The DH section of the upper Toccoa River in the vicinity of Dial, GA,
is running a little high, but deep-dredging with nymphs and streamers
are taking fish daily. Rainfall easily affects this watershed with both volume and clarity changing dramatically behind springtime thunderstorms. Use caution when wading under high flows. There's a bunch of very slick granite slabs throughout the 1-mile DH stretch of the river. Rainbows and browns dominate the catches, but a brookie can surprise you at any time.
The Toccoa River tailwater at Blue Ridge Dam, which suffered
the abuse of the TVA in September 2010, is clearly producing better
fishing, with several 20-inch-plus trout reportedly taken over the winter
months. Numbers of trout caught on the tailwater are also improving along
the length of the riverway, so it looks like the heavy stockings made by
the GDNR over the last several months are helping to restore the action
the Toccoa tailwater has long been known for. To support the community's
call for special fishing regulations on the Toccoa tailwater, please see
the regulations proposal (dated Sept. 8, 2010) and the reports of the
follow-up public meetings on the matter by visiting the website of the
Toccoa River Watershed Coalition at: http://toccoariverwatershedcoalition.org/Watershed_conservation.html#dec2meeting
The DH section of the Nantahala River, NC, is fishing as
normal for March -- it's GREAT! If you've never fished this blue-ribbon
winter/spring fishery, you owe it to yourself to enjoy a trip into the
scenic Nantahala River gorge. Dry-fly fishing is busting out on the
"pretty days" and those "pretty days" are going to get
more frequent as the weather continues to warm through spring. This is
your best nearby location for completing the Appalachian Slam -- catching
brookies, browns and rainbows in the same day from the same water. And
some of those fish caught can easily stretch beyond the 20-inch mark of a
trophy trout.
The Hiwassee River tailwater at Reliance, TN, is fishing
very well. The upper two miles, where drift boats are easily working the
water under the flows of a single generator at the Appalachian Powerhouse,
features long "flats" water that's punctuated underwater with
large boulders, sharp ledges, deep troughs and woody debris that point
your way toward catch rates of 20 to 40 trout a day. Streamers, nymphs and
dry flies all have their place on this most beautiful of places to throw a
fly line. The lower 5 miles of the usual 7-mile upper river fishing area
is fishing well, too, with dry-fly action growing daily under the spring
sunshine. However, the flow of one generator across this section makes the
many riffles, boulder gardens and large shoals difficult to wade for
anglers of all skill levels. Side channels are clearly a safer wade than
the primary river channel, and where the river widens to more than 200
yards across, there are plenty of pools, runs and other areas in the
braided water to cast a dry, nymph or streamern to the river's numerous
browns and rainbows.
The DH section of the Chattooga River on the GA-SC border
southeast of Clayton may be the prettiest trout water -- in one of the
prettiest canyons -- of all across the southern Applachian Mountains.
Three miles of the river, upstream from the Highway 28 bridge, are under
the special regulations of delayed-harvest fishing through an environment
that repeats the traditional riffle-run-pool setup of classic trout
streams. The great underwater fly-fishing here of the cold months will be
sustained with even better dry-flly fishing through the spring months
thanks to the river's strong populations of aquatic flies. Some of the
finest hatches of tan and olive Caddisflies; Baetis, BWO, Hendrickson and
Sulphur Mayflies ; and giant Golden Stoneflies will emerge over the
next three months. Catches here include browns, rainbows and brookies,
with true 20-inch-plus trophies possible on any given cast. 
And if you're a bass
fisherman, I can attest that the bite
for spotted bass and smallmouth bass is on the mark right now! Pre-spawn
conditions are at their best on lakes Blue Ridge, Nottely and Chatuge, with the bass moving up to pre-spawn
staging areas on the points and long primary banks where the bottom is
best for spawning. Crankbaits, hair jigs and spinnerbaits are all
responsible for a share of the great bite taking place in 8 to 15 feet of
water. I imagine fly-rod anglers could have a good time, too, with
both smallmouths and spots that are feeding aggressively ahead of the
spawn.Pick an especially warm afternoon with cloud
cover for the top action, but fish can be caught on any day in almost any
condition when you're in the right place with the right lure. 
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