Small Stream Trout Fishing

Mention the phrase "trout fishing", and most people will immediately visualize a large, open river, with a neatly dressed fly fisherman in the middle of the trout stream, his fly line neatly unfurling in a perfect cast. That imagery makes for good wall calendars, but if you grew up trout fishing in North Carolina, as I did, you're likely to have a much different view of trout fishing. More specifically, you're thinking of a trout stream on which your fishing rod doubles as a spider web cutter, and the branches from the trees and shrubbery on one side of the stream touch those from their counterparts on the other side of the stream. Oh yeah, and that trout fly line isn't unfurling; it's tightly stretched from one hand to the other, bow and arrow style, while you're aiming through mountain laurel branches.

The question, then, is why fish a small trout stream? After all, your picture will likely never make it onto a wall calendar. Ah, but that's the point. While the catalogue-quality trout fisherman with neat hair (who is probably a model, not a trout fisherman at all) on the calendar is having his big stream photo op (in between fluctuating water levels and flotillas of tubers, rafters, and kayakers, none of which are shown on the calendar), the small trout stream fisherman is all alone in a pristine environment. There are no sounds except the wind through the trees and the flowing water, and no cares except deciding on which rock to eat lunch. And, most importantly, there are no boaters on the water. I hate boats on trout water.

Quick Tip! When you're on a small trout stream, take time to enjoy the sounds and scenery. This may include small waterfalls, rarely-seen animals, and trout feeding in the current. For example, I've observed deer, mink, otters, owls, buzzards, eagles, bears, raccoons, beavers, and turkeys while on trout fishing trips. I've also observed trout jumping out of the water to eat a mayfly. You most certainly will want to carry a camera!

Advantages of a Small Trout Stream

The first advantage of a small trout stream, already mentioned, is seclusion and privacy. Larger trout streams are typically fished more often, by more people, many of whom don't know or care about what they're doing. In Alaska on the world famous Kenai River, it's called combat fishing. Additionally, large trout streams often offer multiple uses: fishing, swimming, tubing, kayaking, etc. Translation: crowds. Crowds get in the way, take pictures of you when you don't want them taken, scare fish, and leave their trash behind. All those pictures in the calendars must have been taken immediately after someone adopted the river.

Contrast this with the small stream. Often times, fishing a small stream requires somewhat of a hike just to get to the trout stream. This eliminates most of the crowds, and consequently, most of the problems.

Small trout stream fishing provides an opportunity for beginners to get acclimated to trout fishing and hone their skills. In a small stream, the fish can only be located in a few places in the stream, whereas on a large stream the trout can be scattered throughout the large expanse of water.

Small trout stream fishing often provides a chance to fish for native (non-stocked) trout. Native trout are generally more colorful, more wary/intelligent (translate challenging), fight better, and taste better (though you shouldn't keep too many) than their stocked counterparts.

Additionally, for those purists who desire historical accuracy, small trout stream fishing can provide a chance to pursue trout species that are indigenous (naturally occurring, i.e. these trout species were never stocked in that particular area of the world). For example, in my state of NC, we have brook, brown, and rainbow trout. However, only the brook trout are indigenous to the Eastern US. The other two species were stocked (browns are originally from Europe, rainbows from the West Coast mountain ranges of the US and Canada) in the past. The naturally occurring brook trout in NC now almost exclusively live in the headwaters (i.e. small streams) of the mountains.

Fishing a small trout stream can often be combined with a backpacking trip. In fact, some of the best fishing opportunities come to those willing to hike long distances into the woods and stay overnight. You can even enjoy a fresh meal of trout streamside for dinner!

Small trout streams are often overlooked. This means that they receive less fishing pressure. This means that the fish are still there. Small trout streams typically offer lots of shade, and they stay cool in the summer with less exposure to sunburn.

These are excerpts from Chapter 2 of an ebook published by Chancelor Steve of Trout University, TroutU. The ebook entittled "Small Stream Trout Fishing" is available in the Kindle version at Amazon Kindle for the very affordable price of $3.99. When interviewed, Chancelor Steve had this to say "I want to keep the price affordable so that everyone can learn to enjoy trout fishing in the small mountain streams such as are found in The Great Smoky Mountains Park.". For more about fishing The Great Smoky Mountains National Park check out this site as well. More.

Steve is planning a CyberGuide series in conjunction with his teaching and his classes held at the University. His plans include video guides of numerous trout fishing trips. Each CyberGuide video will include trail maps, techniques, specific information about the trout population, how to approach the trout, what flies or baits that will work on that particular trout stream, and much, much more. Be sure to check back at TroutU for details about the release of the PDF version of "Small Stream Trout Fishing"