Smallmouths & Super 8 Steaks

How we ended up grilling steaks in the Super 8 parking lot is sort of a long story that has to do with arrival times, cell signal dead spots and closed campground gates. More significant is that our steaks and our grilled asparagus tasted really good, and that it was actually quite fun grilling by the light of the Super 8 sign and tailgating in the parking lot on a pretty fall evening.

The Super 8 camp out fell between and afternoon of smallmouth fishing and a morning of squirrel hunting high on an East Tennessee ridge and doing a bit more fishing in the Nolichucky River. We only caught a few bass and the squirrels stayed hidden, but we had a good time stomping up the river and sneaking through the woods. The hunting outing also provided really good learning for Nathaniel and me and a good foundation for trips we'll soon do on our own.

Nolichucky Bound

Truck's about packed and we'll soon hit the road. Over a couple mountains and into East Tennessee, where we'll camp and explore within the Nolichucky River gorge and the mountains nearby. Camping in the truck. Fresh fish or squirrel for dinner? If not we have other junk to keep us fed.

East Tennessee Cast & Blast

Nathaniel shows off a chunky Pigeon River smallmouth during an East Tennessee outing that we enjoyed together last summer.

Some time in the next couple of days Nathaniel should get his first opportunity to walk the woods in search of squirrels, and he'll get to do so in the hills & hollows of East Tennessee. Meanwhile, I'm looking forward to exploring a section of the upper Nolichucky River that has always intrigued me. It's the section where the rafts run and is smaller and steeper than the parts I have fished. I don't know much about the river's character in the places where it can be accessed or how much reasonable access there is within the Forest Service portion, but that's what makes it exploration! Smallmouth bass, rock bass, channel cats and even muskies are possible targets.

Nathaniel and I are meeting our good friend Alan Clemons in the mountains some time tomorrow for and evening/morning cast and blast (or blast and cast), with a night of camping in-between. Some time Wednesday, we'll continue our travels and meet up with a bunch of friends at the Southeastern Outdoor Press Association meeting in Johnson City.

Hopefully squirrel will be on the campfire meal menu. If we do succeed in the squirrel woods, I plan to experiment with using tail fur for spinner and jig skirts. I'm admittedly a novice lure maker, at best, but I think it would be cool to bring along lures of my own making with elements from out first hunting trip the next time we point the truck toward East Tennessee or to some other smallmouth stream.

Stream and woods reports to follow.