This will be long, so stop reading now if you don’t like long stories…

As most know, I’ve recently got into fly fishing. Living in SWGA it’s not like I can run to any store within 100 miles and find supplies or info. Unfortunately everything is self learned and researched. Luckily for me everything I’ve ordered arrived in time for a trip this week.

My boss informed me a couple of weeks ago I’d picked this week for vacation. It’s normally my PNW Trip, but we made a decision to take care of some things on the home front and postpone some things like my out of state trips and her cruises. I decided to take the week and head to North Ga and attempt to catch trout. I booked a guided trip on private ground to learn and hopefully catch trout.

The trip was to be Tuesday of this week. I drove down Monday evening and got ready for my next day adventure. Unfortunately rains came through the night and still raining the next morning when I arrived at the outfitters. The guide said in good conscience he couldn’t take me and asked if I could hang around until Thursday because the creeks should be clear by then. I agreed as long as he gave me some pointers on what to fish and any public spots I could try. Well, he set me up so off I went in the pouring rain. I fished for probably 4-5hrs using a fly as an indicator and a nymph under it. I’ll be honest, I had no clue what I was doing, but did learn some spots.

Wednesday morning I decided to go see if I could find a turkey seeing how it was raining again. 5.4 miles up and down a mountain found no sign and nothing heard. I only hunted half a day and headed back to where the wife had booked me a place to stay. After some hydration and a sandwich I decided to try the fishing again.

I went back to the “prettiest” spot and gave it a go. Now mind you, the only trout fishing I’d ever done was on last year’s PNW float trip and fishing dry flies. After a few strikes on the indicator and watching trout hit the surface I took off the rig I had and picked a fly that looked good to me…thanks Don_P!!

It didn’t take but a few misses before I had my first trout in the net!!



Not gonna lie, I face timed my brother, wife, and kids!! I was on cloud 9!!! I ended up catching 4 and probably missed about a dozen.

Thursday morning had me up way earlier than needed. I wasn’t supposed to meet the guide until 0800, but I couldn’t sleep so I got up and went over my gear. At 0745 I was in the parking lot waiting on the guide. He showed up and we discussed waders or if I wanted to use what I’d worn (Back Country Skinz) I opted for what I’d been wearing and off we went.

Once we arrived I opted to use his equipment seeing how it was already rigged and ready to go. The first 5 minutes or so we went over the cast we’d be making and hook sets. We also discussed what we’d do if a “monster” was hooked, then it was off to the first hole.

Now this is a creek on private ground so all the casting is been practicing and using on the river went out the window. We’d be using a lot of roll cast and some low sidearm casting. He’d already informed me hook sets are free and he had plenty of flies, so if in doubt, set the hook and we’d just retie if we couldn’t retrieve them from the trees, lol.

We were using a fly as an indicator, and a variant underneath. (Nymphs, Stone flies, and flies like a worm) I quickly learned I may have actually gotten a lot of strikes the previous day because unlike bream with a bobber that goes under, we’re looking for the slightest disturbance.

Once I realized that, I caught my first trout. I asked if we could take a pic and he said we always take a pic of the first and each one after that that’s bigger.



I caught one more in that hole and missed a couple, then it was on to the next hole. Every hole was a different casting scenario, so it took me a minute or two to get it down, lol. Here’s a decent trout from the next hole.



On the way to the next hole he told me it held a really nice Brown trout. I asked how big and he said he didn’t know because they’d hooked it several times but never landed it. He said when hooked it would run upstream to the shoals, then turn around and run downstream and that’s when they’d lose it. He also told me there were some decent Rainbows in this hole as well. I figured it was “guide” talk. Besides the 2 I’d already taken pics of were bigger than any other trout I’d caught.

We got to the hole and he immediately spotted the Brown. After half a dozen cast and a hangup on and underwater log, the Brown bit!! I set the hook and thought I’d hooked the log again, until I felt a shake!! Now the excitement starts!! He did exactly what the guide said, upstream and then a mad dash downstream. The guide is ahead of me chasing the fish barking orders to run and get the rod up higher!! Now this joker is 6’4” and I’m 5’7” on a good day. He’s 28 and I’m 58. I’m “running” or my variant of it on slippery rocks getting up to the nuts crossing the creek with my arms extended all the way up above my head and the rod bent from cork to tip with the reel screaming!! Somehow I get the fish “stopped” in a deeper pool and on his 3rd or 12th circle of the pool the guide nets him!! My heart is about to jump out of my chest, the guide is fist bumping me so hard I about fall over and we don’t know whether to laugh or cry! The only thing I can say is “Can we get a pic?” 😂 He said we’re getting pics and videos and he even starts texting the other guides and owner telling them we caught the Brown!! The fish measured 24”!



