Fly Fishing Adventures
in the Southern Appalachians
in the Southern Appalachians
To all the Southeastern anglers out there: Here is a brief early fall update for you. We are in the midst of what I call the “Best of Both Worlds.” The guides are finishing up our Cumberland River trips for the season soon, and we have already begun our fall season on the Hiwassee River in Reliance, Tennessee.
What a season we have had in Burkesville, Kentucky, on the Cumberland River! With only a few exceptions, the weather there has cooperated and given us the perfect flow for the summer. Always remember, for tailwater fly fishing, that the weather and hatches may be important considerations, but river flows and being in the right place at the right time to take advantage of those flows are most important. Our guides know how to do that.
If you are a serious fly fisherman in the Southeast, you should make this pilgrimage to fish with us next season. It is the highest-quality trout fishing available to us without getting on an airplane. I was reminded by a regular client yesterday that the Cumberland River is the “best-kept secret in the trout world.” Tic and Garner have really taken the experience up a notch, too.
The good news keeps on going. We have opened up fall operations on the Hiwassee River a couple of weeks earlier than in the last few years. A combination of factors has made this happen.
First, we had a slightly dry midsummer. The dry spell in June and July prompted TVA to reduce late-afternoon flows on the river. This conserved our cold water in the reservoir and spread it out through August and September, when we have previously been getting warmer conditions on the tailwater.
Secondly, this increases holdover and helps fish respond sooner in October, when the ambient temperatures start to cool things down for the season. That has also happened. The nighttime temperatures in both Murphy and Reliance have been several degrees cooler for a few weeks now, and it makes a difference.
The Hiwassee River is one of just a few trout tailwaters in the Southeast with a delayed-harvest season. The DH is on schedule this year and started on October 1. This is the beginning of our favorite time of year on the Hiwassee. Most of the recreational boaters are gone, and the river once again belongs to the drift boats and fly fishermen.
As always, call me at 770-655-9210 or shoot me an email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and let's go fishing.
We have learned over the years that the stars do not always align for fly fishing adventures. But when they do, we should take advantage of them. The Hiwassee River is staged for an excellent week of fishing ahead. The flows look ideal, the weather looks ideal, the water temps look ideal, and the fish are fat and healthy coming off a shad feeding frenzy of the last few weeks. As with all fishing expeditions, there is never a guarantee, but from where we are sitting this morning, the upcoming week looks like a real good bet.
We have boats and guides available as follows: - this weekend - Monday 3/2 - Tuesday, 3/3 - Thursday, 3/5 - Saturday 3/7 Give us a call and let's go fishing. You will be glad you did.
Thanks, Dane 770-655-9210.
As we roll into the new year, we want to first pause and say thank you for giving us the opportunity to fish with you this past year. Let's then peer forward to see what the new year will bring. I feel it is important to note that the next 90 days are when our largest fish of the season historically come to the net. Winter fly fishing for trout in the southeast is often rewarded with trophies.
The National Weather Service is calling for warmer temperatures, and average precipitation for the next three months, as we are now in a diminishing La Nina weather pattern.
This is the kind of weather forecast we like to hear. I am expecting very good fishing conditions on the Hiwassee River for this winter. With a little less precipitation, we should see some good spring windows on the Cumberland River too. We haven't been able to fish the Cumberland during the last couple of springs due to high flows.
Winter fishing on the Hiwassee will include small blue winged olive hatches, the beginning of the small winter stoneflies, and hopefully a few good shad hatches from Lake Apalachia. Spring on the Cumberland will mean large black stones and the grannom caddis hatch towards the end of April and into May.
Keep the Hiwassee River in mind for this winter. We are ready to fish. SEA historically runs fewer trips this time of year so we will usually have short term availability. Watch those good weather windows and give us a call. We can get out on the river for some excellent fishing without the crowds.
Next month, in January of 2026 we will begin booking our Patagonia trips for the 2027 year. We have Chilmalfe Lodge on Lago Yelcho, Chile booked for early January 2027 and Limay River Lodge on the Limay Medio, Argentina booked for late February 2027. These are 2 of the best weeks at two of the best lodges for larger brown trout in Patagonia on dry flies. Just give us a shout for the details.
Give us a call and let's go fishing. Dane Law
770-655-9210
Are we there yet? What I really mean to ask, is it fall yet? I think I can safely say that we are entering into a fall 
weather pattern in the southeast. Remember that the water temps always take a while to cool (or heat) as the ambient air temps fall or rise. Water temps are finally starting to cool in our fishing areas now. Although the Cumberland River in south central Kentucky really never reaches temps high enough to slow the fishing, it can get low in dissolved oxygen in 
late summer into early fall. Most of our rivers and streams in east Tennessee and north Georgia experience higher than desired water temps at some point during the same period. Our trending annual climatic pattern has shifted over the years and cooler temps come later. November is now the new October.
The first 4 photos are fresh from recent trips on the Cumberland River. It has fished very well on average, yielding many quali
ty fish and an increased number of brown trout over 20 inches. November flow rates are going to be good, possibly
into December. We are going to offer trips here until the cold weather simply pushes us off the river. The big browns may step out into plain view as fall turns to early winter. The cloudy darker days should start offering some excellent streamer 
opportunities. I did something a little different this time for Hiwassee pics. The lower five photos are from a deep dive into the Hiwassee River fall and winter photo archive. Some real oldies but goodies. We are ready to begin our fall fishing season on the Hiwassee River now. November brings on more fish and less people. The next few months are absolutely some of the best times to fish with us on the Hiwassee River.
