BIG trout fishing in Cherokee

Cherokee Tribe stocking extra large trout right now

During much of the 2020 spring season, Cherokee Enterprise Trout Waters in Cherokee, N.C. were closed to the public. They’re open right now, and the tribe is stocking some extra large fish to entice anglers back to the western N.C. hotspot.

The guys from Pautzke Bait visited tribal waters earlier this week and caught some of the supersized stockers. Chris Shaffer said getting to these big trout isn’t difficult at all. They caught most of their fish on the creek known as Raven Fork.

“People don’t think Cherokee is open. So they don’t come here. And sure enough, this campground (River Valley Campground) is closed right now. But if you walk in, you’re welcome to fish this place. And that’s what we did,” said Shaffer. “There’s no crowds at all, and we were able to tie into some beautiful rainbow trout.”

But things are about to get busy in Cherokee. The Enterprise waters close on March 12 while the area gets ready for the official start to trout season, March 27.

The Pautzke crew was fishing with several different combinations of the company’s Balls O Fire and Fire Bait dough bait. Fluff Davidson was using pink Fireballs when he landed a 30+ inch, 14-pound rainbow.

Check out the video for more tips from the Pautzke crew, and head up to Cherokee for some great trout fishing.

 

About Brian Cope 2726 Articles
Brian Cope is the editor of Carolina Sportsman. He has won numerous awards for his writing, photography, and videography. He is a retired Air Force combat communications technician, and has a B.A. in English Literature from the University of South Carolina. You can reach him at brianc@sportsmannetwork.com.

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