After the celebration he said it’s a little early for lunch, but do you want to take a break? I told him I needed to sit down and take all that in and share with my family so we hiked back to the trucks talking and laughing about what just happened.

As we sat down for a sandwich and some chips I told him I’d say the blessing. I thanked God for the day, for his protection and the fish. I also told him that my day was made already but if he wanted to top it with a bigger trout, I’d do my best to land it and Amen. We talked about the fish some more, the gear we were using, how they came about getting to use the property we were on and then headed back down the trail.

We stopped where we’d caught the Brown and I asked are we fishing it again as we’d seen some pretty decent Rainbows in it. He said No, the next pool is actually downstream where we landed the Brown. So needless to say, back across the creek in nut deep water to the other side. This spot required a backwards cast almost, but I picked up on it quick. About the third float down the run the indicator had a slight tick and I set the hook. Again I thought maybe I’d hooked a rock or log, but that was quickly proven false when this giant Rainbow came to the surface. He stayed in the deep pool for several loops before making a run upstream. So same scenario, except this time the guide just said do what you did before, but in reverse, lol. We were both laughing while chasing this fish. The fish stopped where I’d hooked the Brown!! We landed him and again it was pic and video time! He measured 25.5”!!



After releasing he asked if I wanted to pray again, lol! I told him I’d settle for what was given and didn’t want to bother him about fish anymore, lol. He said, I may call you on a slow day and have you say one for me.

We ended up hitting several more pools with “smaller” fish and called it a day about 4pm. I could not have dreamed of a better trip. If anyone is ever around Blue Ridge, Ga give Cohutta Fish Co a call and ask for a private wade trip with Matt!

So today was my last day so before heading home, I decided to hit the public one more time seeing how I now knew how to fish with an indicator. Glad I went, ended up catching 3-4 trout and called it a morning and headed back to SWGA

Cool story. Nice brown and bow. Fly fishing in my opinion and tying your own flys is a blast. Been fly fishing since I was 13 years old or younger. Dad and I fished for smallmouth etc in Mo Ozarks streams. Still got my browning fiberglass fly rod. You’re hooked for life. ( no pun intended). Great sport

Beats catching bass ...all day ...every day

Nice!

Great story and experience. I’ve wanted to make a similar trip to Cherokee NC.

I’d say go catch you a +5lb bad on that fly rod now, but having done so, I’d trade for that Brown any day.

Again, congrats!

Congrats

I don't know anything about fly fishing and very little about trout.

Congrats on your trip. It's always good when a plan comes together!

Nice!!!!

Wanna Be, after having lived in central Ga. for 40 years, I can say I'm jealous. I wish I would have taken more advantage of the trout fishing opportunities available in N. Ga. than I did when I lived there. There are some amazing options in N. Ga. that a lot of people across the U. S. don't realize exist, especially on private waters. Hiring a guide was a very smart option for the unexperienced or first timer. It sounds like you lucked up with a good one.

Yeah, this “bug” bit last year and I’ve researched equipment, flies, techniques, places, and even outfitters since that time. Finally got it all together and went for it.
Those big trout were nice even though I don’t feel like I deserved them because I haven’t put in the time, but man what a learning curve experience. Catching the smaller trout on my own on public waters is what made the trip for me. I figured if I can catch bass and bream on a fly rod, then anyone can. The trout are the pinnacle for me and I’m already planning a fall trip, deer be danged, lol!! Some of the public areas I found were absolutely beautiful and held trout!! It’s about a 4hr trip and I’m sure weekends are crowded, but during the week I encountered maybe one or two other fishermen. Most of the time I was the only one on the water.

Totally unrelated, but I also learned GA has ground hogs! Who knew???

The trout that is on my bucket list is a native brook trout. I understand that you got to go deep off the beaten path to find them.

Only trout I've ever caught were in a Rabun County/Chattahoochee NF public stream access. Cousins and I used bream buster poles and a can of whole kernel corn. We all caught our limit of those DNR-stocked rainbows. Cleaned, cooked and ate them at camp nearby where we fished.

While working on my wildlife degree at ABAC (in the early 90s)......we shocked up some very small brook trout. I think we were backpack shocking that day on Wildcat Creek in Rabun County......but not positive on the stream as we shocked several locations with DNR Fisheries personnel over several days.

If I only could chase one fish with fly rod it’d be wild native brookies. But big natural reproduction browns at night on dries or mouse patterns are close second if fishing in east