Solitude and big fish

Western NC offers great winter fishing

Many anglers hang up their trout gear for January, but they’re missing out on some top notch fishing, according to Matt Evans of The Catawba Angler. He suggests floating the Tuckaseegee, Catawba, and the Catawba tailrace for some of the biggest trout of the year.

“This month is overlooked by anglers thinking it’s too cold to fish, but you can catch some big trout during the coldest months of the year,” he said.

The waters he suggests are in the lower elevations, where Evans said water temperatures tend to stay warmer.

“This time of year, we throw large stonefly patterns and streamers to trick the biggest fish in the river,” said Evans.

It’s one of the best months to catch oversized trout. But Evans said anglers need to use the right patterns. And that mainly means throwing large flies.

“Large flies catch big fish this time of year since the dominant fish are looking for the best bang for their buck when it comes to eating, since their metabolism is low,” he said.

Going slow definitely pays off this month, he said.

“Dead drifting a stonefly or retrieving a baitfish pattern slowly in the wintertime can be highly effective,” he said.

This time of year, Evans said the main source of food for the brown trout is baitfish. And that offers anglers a great opportunity to try their hand at fishing with streamers.

“This time of year, we are looking for quality fish, instead of quantity, based on the fishing methods we use,” he said.

Another plus for anglers this month, especially those hitting the wild trout streams, is a lack of other people.

“The wild trout streams are always a blast to fish in the winter because of the solitude. But the best fishing on these streams will begin in early March when the warmer weather activates the nymph activity,” he said. “Still, plenty of fish are willing to bite here this month, although anglers need to be a little more patient. And they need to take full advantage of every bite they do get.”

The Catawba tailrace, Evans said, is traditionally the best source for catching big wintertime fish.

“The bigger fish in the Tailrace are definitely carnivorous. The smaller stocked trout are their main food source,” he said. “The key to this fishery being successful is the survival rate of these stocked fish. The ones that make it past the first year grow to some trophy sizes.

“If you are on the hunt for that one big fish, this is still the fishery to target.”

See more from Evans at thecatawbaangler.com, or reach him at 828-460-2390.