River Report 10/29/23

It’s really starting to feel like Fall here in virginia! Smallmouth Bass Fishing is winding down, with fish moving to the deeper holes for winter, and musky fishing is starting to really pick up. The New River and James River are both very low, but with precise, longer presentations there’s still plenty of good fishing to be be had. Leaves are dropping pretty steadily, so working around them is the biggest hurdle right now when fly fishing.

Smallmouth bass are back on the baitfish bite heavily. Weighted streamers worked slow are more the ticket in the morning, while fishing some of the bigger swim fly patterns in the warmer parts of the day are more productive. with the low, clear water its imperative to lengthen your leader.

musky fishing has been good as far as engagement goes, but they’ve been extremely weary as they get within 10’ of the boat. smaller flies, particularly game changers worked faster has been more productive for sure. very natural patterns, with more heavy white has definitely been more productive as well. we’ve been doing best sight-fishing them from as far as possible, and trying to entice the eat well-away from the boat.

josh has been running days down on the smith river for brown trout, and the fishing is really good right now! the trout are starting to think about spawn, and thus they’re very agreeable on the streamer bite.here soon we’ll leave them alone as they start to spawn, but come December we will be back on the smith for more excellent brown trout fishing! levels are great, and the weather is perfect!

we’re still actively booking musky and brown trout guide trips for both the James River and new river and the smith river for trout, so if you’ve ever wanted to check musky on the fly off the bucket list or scratch the trout itch, reach out for available dates!