There’s more than one way to fish this Tennessee waterway!
On The Fly Freshwater
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August 2024
By Jimmy Jacobs
The On The Fly South crew headed up to the Volunteer State to check out the trout action on the tailwater below South Holston Dam. We had heard reports that the fishing, particularly for bigger trout, was in a bit of a down trend and wanted to see what the angling was like in the summer months.
For the trip, we were headquartering at the Tailwaters Lodge on the South Holston. That would grant us access to their private stretch of shore just downstream of the public fishing area. Additionally, we planned to do a float trip on the tailwater with a guide from the South Holston River Company. That way we could feed off his expertise, following up with a DIY venture.
Day One
Unfortunately, the first day’s float trip ran into a bit of a problem, as it clashed with the Tennessee Valley Authority’s plans for generating electricity that day. On this tailwater, the preferred time for floating is when the turbines are turning and water is being release. That was not planned to occur until after 5 p.m., leaving little time for a float trip.
On the other hand, our guide Brady Carter had a backup plan in mind. Roughly 30 miles down the South Holston, the tailwater below Fort Patrick Henry Lake was a different story. This part of the river also has a viable trout fishery for several miles.
Ready to start the float. Photo by Jimmy Jacobs.
Additionally, the release schedules don’t affect float trips. The trout feed on both high and low flows, while the river depth permits drifts even on low water. During our float the releases were pulsed, with one hour on in the morning, followed by two hours of low flow. That continued until mid-afternoon, when water was released constantly.
On the drive down to the launch site in Kingsport, just downstream of the dam and the Fort Henry Drive bridge, Brady fill us in on what to expect. He grew up in Bristol, fishing the river as a youth. He spent a year in Colorado learning the guiding trade, followed by six years of working on the South Holston. Additionally, he has owned the Hickory Tree Grocery for three years.
Brady explained that there are more rainbows in this tailwater than farther upstream below South Holston Dam. Additionally, more of the larger-sized fish are being caught right now in this lower stretch.
“On high water, junk lies like worms and egg patters work using a bottom bouncing rig,” he said, adding that the set up is often referred to as a chuck-and-duck rig. “It has weight at the end of the line, with one or more flies above it.”
As for other fly patterns that work on this section of water, “The Green Paddie Midge is a good small fly,” Brady said. “A size 16 Gray Caddis works for rising fish. Also, olive Wooly Buggers on intermediate line are good for deeper water.”
Low water during the float trip. Photo by Jimmy Jacobs.
Soon after he had launched his plastic polymer, high-sided Kingfisher Skiff that is manufactured by Blue Ridge Boat Works in Watauga, Tennessee, we started down river. At the time water was being released and there was a good current flowing. After about 45 minutes that changed, as the release ceased, and the flow became almost lake-like.
On both water levels we started picking up rainbows on the double-nymph rigs. The fish were consistently in the 13- 14-inch range, with football physiques. They all also fought with more vigor than their size suggested.
Rainbows on the lower tailwater are footballs. Photo by Jimmy Jacobs.
At one point Brady anchored the boat on the outside of a bend, where the shore was lined with rocks and overhung by trees. Associate Editor Polly Dean tossed her rig upstream to let it drift along this shore. In short order the No. 20 midge on her rig fooled a rainbow that measure 20 inches, followed quickly by an even bigger one of 22 inches.
Brady Carter showing off Polly Dean’s largest rainbow. Photo by Jimmy Jacobs.
To say the least, we were impressed with the quality of the fishing on the Plan B float.
Day Two
On our second day of fishing, the TVA’s unchanged release schedule at South Holston Dam proved more friendly to our plan. With low water for virtually the entire day, we could wade the Tailwater Lodge property with ease.
The wading is easy on the Tailwaters Lodge section of the river. Photo by Jimmy Jacobs.
Before heading to the water, lodge owner Bruce Cote, himself a fly angler, let us know that during our float trip on the previous day, there had been a sulpher hatch occurring at the lodge.
In fact, he had used a No. 12 Sulpher pattern with a slight tinge of orange tied in to catch a number of brown trout and a few rainbows.
Taking advantage of that knowledge, we picked up a few of those flies from the mini-fly shop they maintain in the lodge office. Then we drove down to their picnic area on the river shore to rig up.
By the time I was ready to hit the water, fish were rising all up and down the stretch of river. One of those feeding fish was no more than a dozen feet from the shore where I had been fussing over leaders and flies. Once rigged, I make a cast in that direction and a 10-inch brown took the fly, providing my first catch before even getting in the water!
The author’s first trout of the day. Photo by Polly Dean.
Over the next couple of hours, while wading in water only knee- to thigh-deep, we caught a steady stream of these rising fish. All but one proved to be browns, with only a single rainbow in the count. Rainbows are stocked in the tailwater, but due to natural reproduction, all the browns are wild fish. All the ones we caught were in the 9- to 12-inch range.
The action for rising fish was steady all day. Photo by Jimmy Jacobs.
While our results did not prove either way as to whether the bigger trout are less prevalent below South Holston Dam, we did see that there is no shortage of trout in that part of the river. And, with the two options we found for fishing this river, it still holds on tightly to its reputation as a blue-ribbon trout fishery.
