Fly fishing for river smallmouth in the NC mountains is hands down one of the best things to do when visiting Asheville. What was cool about catching this fish is that Ive had a few encounters with it over the last few years where I see it chase out smaller fish we hook. There is no membership fee for this trail. Its been one of the best smallmouth seasons weve ever had so Im very thankful for that. Foothills Marine Center, as official tournament sponsor will have the final say in any disputes or rules infractions that may occur associated with a tournament event. March 19, 2023. Below are some of our best catches in March and April. Using poppers to catch river smallmouth is by far the most exciting way to fly fish. The Wilderness Act of 1964 has protected the gorge from any human development. The only natural lakes in the state are located in the Coastal Plain region which begins around the Raleigh area and extends to the Atlantic Ocean. Bass are a favorite target of sporting anglers, while walleye are the focus of many who are looking for table fare. They participate in meetings prior to tournaments. October is usually the month we see our biggest smallmouth hit our nets. In February of 2020, a 7 pound, 3 ounce smallmouth was caught by Ken Whitesides. May 20-21, 2023 Current Tournaments You May Enter Jordan Lake - April 1, 2023 Lake Hickory - April 22, 2023 About We are a volunteer led youth organization that hosts High School and Junior Series (Middle School) bass tournaments at various lakes and rivers across the State. At least one team member must pay IN PERSON at the ramp prior to blast off for that team to be awarded points for that week. We will get back with you as quickly as possible. Weve been picking fish up in the deeper runs on nymphs and streamers in the riffles. The boat must be registered to one of the team members and must have been purchased directly from Foothills Marine. We have had some stellar days on the delayed harvest waters. Kenneth Witek & Russell Kessler win over $20,000 on day 1 at LBJ. (opens in new window), Follow Foothills Marine Center on Instagram! Its important to always be flexible with your game plan on the water. See the example magazine labels below. Thats fishing though! This is a tournament trail open to anyone who wishes to join and enjoy night fishing on Lake James M Lake James Friday Night Tournament If you are on the hunt for that one big fish this is still the fishery to target. The pats rubber legs is a confidence pattern for me during the winter. The wild trout streams are waking up from winter and offering good fly fishing. The best float fishing for trout is October through the end of May. 2023 Phoenix Bass Fishing League - Kentucky-Barkley Lake weigh-in . The Linville River drops 2000 feet in elevation as it meanders 12 miles through the steep gorge walls and eventually dumping into Lake James. Ramsey Creek Park is a 46-acre waterfront park with 4 boat launching ramps and lights for 24-hour access. The brook trout directly above is a stocked fish. We are a volunteer led youth organization that hosts High School and Junior Series (Middle School) bass tournaments at various lakes and rivers across the State. If youre looking for a partner, we do have a Find A Partner page with a list of people lookin for partners. (903) 984-0541. I Have Jon Boat, Can I Fish Your Tournaments? The lake has a good population of smaller striped bass, but its not uncommon to catch 20 pound fish. Weve got plenty of wadeable creeks and bigger rivers to fish for trout during March, April, and May. If you are interested in spending eight days cruising 600 miles on the Tennessee River and raising money for the Childrens Miracle Network Hospitals and the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, then this is the place for you! The state also stocks the first week of each of these months so there are a lot of fish to target in the creek. The smallmouth fishing is best from the airport in Asheville to the East Tennessee line. The CATT takes great pride in rewarding our anglers. NC: 57: Nick Herrman - Kyle Herrman: 3: 7-11: Capital City High School - KS: 58: Jameson Pursley . Box 1640 Morganton, NC 28655; 828.439.9022 + Map Us; Like Foothills Marine Center on Facebook! Tiger trout rarely exceed 8 inches, but what they look in size they make up for with their beauty. Pretty simple setup. There will be an 8 ounce penalty for the first dead fish weighed and no more than one (1) dead fish may be weighed per team, per tournament. The lake draws many anglers from the Piedmont and coastal plain region looking to catch both smallmouth bass and largemouth bass. We had a great day and we managed to get a good trout as well. Bassmaster. Once a boater launches their boat, they are on the water. Recently on the Catawba River we got into a Blue Wing Olive and an Early Black Stone hatch that offered us some excellent sigh fishing to pods of stocked fish. Dawson Bartlett and Cole Weaver finished second with 16.32 pounds. If you werent within a foot