Winter Fishing Suggestions; Leaders & Flies
Fishing in Pisgah National Forest; some folks’ bucket list, some folks’ backyard escape! Either way, January and February are beautiful months in the forest and they bring cold, ultra-clear water, and the year’s lightest fishing pressure. Pisgah is worth visiting in the winter whether you call it home, or not, and can offer pretty solid days on the water.
In winter, well, in general, trout in Pisgah (and most surrounding areas) won’t move too far to eat. Our streams are just about perfectly structured for trout to find the most prime feeding lanes, intensely study them, and get used to not working too hard for their food. That’s great for the fish, but it makes it a little more difficult for the angler trying to figure it all out above the water’s surface! Getting your fly down quickly and drifting naturally is critical in your success. Focus on slower water seamed next to faster current, especially areas with depth and structure like boulders, ledges, and undercut banks. With the water being gin clear, fish tend to stick near structures for safety. Without it, they quickly become an osprey or heron’s menu item. Additionally, don’t be scared of splitshot, it is your friend! If you aren’t ticking the bottom, your flies are probably not deep enough. You HAVE to get into that sweet spot in the deep feeding lane, splitshot will help you accomplish that. Tungsten beaded flies are also helpful here if you don’t favor the splitshop tactic.
Your best fishing window is usually late morning through mid-afternoon, when the sunlight nudges water temperatures up just enough to trigger midge and Blue-Winged Olive activity. Most success comes subsurface with small, subtle flies presented close to the bottom. Opportunities at dry fly fishing do roll around throughout the dead of winter, but you have to be on the lookout for a promising forecast. General rule of thumb: Sun + warmth = hatches.
Check out the simple leader, tippet and fly suggestions below that will help take some of the “guestimation” out of your fishing day! As always, if you have questions or would like additional info/suggestions on a particular set up, or just need your fly box filled, we are happy to help! Swing by and we can help you grab the correct leaders, tippet, and flies for your day on the water.
For Nymphing or Indicator fishing, I would suggest a looong leader. This helps for several reasons: lessens drag on flies, less visible to the fish. A 9′-12′ 5X/6X tapered leader with an additional 18″-24″ of 5/6/7X tippet can be the sweet spot.
For when dry fly fishing looks promising, a 10′-12′ 6X tapered leader, with additional 6/7X tippet works well.
Streamer setups provide a little relief from the incredibly light 6/7X leaders on the other rigs! You can get away with 7.5′-9′ 4/5X leaders when throwing streamers.
Winter Fly Box Suggestions (Jan-Feb)
- Zebra Midge (Black or Red)
- WD-40 (#18-20)
- Pheasant Tail Nymph (#16-20)
- Hare’s Ear Nymph (#16-20)
- Blue-Winged Olive Dry (#18–22)
- Small Woolly Bugger (Black or Olive)
- Jedi Master (Black, #18-22)
- Jig Fullback Napoleon (Black #16-20)
- RS2 (Grey #18-22)