Anderson County Tennessee Fishing Report and Photo Essay
This reporter finds himself at the Clinch River House in Anderson County, Tennessee this week, fly fishing the Clinch River for brown and rainbow trout. Thus the Anderson County Tennessee fishing report.
Tuesday found bride Susan and I in her chariot, a 2007 Toyota RAV4, driving north on I-75, headed for the Volunteer State. Our only glitch was a wrong turn in Atlanta, from which we quickly recovered. So that part of the expedition went smoothly.
Welcome to the Clinch River House.
We arrived at the Clinch River House just before dark, and exhausted from a 10-hour-plus drive, wasted no time in examining the bedding.
The house is finely appointed.
The plan was to fish the Clinch River on Wednesday. The TVA did not receive the memo. The Clinch was running at over 8000 CFS, not fly fishable by mere mortals. Jim Tedesco picked us up and we headed to Little River Outfitters. After showing us the finest fly selection available for the local waters, Dan got a map of Great Smoky Mountains National Park out and marked it up for us. We headed off to fish the middle branch of the Little River.
Jim did his best. It didn’t matter.
This was a tiny stream with a steep gradient. Casts were about 20 feet, fly drifts two or three. After three hours of the finest kind of learning experience I had raised one fish about ten centimeters long. It was too small to eat my #12 fly. Jim had similar results. Susan got a couple nice sketches done.
These flies were too big for the fish that bit.
Thursday the Clinch was still running hard. We went to the American Museum of Science and Energy in Oak Ridge, which details the fascinating history of the Manhattan Project. Although physically rather small, there was so much information that we spent the entire morning there. It gets a five-star rating from this reporter.
WE NEED SCIENCE. You’ll remember how this worked out for the Reich.
The Manhattan Project was top secret.
We then visited the Museum of Appalachia. They fed us lunch, enough delicious food for six people.
Uncle Sam folk art. A single pocketknife may have carved this.
While we needed a nap after that, we spent the rest of the day marvelling at the exhibits in this incredible, must-see facility- folk art, native american artifacts, historic cabins, tools of all kinds, gardens, livestock, transportation, quilts and textiles, musical instuments, on and on. It’s a collection of everything people needed to survive in Appalachia before the computer age, and is truly amazing.
Moonshine is an Appalachian tradition.
This devil was formerly a knot in a walnut tree.
Susan found a new place for us to live.
This is part of the Bible Belt.
Natives were also models for folk art.
This Cherokee basket was one of dozens we saw, all fantastic work!
Friday morning the river was running at a fishable level, for a few hours at least. Shawn Madison and his boat appeared as if by magic. He spirited us off into a spectacular morning on the Clinch. Before I knew it a foot-long brown trout was on the end of my leader.
Clinch River, early morning.
Jim got several rainbows, the best being a 14-inch fish. Shawn taught us the intracacies of nymphing with a strike indicator. The larger fish we saw eluded us, but I knew I had a couple days left to try to get one. Then the TVA cranked up a generator, the water got too fast and deep, and we were done fishing for the day.
Fish in the net!
Saturday Shawn picked up Susan and I at 7:30, and off we went again. The river was low, and we were optimistic. Our optimism was misplaced. Two small rainbow trout fell for my nymph imitations, and a few strikes were missed. Still one morning to try for a real one, though.
Shawn working a Clinch River run.
Susan shot this of Shawn and I fishing.
One of the fish I got.
I’m looking for one like this. Maybe a little more flexible.
I would like to thank Diane Ilgner at Anderson County Tourism for helping us put this trip together, Buddy McLean for his hospitality, Shawn Madison for his time, expertise, and good humor, long-time friend Jim Tedesco for joining us from North Carolina, and of course Susan for spending valuable vacation time out on rivers and in boats instead of touring the Louvre. I am so lucky…
That is the Anderson County, Tennessee fishing report!
Life is great and I love my work!
Life is short- Go Fishing!
John Kumiski
www.spottedtail.com
http://www.spottedtail.com/blog
www.johnkumiski.com
www.rentafishingbuddy.com
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All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2017. All rights are reserved.
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