Rain & More Rain

Rain is falling steadily outside my North Georgia home, as it did most of yesterday and is forecast to do all of today and part of tomorrow. That's not bad. While enough remain has fallen that most streams are apt blown out and many lakes and ponds are muddied up, the big surge will settle fairly quickly, and the rain will serve as a nice recharge for our streams and the lakes.

I'm supposed to do some photo work on Lake Lanier on Tuesday. As of today, the forecast looks good. Only a 20 percent chance of scattered rain. A couple of days ago it said 60 percent, though, so hopefully it stays at 20 or gets better. The lake's far upper end might get dirty from all this rain, but Lanier is so deep and rocky that the lower main body normally stays in good shape. Therefore, I'm guessing we won't have a problem finding good water.

Later in the week, I hope to do some small-water fishing farther south in Georgia. This rain has been fairly warm, and the week's temperatures look warmer, so small-water bass fishing should be waking up. I'm not sure just how plans will shape up, but I have several ideas that offer good promise.

This year has started slowly, fishing wise. I've fished a handful of days in Arkansas and North Carolina and have caught some trout, but I've yet to make a cast in Georgia or to catch any warm-water fish. Hopefully by this time next week the report will be much different. One way or the other, I'll be on my way to Oklahoma next week around this time, and fishing prospects look good on that trip. I suppose that's getting a little ahead of the story, though!

Lots of Rain

My most recent blog post spoke of upcoming back-to-back-to-back photo trips, and right now I should be between rounds 1 and 2. However, extensive rain in Tennessee blew out the first trip. The lakes where Jim Duckworth fishes are 20 feet above normal pool, knocking the fishing way out of whack, and it was supposed to rain throughout the window he and I had carved out for doing photo work. Although neither of us wanted to do so, we agreed that we had to pull the plug on that trip.

My Arkansas/Oklahoma plans also take me into flood conditions, with plenty more rain falling over the weekend. In fact, tomorrow's forecast where I'll be is for heavy storms and 3 to 5 inches of rain. That trip is built around a plane ticket and affects more people's plans, though, so we'll just plug ahead and do the best we can between the biggest storms. I should get good content about fishing in high muddy water, on dark days and in poor conditions!

Trip 3 only looks to be in the way of scattered storms, but that's next week, so we'll worry about the trip to Arkansas, which begin this morning, first!

As many challenges as the rain brings for fishing and photo plans, it also refreshes the rivers and the lakes and is especially welcome in Southern trout waters just before summer, when low water and high temperatures can really stress the fish. So while all the rain alters some fishing plans, I'm thankful for it.

Rain

It rained here yesterday. Somewhat significantly, even.

Normally that wouldn't be noteworthy. We get quite a bit of rain in North Georgia. We've been dreadfully dry this fall, though. In fact, if I recall correctly, our last measurable rainfall before yesterday was during the first full week of October and was related to Hurricane Matthew, and our air has been smoky from wildfires more often than not for most of November.

Even folks who always grumble about rain seemed happy about a wet, dark day yesterday, so I can't even imagine the smiles on the faces of the trout as their homes got a bit of a recharge. We need much more, of course, and it looks like another round might come later this morning. For now, though, I'm thankful for yesterday's rain.

Delightfully Miserable

It's not that I prefer awful weather. I like 75 degrees and sunshine as much as the next guy. However, I cannot deny that I find a strange romance in enduring harsh conditions through a day of fishing.

I can't really explain what is fun about wading waist-deep in a cold river with 33-degree air and a soaking rain falling all day -- like I did last week on Michigan's Grand River -- or kneeling on the ice on a bitterly cold and windy day when I can barely stand to hold my rod and reel in gloved hands. That fun undeniably exists for me, though, and is part of the reason why I commonly go north during the cold months, when most folks I know are venturing south.

The fishing itself is the main appeal. I don't travel north just to get cold. I could do that without fishing. I suppose enduring the conditions (whether hot or cold) is simply part of the adventure.