Give me a shout to book a trip and let's go fishing.
Anglers of the south, happy July! Things are certainly heating up around here and it is time to announce our transition to phase 2 of the 2025 Southeastern Angler's season. We have begun our Cumberland River trips and they are not disappointing. These trout pics are fresh this season from the previous week's trips. River flows are good now and continuing to improve. The foggy mornings are cool enough for a jacket on the river to begin your day and it is always a little cooler on the water than up on dry land. We will be concentrating our trout fishing efforts here for the next 90 days and still have plenty of availability. The surface activity should just continue to improve as more and different terrestrial insects become available.
We have just about moved away from trout fishing trips on the Hiwassee River for now. It is time to give the trout a break until things cool back down towards fall. However, we are having an above average striper run on the river this year. This is probably due to higher-than-normal flows for spring and early summer with cool water temps still in place. The big guys come up out of the Tennessee River into the Hiwassee post spawn to rest before heading back down to Chickamauga Lake in a few weeks. We are offering some striper trips for August if you ever wanted to try your hand at one of these. It is certainly not a given that you will catch one, but conditions are excellent. Success rates are much higher on spinning tackle, but hooking up with one on a fly rod is a real possibility. We can do either or both. Fly fishing for stripers in a river is like big game hunting. It takes some patience and perseverance. As always, call or email to get something scheduled with us. Let's go fishing this summer.
Hello Southeastern Anglers and welcome to summertime in the southeast. Just a heads up. Fishing on the Hiwassee River is going to be great for the next 2 months. Spring has been mostly cool, and damp and we have plenty of cold water going into the month of June this year.
Many of you know all our great guides, but some of you may not. Over the next few months, we will put the spotlight on each of them in hopes that you get to know them a little better and give us a call to fish with them when you can.
Garner grew up hunting and fishing in North Georgia. After spending time guiding in western Montana, he moved back to the southeast to focus his guiding career on the stripers, bass and trout that sparked his love of fishing as a young boy. More recently, Garner and Laura relocated to Reliance, TN on the banks of the Hiwassee River where they welcomed their son Wilds in December 2023. When Garner is not out on the water guiding or hunting elusive turkeys, you can find him spending time with his family, hiking, biking, fishing, and traveling, preferably to places with good fishing, good food and good music.
Garner is also a sales rep for Tidewater Sales, supplying local dealers with Orvis, Scientific Anglers, Fulling Mills, and Sitka outdoor products. Just ask and he can give you the full rundown on how the newest gear is standing up in the field and in the market. Below are a handul of near-term available dates that Garner has open.
If you would like to take the opportunity to get to know Garner a little better, just give me a call and let's get something scheduled.
Thanks,
Dane
770-655-9210
News flash! We are now in the drift boats on the Hiwassee River and should be for the season. Plenty of water.
Ladies and Gentlemen, I know it has been a while since our last report. Sorry... it is just that time of year. I am proud to report the Hiwassee River has been fishing wonderfully. The photos here are all from recent trips on the HI, except for maybe one. Until this week, we had been doing most days in the inflatables and mother nature has been kind to us on most trips. Hiwassee Lake is now full to summer pool and river flow rates are increasing. The drift boats are dusted off and in use. The caddis have been hatching well and we should be staring down a full sulfur season at the stair-steps next.
We are still hoping that we might get on the Cumberland River early this year, but with the above average April and May rains, it is going to be close. The jet boats are ready and I am sure the fish are. There have been just a couple of fishable days there since last fall. We just need the rains in Kentucky to subside. If we do not get to fish it early, don't worry. I don't remember a year where we weren't on the water there by July.
I want to congratulate our very own Tic Smith for being a finalist in the Orvis Guide of the Year program for 2024. You can also listen to a recent podcast he made with Tom Rosenbauer here https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-orvis-fly-fishing-podcast/id278930814?i=1000703805451.
If you like to scroll Instagram sometimes, add us to your favorites @southeastern_anglers, we try to post some cool pics and sometimes some videos of our fishing trips here in the southeast.
As always, call or email to book a trip with us or just talk fishing.
Thanks,
Dane
770-655-9210
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Folks, it is time to go. Here are a few fresh pics from recent Hiwassee River trips. The river is full of Jim Dandys right now, and even some of the bigger fish are showing themselves. This leopard bow decided to eat a blue winged olive on top and the other two showed to be partial to some shad patterns. It looks to me like both precip and temps are going to be about "normal" for the next 45 days or so (whatever that means). River flows are mostly good also. The next two months are definitely peak fishing days on the HI.
The Cumberland River - With a little luck, I think we will be fishing here April and May and then hopefully right on into summer. We caught an increased number of sizable browns here last year and can't wait to see them again in 2025.
Patagonia trips - We had an excellent couple of weeks on Lago and Rio Yelcho Chile in early January. Big Browns on top and good Patagonian summer weather. We head to the Rio Limay Medio in a couple of weeks to finish up our Patagonia trips for 2025 in Argentina.
We will report back on Patagonia and begin booking for the 2026 weeks next month in March. If you already know that have interest in our Patagonia trips for 2026, go ahead and let me know.
Lastly. Tic is rigging up the Clacka and waiting at the ramp. It's time to go!
As always, give us a shout and let's go fishing!
Thanks,
Dane
770-655-9210
