Head for the Mountains

Kokanee salmon
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Will Kokanee salmon thrive In NC’s mountain lakes?

Robert Satterwhite

Nantahala Lake in the far-western North Carolina counties of Clay and Macon contains the usual assortment of gamefish — bass, walleye, trout and bream — but one exception makes it unique. Nantahala is the only lake in the Southeast with Kokanee salmon, a species more identified with far western and northern states. […]

Streams at lower elevations, with less gradient are perfectly suited to brown trout, which grow larger than their rainbow and brown trout cousins.
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Looking for a brown-out

Robert Satterwhite

Brown trout aren’t native to the Carolinas, but they thrive throughout certain waters in both states. Anglers shouldn’t be afraid to upsize their lure offerings when targeting browns. […]

Tiny, colorful brook trout are among the most beautiful of all trout in North America, and they aren’t even a true trout, but a member of the char family.
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Enjoying those beautiful brookies

Robert Satterwhite

For thousands of years, brook trout had mountain streams to themselves. Around the turn of the century, however, brook populations began an irreversible decline as widespread logging, railroad construction, agriculture and unregulated fishing exacted heavy tolls on both numbers and habitat. […]

Cataloochee Creek holds some great brook trout fishing, with plenty of fish from 7 to 10 inches long.
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Cataloochee Creek is a real keeper

Robert Satterwhite

Few places exist where you can fish for trout with elk looking over your shoulder, and few streams in western North Carolina contain more brook trout than rainbows or brown trout. Cataloochee Creek in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is such a place. […]