Wild trout waters, offer fishing for stream bred brown, rainbow, and brook trout.  The main path continues along, and even crosses, Jacob's Fork.  As one continues upstream approaching the falls, approximately one mile from the parking area, the stream's topography becoms much steeper, leading to difficult passage through the stream and very good pooling.  The park has installed wooden stairs leading to the top of the falls.  Above the falls, the path leaves the stream, which levels off.  The stream becomes very tight to fish above the falls.  Additionally, there is backcountry camping above the falls.

Jacob's Fork from the park entrance upstream to the confluence of the two streams is classified as Delayed Harvest.  Most of the trout that are stocked are 8"-10" Rainbow Trout.  This portion of the stream can become very crowded.  The best portion is from the main parking lot upstream to the confluence with Shinny Creek.

Tips for trout fishing South Mountains State Park in Jacob's Fork and Shinny Creek:

1. Start early to beat the crowds.  Arrive at the park before it opens or camp and get up early.

2. Hike into the backcountry to beat the crowds.  Backpack into the primitive campsites along the stream.

3. Fish in the delayed harvest portion of Jacob's Fork in October and November, when the fishing pressure dies down, the stream becomes catch and release, and many fish are stocked in the stream.

4. Fish the delayed harvest portion of Jacob's Fork in the pools that are the most accessible for stocking, such as at bridges, and along the portion upstream of the parking lot.

We had a great day fishing Saturday, August 15th, in the Smoky Mountains.  The video shown below covers the day's activities, including some of the fish we tangled with.

We began the day collecting live helgrammites in the Tuckaseegee River near Bryson City, NC.  We fished the bottom portion of Deep Creek and in the Tuckaseegee River using the helgrammites, hooking three smallmouth bass around the confluence of Deep Creek and the Tuckaseegee River.  While we occasionally find trout in the Tuckaseegee around Bryson City, we haven't caught any around there in recent trips.

Then, we headed over to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park to do some cane pole fishing with dry flies for brook trout in a couple of the small streams in the park.  It takes stealth and determination to fish these tiny streams, often overcrowded with tree limbs etc.  However, these streams offer a fun, usually overlooked opportunity to catch some fiesty brook trout.

We wrapped up the day's fishing by spinner fishing the Oconaluftee River in the park, hooking a scrappy brown trout that was hiding underneath a large rock out of the main current.  I found a buzz bait lying in the last pool I fished on the Oconaluftee, leaving me to wonder if it was used by a novice that had no idea what he was doing, or by a genius who fishes big lures for big trout.

We ended the day by spotting some elk in a field by the main road through the park.  This is the first time I have seen the elk in the park, and it was a tremendous ending to a great day of fishing with my Dad!

We took my daughter Emma (3 years old) up to Stone Mountain State Park in NW North Carolina last week for her second trout fishing trip ever.  Stone Mountain has many miles of trout fishing opportunities (including Delayed Harvest and Wild waters), it's family friendly, and it's easily reached.  I wasn't sure what to expect, but Emma did great trout fishing for a while by the main stream by the road, having a picnic, and then hiking about 1 to 1-1/2 miles up Big Sandy Creek, seeing Middle Falls, and then hiking back.  Though we didn't catch any trout, we saw a few, had a strike, and most importantly, had a great time and continued working Emma toward becoming a trout fisher.  For ideas on fishing with children (some of these techniques are demonstrated in the video below), see our class on Fishing With Kids.  See the video below for a recap of the day trout fishing at Stone Mountain State Park with Emma.

<!-- SpringWidgets | RSS Reader (#23) | HTML | Generated on 06/12/2009 -->

Much ado has been made recently about the swine flu (aka H1N1 virus) and possible pandemic.  See this quote from this article from the World Health Organization (aka WHO).  Here's what WHO says:"The World Health Organisation has also advised staying at least one metre from people with flu-like symptoms, reducing time in crowded settings as much as possible and opening windows to improve airflow."Hmmm.  Stay away from people.  This is what I've been saying for years (though I never had an academic name for it, such as social distancing), but for different reasons.  Improve airflow.  I know how to do that.  The solution, once again, is best solved on the trout stream, preferably a remote one.  Remote trout streams offer few people and good airflow.  Let's just hope they never discover a trout flu!