of the bank you were catching fish. Your BASS member number is the 9-digit number that appears on your Bassmaster Magazine label. Check out the two fish below we caught in January of 2021. Dont miss out on some beautiful scenery and some good fishing in the mountains of NC! Weve been getting just enough rain to keep the rivers higher than years past, but still fishable. As long as the French Broad stays clear we will be on it. I am so proud of each and every one of them, said McDowell head coach Angie Allison. . You wont be disappointed. Ty Allison, left, and Brayden Padgett step toward the scales with their limit. Entry fee is $40.00 per tournament. Ive got a few dates left in October so dont hesitate to book or they will be gone. All fish must me caught on a rod & reel using only artificial lures. She is currently competing for Angler of the Year for IWFA so it was good to help her knock off a couples of species that can only be caught in western NC. The Linville Gorge Wilderness Area is one of the most rugged places on the East Coast. The Linville Gorge holds some very large brown trout and is slowly becoming more of a smallmouth fishery. This requires anglers to make longer casts and get flawless drifts over the fish to get eats. 2023 Phoenix Bass Fishing League - Table Rock Lake weigh-in (4/15/2023) 22h Phoenix Bass Fishing League. Some of the best fishing in western North Carolina requires a hike to get there, but there are also plenty of fly fishing opportunities easily accessible. The smaller flies below have been productive for me on the DH section of the Catawba and Tuck. The trout fishing will be excellent on the delayed harvest stretches on the Catawba, Curtis, Mill, and the Toe Rivers. One of the best holes on the creek is going to be the handicap holes right off the main road. The best fishing is below Waterville dam and into East Tennessee. Spring trout fishing means higher water flows which can offer some excellent streamer fishing opportunities on the bigger tailwaters in North Carolina. Home > News > Tournament Results Yadkin Tuckertown Lake, NC April 15, 2023 . Below we will go through what each of these methods mean. Need more information? Bass Tournaments, Championships, Tournaments Phantom Outdoors Classic $ 225.00 Add to cart FIND MORE TOURNAMENTS CATT INCENTIVES The Carolina Anglers Team Trail is widely known for having some of the best cash paybacks available. The logging operations at the turn of the century almost depleted the native brook trout populations so thats when non-native trout were introduced in NC to help bring back trout populations. Anglers who fish our tournaments and finish in a qualifying spot become eligible to fish the BASS Nation Regional Championship. Austin Garland took 1st Place with 5 bass weighing 22.61 lbs worth $987.00! The last river that is worthy of mentioning in the bass fishing guide in North Carolina is the Pigeon River. It may also contain trademarks belonging to other companies. Badin Lake is the clearest lake in the Yadkin Chain and runs within the Uwharrie National Forest which offers some unique scenery for a Piedmont Lake. Weve been fortunate to catch some really nice trout on the Catawba River this year. The river is half the size of the French Broad River, but has a thick population of bass in it. North Carolina Bass Tournaments - Eastern NC Bass Challenge UPCOMING TOURNAMENT BASS CHALLENGE SET TO VISIT KERR LAKE ON APRIL 16 For the 1st time in our history, the Eastern NC Bass Challenge will visit Kerr Lake! Id like to highlight the four trout species that are available in our public waters. Its proved itself over and over, year after year on these mountain rivers. We throw a bunch of cinnamon ants, beetles, and grasshoppers. Weve heard of 7pound fish being caught and even bigger ones that have gotten away. The water temperatures range anywhere from 45 degrees to 67 degrees which is prime trout feeding water temperatures. All tournaments are held on Lake James and launch & weigh-in at Blackbear Access. If you are up for the challenge of hiking in and covering alot of ground within the gorge let me know and we will make it happen. Riot Baits Baton Worm Money / 4 3/5" $5.99. The Pisgah National Forest is located within the mountains of North Carolina and is comprised of 500,000 acres of hardwood forests full of trails that lead to wild trout streams. The smallmouth fishing around western North Carolina has been excellent since the beginning of May and will continue to be good all summer. 