There are many great places to trout fish near Asheville, North Carolina in the winter.
The winters in North Carolina aren’t what they used to be. Growing up in western North Carolina I used to remember it being colder and it would snow way more than it does nowadays. I would say that our winters are somewhat mild with a couple of super cold weeks mixed in from December to the end of February. We just wrapped up a great month of trout fishing in January and are looking forward to warmer days in February. Most of our guide trips take place here in McDowell County and we are blessed to be able to guide 12 months of the year. Fishing in the winter provides us with some of the best streamer fishing of the year. We had some phenomenal days on the Catawba Tailrace this January throwing streamers.
Paul and Jimmy put over 20 fish in the boat throwing streamers on the Catawba Tailrace. January 30, 2021.
Paul tricked this healthy brown trout into eating a black streamer.
When throwing streamers we will use 7 weights with floating line or with sinks tips depending on water levels. Floating line is okay when fishing lower flows, but the preferred method is using sink tips because it gets your flies down deeper where bigger fish will hold in the winter. Tips with a sink rate of 2-4 IPS will suffice for most of the floatable water in western North Carolina. My preferred colors are grey, olive, black, and white. These colors mimic the baitfish, crustaceans, and leeches that larger fish feed on. When stripping streamers in the winter it’s best to slow your retrieve down because a trout’s metabolism slows down during this time. The fish aren’t as willing to chase a streamer that is presented super fast in the winter.
Streamer fishing in the winter can be very rewarding! January 7, 2021.
Winter trout fishing on the Catawba River. January 22, 2021.
Yellow perch eat streamers too.
Fred with a nice rainbow on a recent float! January 22, 2021.
Ashley brought a good amount of trout to the net on this cold January day.
Wade Fishing Opportunities in the Winter
Wade fishing in the winter time offers complete solitude!
The water here in western North Carolina is generally low and clear in the winter time on our mountain creeks making light presentations with light tippet a must. A simple way to selecting an appropriate tippet for a particular fly is to take the size of the fly and divide it by 3. So using a smaller #18-22 fly, a 6x or 7x tippet would be ideal. My favorite way to present these smaller flies in the winter time is using a dry dropper combo. Most of the time I’ll use a stimulator or a chubby chernobyl as the indicator. These two flies ride high and dry and can carry multiple smaller nymphs under them.
We have numerous wild water creeks in North Carolina that fish well in the dead of winter. The fish are less pressured this time of the year which makes for some great fishing with clients.
Newberry Creek provides some excellent winter fishing for wild rainbows and brook trout.
Jeff with a wild rainbow caught on a dry dropper combo on a local trout stream. January 24, 2021.
These size 16 pheasant tail nymphs are great dropper flies in the winter.
The Catawba River holds both wild trout and stocked trout in its waters from Old Fort to Marion.
Catawba River Wild Brown Trout
North Carolina Trophy Trout
Chad came down from Ohio to fish with us for two days. We floated the Catawba River for stocked trout then decided to wade a smaller trout stream in mountains of McDowell County. Fishing wild trout water is always an adventure because it takes you to remote places off the beaten path. This allows you to see some of the most serene areas in the Pisgah National Forest. When you are out here in this setting you often forget about what’s going on in your daily life and find such a peace like you’ve never experienced before. It’s hard to go to these places and not find God.
The stream we fished is known for its wild rainbow trout in the range of 6-12 inches with some bigger fish mixed in. Little did we know we would hook and land the biggest wild rainbow I have ever seen on this stretch of water. Chad played the fish perfectly and I got in front of the log jam downstream of the hole so the fish couldn’t head for cover and break us off. When I netted the fish we all knew it was a true trophy for this water. These are the moments I live for because it was Chad’s first time fishing in North Carolina and I was able to help him catch his personal best trout in my home waters.
Chad with a trophy wild rainbow trout. January 26, 2021
Fly Fishing Curtis Creek
Curtis Creek has been fishing well this winter. Light tippet, smaller flies, and good casts are vital to success. I have the luxury of living two miles from the creek so whenever I need to get my trout fix on this is where I head. I enjoy fishing the delayed harvest waters in the winter time because it’s not standing room only like it is after they stock the creek in the Spring. If you want to become a better angler then I would highly suggest fly fishing low, clear water in the winter time because you cannot get by with mediocre work. Casts have to be on point. Stealth mode is increased by a 1000. Light flies and light tippet is the only way to go. If you want to learn the techniques needed to catch those stubborn winter trout then give me a call. I would love to show you everything I have learned by fishing this creek over the last 25 years.
Winter time fishing is challenging, but very rewarding. Curtis Creek, North Carolina. January 31, 2021
Winter trout fishing on Curtis Creek, North Carolina.
Curtis Creek is a great winter time trout fishing destination in North Carolina.
Forecast for fishing in February
January is by far the coldest month here in western North Carolina so us anglers look forward to February. February brings on some really good afternoon hatches on our wild water. This includes blue wing olives and stoneflies. These hatches may only last 30 minutes, but it makes for some excellent sight fishing to small and large trout. We offer wade fishing trips and float fishing trips the entire month for trout. The backcountry streams will produce good numbers and the float trips down the Catawba River and Catawba Tailrace will provide some exciting fishing as well. Lake James will be heating up again and the bass will become more active midday and early afternoon. Guide Kelsey Minish has put some very large bass in the net this time of year. If you are looking to get on one of the best mountain lakes in the area give us a call. Check out some of our past pictures from the month of February.
Longtime client Scott Lorenz with a healthy wild brown from a guide trip last February.
Matt Hill tricked this one into eating his handmade fly.
Paul Atkins grinding it out last February.
Smallmouth fishing Lake James in February.
Float fishing in February is fantastic.
February brings some great fishing! Give us a call today to get on the water!
We offer half day floats for $250 or full day floats for $350.
Winter is a great time to catch some bigger fish. January 15, 2021.
