Dog Days Trout

This past Friday, I went to Little River (Virginia) for a morning of angling recon and had little idea of what to expect. We've had an extremely hot summer so I assumed water temps would be too warm for a productive day of fishing. Boy..... was I wrong. Morning air temps were in the low 60's and water temps followed suit. Typically, summer water temps and nighttime temps seem to correspond to one another in many of the mountain streams of Tennessee, Virginia and North Carolina (other than the tailraces). Also, keep in mind, the stretch of water I was fishing is only 7 miles from where 3 aquifers emerge from the ground. As a result, water temps stay relatively cool in comparison to many of other streams in the area. This is one situation to focus on if you decide to go trout fishing during the "dog days" of summer. 

I started out with a deep nymphing rig and quickly changed to a giant hopper and nymph/squirmy dropper rig. The fishing was red hot from the start. Just like summers past, the fish rose to the surface (beginning around 10am), where they held and picked off mostly any terrestrial that came across their path. I have discovered that this conditioned response seems to coincide with the rising decibels of the daily song of hoppers, katydids and other singing terrestrials.

I flailed on several large fish but landed many others. All in all, it was a great day of angling. The Donkey Kong Hopper, Fat Albert, Hetero-genius Nymph and Squirmy Wormie were the flies of the day. Below is a short video of what went on throughout the morning.

Hint: Be sure to cast in (and follow) the shade/sun lines. Trout will use these lines as perceived cover and feel comfortable enough to use them as feeding lanes. Dont look for fish, look for tails, heads, and flash/movement. Often times, there is too much glare in these areas to spot fish effectively but that is definitely where the fish like to hold.