164 talking about this. If you cant catch them on the pats or the egg then most likely the fish want something a lot smaller so thats when you try your midges, pheasant tails, or flashy bead head nymph patterns. The bigger fish in the Tailrace are definitely carnivorous because the smaller stocked trout are their main food source. Thanks for reading our report. You want to look for moving water with white bubbles close to structure. Send us an email or drop us a line. The best method has been using dry dropper rigs using 5-6x tippet. I have decided to do this for the people who doesnt have alot of disposable income. The river is not suitable to wade so its important to hire a guide to float you down the river to the best fishing spots. The biggest smallmouth weve ever guided a client into has come from the Nolichucky. The fluke bite on the Nolichucky during the last days or spring and early summer can be unbelievable. After an intense fight we netted the fish and it was nothing but smiles the rest of the day. . You have my promise that our guided trips are the highest quality trip in western North Carolina even though our prices are the most reasonable. Fishing the gorge isnt for the faint of heart because it will test you physically and mentally, but the rewards can be worth it. There are plenty of winter stones on the water so plenty of fish have been eating pats rubber legs in black and brown. The NCWRC stocked a bunch of browns this past November in the 8 range so Im expecting that stock to provide some good fishing over the next few years. Chartreuse on the sunny days and black on the overcast days. The fish were smacking topwater baits, but the key was to cast them a foot off the bank. SIGN UP NOW NEXT TOURNAMENT If you are a beginner wanting to book your first float trip and learn the ropes of fishing from a boat then this stretch is for you. Optional Sidepot - $50. Actual prices are set by the dealer. I want to thank him for my wife for getting up at the crack of dawn with me before heading to the river. Summertime is terrestrial season. Check your North Carolina Lake Levels. Ask us about the ones that have gotten away. The lake also has largemouth bass. Fall fishing is special because you are likely to experience some excellent dry fly fishing, nymphing, and streamer fishing all in the same day. Normally if the crowds are bad you can bounce up to Newberry Creek or the wild water of Curtis Creek and do well throwing dries. VA Bass Chapter Federation 2023 Schedule - Lake Holston. The Big Fish Pot for the Championship will be $20 per boat to be paid back 100% for The Big Largemouth and the Big Smallmouth Prize at the Championship Tournament. Another notable bass fishing lake in close proximity to Falls and Jordan is Shearon Harris Lake. Another productive fly has on the delayed harvest rivers has been orange sucker spawn eggs with a gold bead. Try this method the next time your own the water and see if it doesnt help put more fish in the net. We ask that you please bring your fish to the scales in a timely manner. Thanks for taking the time to read the article! We had a phenomenal day on the water this year and we managed to catch 51 total fish. This was Bennetts personal best river smallmouth and the biggest smallmouth to hit my net this year. Tournament Results Yadkin Tuckertown Lake, NC April 15, 2023. Our smallmouth season starts in March and ends in November. Spotted bass will be weighed as Largemouth for the sake of "Big Fish." Numbers of fish can be high and there are opportunities at some very large holdover brown trout. The Catawba Angler provides guided bass fishing trips on the French Broad River starting in March and wrapping up the season in the middle of November. Bennett made a beautiful cast in the deep, slack water and the fish took off with the jig. Water levels in the mountains of North Carolina are currently low which makes fishing more challenging that years past. Weavers 4.32-pounder was the tourneys biggest fish. We would love to talk to you about the best times of the year to fish or answer any question you may have about fishing. Rainbow Trout are prominent in North Carolina. The Catawba River runs through both regions and is home to 7 lakes that offers good bass fishing. The best time to throw topwater poppers is during the summertime and early fall during June-September. July and August is excellent for catching smallmouth on topwater! I look forward to an excellent October for smallmouth as well as trout. Join B.A.S.S. The brown trout above is a stocked fish. The ones that make it past the first year grow to some trophy sizes. The French Broad River consistently produces 4 pound smallmouth year after year on our guided bass fishing trips. If you want to chase these bigger fish using large nymphs and streamers then this trip is for you. We were on a local river in McDowell County and got into some excellent brown trout. Your BASS member number is the 9-digit number that appears on your Bassmaster Magazine label. American Bass Anglers (256)232-0406 Open Series Presented by Caymas Boats Division 5 North Carolina Director: Rodney Michael (256)497-0967 Next Scheduled Event: ( Register Now) Online Registration Cut Off or Late Fee Begins: A Package Registration signs you up for all five events within this division. In the spring these lakes warm up faster than the deep man made lakes in the piedmont and mountain region so the prespawn bite on these lakes occur here before any other lake in the state. 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