Tennessee Rainbows

A week before WA Fishing Season kicks off, I had a great opportunity to travel to VA/TN, and experience some excellent waters, beautiful fish, and great company. I owe a hearty “Thank you” to KK, and his always gracious and caring wife MK, for the chance to visit with them, and experience the area where they now live.

Work took me to Louisville and Lexington, in the end of the week. Between rental car vouchers for free days, and other options outside of work, I found that a weekend side trip could be set up, from there. With KK back in trout country, and the drive being not too long (by my standards) but beautiful, it turned into an excellent opportunity.

The drive from Lexington to northern TN / southern VA was relaxing. The path took me through the Cumberland Gap area, and through some beautiful country.

Day 1

First day started with a drizzle that had arrived during the night, and a forecast that claimed it would clear off in the late morning. With this in mind, KK and I headed out just before 10, to grab breakfast and wait for it to clear.

Huddle House – not something you find everywhere in the county, but a great place to grab a coffee (or two…or three), a filling country-style breakfast, and meet fellow anglers. While waiting for my Country Biscuit Platter (two buttermilk biscuits, covered with hashbrowns, scrambled eggs, bacon, and cheese…. then drenched in peppery gravy!) we got a lot of local Bass Fishing info from the guy next to us. Never asked for, but freely offered.

The rain continued to lighten, then pick back up, through the morning, but our goal was up slope some distance, so we headed out, after finishing the meal.

KK had scouted a couple of places for us to hit, that day. He had set them aside, unfished, in preparation for this weekend. So we knew we had to try them, even with the rain. Many thanks!

Gentry Creek

A great, small creek, that rolls through lush woodlands. Rocky creek bed, some small pools, and challenging casting.

(Yep. That’s me in the distance, on the downstream facing shot)

A few instances of hanging up flies on the backcast, but a really nice creek. Rain did not give us a break, in fact I think it increased (at least directly over me), but we worked a fair stretch of the creek, with some success. I used mostly mid to smaller mayfly and attractor patterns, including a #14 parachute adams that I tied on mostly for visibility, with the rain streaking my glasses. KK later found out that we were close to a section that offered some nice pools, giving him an excellent opportunity to head back up and give them a shot.

Laurel Creek

Gentry Creek flows into Lauren Creek, which then follows the two-lane highway that brought us into the area, on it’s way down. Laurel Creek has a lot of excellent pools, rocky shelves that create little waterfalls or simply sheets of water sliding down the face of the shelf, and an exceptional assortment of pocket waters and riffles. Although often near to the road, the traffic is light and the canopy around you dense enough that I don’t distinctly recall being bothered by vehicle sounds at all. A few deep pools, allowing for the possibility of some larger fish, as well. KK had a very nice Brown that made a point of repeatedly taunting him, in one such pool. Nice to know the fish have a great sense of humor, too. Yes, KK, that’s you in the distance, in the second picture.

Although I did not see or land any large fish, I found the local Rainbows to be quite thick for their size, and very healthy.

The rain let up shortly after we got to Laurel Creek, with some fitful sunshine following that. Stopping for lunch, a couple pulled in with their young son. The dad was planning on hooking a fish, then handing the rig to his son, so he could reel in his first fish. Great to see traditions being handed down, like that. The dad also gave us some location tips, so we could hit a different stretch, after lunch!

Altogether, a great day on these waters!

Day 2

Good, early start, and a quick breakfast on the road, and we headed out to fish a couple of other waters in the area. Day 2 started out nice, and just got clearer, making for an excellent experience.

South Holston River

This river flows out of the Holston Dam, which is managed by the TVA. It is an exceptional tailwater fishery, with some interesting support from the TVA, as well.

The valley it flows through, as seen from the top of the dam, is green and well grown. As we headed back down to the water, the early morning mist began to slide downstream, almost following us.

Below the dam, on both sides of an island that the river flows around, the TVA built weirs, as an aerator for the water to help support the fishery! Some excellent partnership and an interesting sight.

Stepping into the water, we found that the area below this weir got no deeper than just below my waist, and even that in only one area. We saw a few signs of fish (hefty splashy refusal on my 5th or 6th cast, to start the day), but did not have much success. After fishing through to the far side, we walked the perimeter of the island that the TVA maintains as a place for fishing, picnics, and walking in nature. In one stretch, a trout of good size could be seen cruising the steep shoreline, but it was not far from a fisherman that was already in the water, so we left it alone.

Watauga River

Another tailwater fishery, with an exceptional local following and strong reputation. We hit a spot that KK had previously visited, but found that the water was at least 18″ higher then his prior observations. With the rains of the previous 24 hours, it was also pretty well churned up. We made a few casts, to say that we tried it, but I for one could not find a path out to wade, before quickly reaching my maximum comfortable depth in water moving that fast.

Doe River

Having tried the Watauga, we regrouped, scanned the map, and settled on trying to track down the Doe River. Like Gentry Creek, the Doe rolls down out of a mountain ridge, and has some very picturesque small creek stretches, if one can find them. We hit one section of the Doe, searching for access points that were not on private land, and eventually found a couple of local Deputies stopped in an intersection. One of them was also a fisherman (likely both of them, but one spoke up), and he offered to lead us to an access point, then described another that was nearby! Nice to see the local authorities out helping wayward travelers!

The first stretch we tried was fast, but not too hard to wade. A few casts in, I managed to hook a nice sized…tree. At least it was on the close side, so retrieval of the fly was successful. With not a lot of options for moving up or down stream, we opted to follow the advice of the deputy, and moved to the other stretch he had recommended.

We could tell, as we arrived, that the water there was much more calm, and the wading would be significantly less complex.

I had a couple of smaller over-achievers splash at my fly, on the inside seam of a bend with large rocks, and KK saw two good sized fish in a near pool, promising that this stretch could be highly productive when fished with more time to commit. Unfortunately, I had the drive back to Louisville ahead of me, so we parted ways with the river and headed back to the house, after working through one stretch of the area. I know KK will be visiting this part of the Doe, in the future, as well as finding access to the upper stretches of the river, as it is quite a nice location.

All told, we spent more than 10 hours on and in the waters, not inclusive of driving to destinations, scouting for more options, and the occasional eating and hydration, in the course of 2 days. It was an absolutely great time, on many levels.

Thank you, KK, for the excellent trip. Thank your wife, also, for putting up with me and saying, as always, cheerful and and gracious hostess. I look forward to possible future visits and/or hosting you in WA!

Tight lines!