Flooded Rivers

The USGS stream gauge date map shows black and blue dots all over Southern Appalachia (and across much of the South, East Coast and Upper Midwest, for that matter). The dots mark locations of stream gauges. Blue suggests very high flows. Black is even higher.

The rain of late has been crazy. It has actually been seriously rainy around here since mid-fall, so our streams were already running at high levels. For the past couple of weeks, though, the clouds have turned it up a notch, and it has been coming down, coming down, and coming down some more. Yesterday, I spent a couple of hours with a shop vacuum sucking water from the basement area where I keep all my fishing junk, and it looks like I might be doing the same thing again in a few days.

I actually like rainy days, and I really like trout fishing with dark skies and high flows. Brown trout feed best when the skies are extra dark, and most trout position themselves more predictably and become a bit less skittish when flows are high and the water gets a little off colored. The same conditions also tend to lessen crowds, which certainly suits me.

High water has useful limits for fishing, though, and most of are streams are well past those. They are running so hard that most fish are hiding behind rocks on the bottom and are essentially in hang-on-for-life mode. Most streams will have to settle at least a bit before fishing is likely to be good. When that happens, though, it should be really good, with better than normal big-fish potential.

For today, I think my best bet is to do a bit more drying and some sorting in my basement. Getting stuff in better order will let me get on the water faster on those days that will be coming up soon when river conditions are more conducive to good fishing.

Let it Rain

Rain was hitting the tent when we woke up this morning. It' raining outside our hotel room tonight. In between, well, it mostly rained. While I won't deny the rain putting somewhat of a damper on the day's plans, it sure didn't keep us from fishing. In truth, Nathaniel, Asher and I had fun fishing the White River in a steady downpour. We had the river basically to ourselves, and we even managed to catch a few trout.

Fishing in the rain also made us appreciate the Gaston's restaurant more than ever. I had a Gaston's Burger, which is huge and comes with avocado and seriously good bacon. No doubt I also really enjoyed my coffee today.

Plan had been to camp tonight, but with heavy storms projected and even a tornado warning, we decided that driving toward the Buffalo River (where we will fish tomorrow) and getting a hotel room would be prudent. That also gave us the chance to dry out some gear and reorganize the back of the truck a little better.

I'm really look forward to exploring the Buffalo River tomorrow. Then, it'll be about time to point it back toward Georgia.

Sun Shining this Morning

The rain began a little after 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 24. I remember because Asher and I were at the Little League fields, anticipating his 7:15 game and hoping he'd get to play. It started as a drizzle about the time the early game started and got gradually heavier as that one progressed. By 7:00, it was apparent that there would be no 7:15 game (first of five consecutive rainouts).

The rain ended with a drizzle this morning, and the sun is shining beautifully now. It didn't rain constantly all 10 days, but it fell the better part of most of them, with some seriously heavy rain in the mix. It began with the edge of a low-pressure system over the Atlantic and another that dragged moisture out of the Gulf of Mexico. A cold front crashed into that low just before the outer edge of the hurricane hit. Finally, high pressure has taken charge.

I like rain. I like rain a lot, in fact. I can't deny, though, that a week and a half of rain got a little wearisome, and it kept us from getting out and playing as much as we prefer. Early rain and plentiful dark skies made me excited about prospects of good brown trout fishing. Time didn't line up during that window, though, and next thing I knew it, streams were blown out. The North Carolina Wildlife Resources Division even delayed stocking Delayed Harvest streams so that the newly stocked trout wouldn't all get washed downstream.

All that rain to kick off autumn is actually really good for our waterways, and I'm glad for it now that it is gone. It provides a nice charge for trout streams, which can run mighty low this time of year, and for the reservoirs they eventually feed.

Now I just need to find a fresh window to get out there and go fishing!

No Rain Delays

Something cool that Asher and I noted a few times during the Rebel Trout Trek and that thankfully never changed is that we fished almost every day for more than three weeks and lost zero time to rain or other weather. It rained lightly one day while we were setting up a tent and a few times while we were in the car, but none the entire time we were fishing. Granted some of our fishing was in the desert. However, some was also in rainforests, and most was somewhere in-between. We could have fished in the rain, but soggy conditions aren't great for photos. Plus, heavy rain can blow out a stream, and lightning will keep me from going at all. We are thankful to have enjoyed great weather the entire trip!

Red Trout Streams

Today's trout outing with Asher began well, with a cool sidetrip to Upper Whitewater Falls and a few hours of catching trout and exploring the East Fork of the French Broad River. We knew we might be battling weather, though, and on the way from the East Fork to the North Mills River, we hit a massive thunderstorm, complete with heavy hail, and even had to pull over at one point because the rain was blinding.

Not long after arriving at the North Mills, we ran into seriously muddy water, and the bite disappeared complexly when the muddy water come. We still hit several spots along the creek, both for the sake of learning more about it and with hope of finding better-colored water. I think it would have settled out fairly quickly, and maybe we should have hung around, but it seemed like we needed to move on while we had the time, so we drove more than an hour to the delayed harvest section of the Tuckasegee River, only to find even muddier water and no one else even trying to catch trout.

Knowing Great Smoky Mountains National Park streams wouldn't be muddy and figuring that Deep Creek's brown trout might be a little more aggressive with the higher flows and very dark skies, we decided to fish the final few hours of daylight at Deep Creek. When we arrived, the stream indeed looked good; however, another big thunderstorm arrived with us. We tried to wait it out, but the sky kept flashing and rumbling as the evening progressed, so we decided to call it quits for today.

We'll begin again tomorrow and see what we find!

Rain, Rain, Rain

Asher and I seem to pick our pond days to coincide with the days when afternoon rains materialize. The last three times we've launched a canoe or johnboat, the rain has set in soon after we launched. We don't mind the rain on its own. In fact, Asher would fish all day in a genuine drencher. Unfortunately, yesterday's rain brought with it rumbles of thunder and a storm that appeared to be getting closer, and the previous outing brought heavy wind gusts that made things iffy with an 8-year-old in a canoe.

The bad thing about both days shortened plans is that the fish were biting really well. Yesterday, we only fished about 15 minutes before the lightning threat pushed us off the pond, and we caught four fish and had several other strikes. Asher is becoming pretty skilled casting and working lures.

Some day soon I trust we'll get to get out there and really fish, and when we do I believe we will catch them well.

Rained Out

A steady soaker punctuated by big bolts if lighting kept Nathaniel, Asher and me from fishing our way back through the Smoky Mountains on our way home from Townsend yesterday.

I would have liked to have given Asher one more shot at a Smokies trout, and the very dark "brown trout skies" made it somewhat hard to drive past Little River's massive pools. Prudence took the upper had though, and by the time we'd crossed the mountains Oconoluftee was stained and seriously surging.

I did confirm over the weekend that Asher really enjoys stream fishing for trout, so I'll gave to get him out on a Georgia stream some time soon to try them again. For now, I'm home and ready to write some fish stories.

April Showers Bring August Catches

OK. It doesn't rhyme like "bring May flowers." Still, I'm convinced that all the wonderful rain we had during April (which appears to be continuing in the early May forecast at least) bodes well for fishermen late in the summer, when fishing often gets tough in the Deep South.

I'm specifically thinking about stream fishing, especially for trout, because when Southern Appalachian streams run low late in the summer, they also get pretty warm and the fish go into survival mode. The fact is, though, that the major dose of rain that's drenched much of the South this spring pours life into rivers and reservoirs alike, and I can't imagining it being anything other than a good thing.

So don't frown on the next rainy Saturday (which looks like it might come tomorrow). Just put on your rain suit and get out there, and be glad for what the rain means to this summer's fishing opportunities and the long-term health of your favorite river or lake.

Flood Thoughts

Being just home from a week on the road, it's hard to not think about the rain that's pounding on my tin office roof and how thankful I am that Nathaniel and I were able to get in as much good fishing as we did. Apparently, the area we fished in Tennessee (under blue skies for two days) has had rain every day since we left, including absolute downpours last night, and  the gravel bars we walked on in Arkansas' Buffalo  River were majorly flooded only a day later. Meanwhile we somehow dodged the heaviest of Georgia's rains as we drove home today. And the Mississippi, where we began our fishing adventure, is high and red right now.

The Bassmaster Elite Series pros fish West Point on the Georgia/Alabama border this week, and apparently it was storming, with heavy rains and even big hail as the pros arrived in town today. They'll be fishing flood patterns and dirty waters, I suppose. Most Georgia waters run pretty red when the rain falls hard, so that has a big impact on how the fish behave.

Sometimes flood waters wash out a trip. For example, floating the Buffalo would have been dangerous after the big rains came. Some lakes simply get too muddy for the fish to find their food or the current in a river gets so strong that the fish just move into survival mode for a day or two.

Often, though, flooding creates opportunities (as any extreme condition can) because it washes food into rivers into rivers and lakes, causes fish to position themselves predictably in obvious eddies, tight to cover, or in the clearest water they can find. Sometimes it just makes them more aggressive.

The key is to consider the conditions that the weather has brought and fish accordingly. Unexpected flooding might mean searching shallower, using bigger and noisier lures and keeping lures much closer to cover. It also might mean doing a lot of looking to find little pockets where the water color is better.  Find those, and you've found something special. It'll be interesting to see how that kind of stuff plays out on West Point this week.

Thursday Tips: Fish in the Rain

I'll keep this week's tip short because the photo says it all. The 40-degree high and 100 percent chance of rain in today's forecast could have kept us out of the creek, but Nathaniel's sure glad we went fishing. With the river rising and the water off-colored, the trout didn't bite quite as well overall as they did yesterday or the day before, and a many of the best runs were blown out. That said, I think the same conditions made this big brown trout more aggressive than normal and willing to come out from between the boulders to ambush Nathaniel's lure.

The higher water also positioned the fish, making us better able to target our attacks, and it allowed us to use bigger lures with bigger hooks, which hold the fish better. Nathaniel caught his fish on a Rebel Tracdown Minnow with the trebles removed an replaced with a No. 4 Daiichi Bleeding Octopus Wide Hook on the back.

If there's lightning, stay home. If it's only going to rain, go fishing. Consider how the conditions could impact the behavior of the fish you are after, and then try to use that to your advantage.

Bass Between Rain Showers

This afternoon's pond outing was short. Between the onset of the cool rain showers and other plans for the day, a single quick lap around the pond was enough. It was a fun and encouraging outing, though, because we caught three bass and missed a couple of other strikes, all in shallow water. Even a few days ago, when Nathaniel fished the pond with a friend, he didn't get a bite around the edge. It was February last year when we started picking up a few fish shallow, and once they showed up around the edges, they seemed to stick around.

I caught my fish fish on a Road Runner Pro Marabou 2.0. Nathaniel caught his on a 3-inch YUM Dinger. Both were dark blue, and we fished both baits slowly in the still cool water.

We still have winter weather in front of us, I know, but today's outing definitely hinted toward spring getting closer!

Scatterd Showers

The rain didn't last long yesterday afternoon, but it certainly was refreshing. My littlest ones spent 10 minutes or so just running in circles in the rain and grinning. Today's forecast includes a 30 percent chance of showers. Same tonight. I hope some of that materializes. I also have an eye on Tropical Storm Debby, which is lingering in the Gulf and has a very uncertain course, and am hopeful that it ends up moving directly north to provide us a much-needed soaking.

Yesterday as I drove past he pond where my children and I often fish, I noticed that our favorite spring flat is now high and day. I haven't been trout fishing lately, but I suspect most North Georgia flows are creeping pretty low and could really use a recharge.