  26 Feb 2012
This is most likely the final journey entry for February 2012 and it will only slightly pertain to fishing. First would like to thank all those that are visiting our site and ask you to continue visiting. We will be getting more marinas, docks, guides, and bait shops, hopefully covering all the fishing areas in the state of Tennessee. We will start a local angler fishing report for each lake and river if you would like to participate. We will also set-up a photo gallery page for each lake and river from local anglers if there are enough photos entered. I would like this site to become something for you.
Well this weekend was something. Sickness intervened, doc gave me some antibiotics, basketball tournament on Saturday, and today after church, we went to see Act of Valor. This is something that has led me to put in a journal entry for the day. I would like to send out a great big thank you to all service members. The movie was good and a nice reminder of the efforts made by our service men and women.
Now I understand that it was a movie, that all of our service members are out doing operations everyday. However, lives are being risked and put in harms way on a daily basis. They are willing to sacrifice everything, to give it all. Some may ask the question why, but they may simply ask, why wouldn’t you? The underlying story of the sacrifice of the family is also one that also goes unnoticed by those here in the states. The sacrifices that they make is one that I don’t think we will understand unless we are in there position.
Let us never forget that many have sacrificed there lives for this country and our freedom. Let us remember that as they sign there name on that line to join the military, they are saying they are willing to lay there life on the line for one another, this country, and freedom. I would simply like to say thank you, Semper Fi (always faithful, to God, country, and Corps). May we never forget.
 19 Feb. 2012
The forecast for the day is snow and the rain was coming down. While in church this morning you could hear the rain during the service. Good message this morning, soul searching, about total commitment to Jesus. When service was over we came home, I did a little cooking and wife went to doc, this sinus stuff is wearing us out. After she gets home, I look out and its still raining, they are still calling for snow, however the generators are not running, so ignorance prevails and I get ready for fishing.
  Now if you look real close, you might see Bigfoot, just kidding, this is the parking lot at the Dam, no one else here. So I head out and start to fish.  I get one little hit early but opt to switch to a blue-winged olive and #22 black midge (look at the Orvis banner if you want to order (my shameless plug)) and the fishing is on. I get bit more times than I can count, some of the BWO’s hits are refusals, but feeling a lot of the fish on the line. I am not certain why I was having difficulty setting a hook, but I must have gotten 20+ hits and I pull in one, see photo above. The bites begin to diminish, so obviously I must move locations.
At this time only my rain coat and outer shirt are wet, so things are still good. I fish downstream but only for about a half an hour. Then decide it is time to go to the grates just before calling it a day. As I am walking, did I tell you that it was raining? Well, it was now snowing, however the rain did the work it set out to do on the ground. As I was walking toward the grates my boots lost traction and I lost balanced and hit the ground. Fortunately the one other person there was focused on fishing and no America’s Funniest Home Video production of my event.
I fish here a bit, no bites and decided to call it a day. The snow was coming down pretty good and I did get me a small little trout. Notice in the photo, part of the trout went through the net. Nothing like Troutfishers Guide Service or East Tennessee Fly Fishing would provide, but for me, a really good day. Time on the river, snow falling, fish biting, who could ask for more. Hope you have a great week and God bless.
   
  17 Feb 2012
A Sighting More Rare than Bigfoot
It has been a very long time since I was able to go wading at the South Holston River. They have been turning out the water and all of my recent adventures have been roll casting from the side while generating. This has not been very effective, I have caught a couple, missed quite a few, but typically leave without having to get the fish smell off my hands. This morning I saw that they were not generating till 7am, this means I can fish down stream till at least 10am. So I head out with fly rod and ready to roll.
Now you will notice that I gave this little entry a title. What I saw today was a sighting that was much more rare than Bigfoot. If you look at the above photos, this is a view of below and above stream of me. If you look real hard, you will see that there are no people in these pics. Folks that is about as rare as it gets, time on the South Holston River without anyone else being there. Now it is not that I don’t like company, but it was very peaceful and some really nice time on the water, or in the water may be a better way to phrase it.
As I arrived, I located the rock to which I was going to perch. I already had an egg and a pheasant tail on the line, figuring the egg would not be very effective, but the excitement was mounting, so I just start fishing. There is this nice little area and boom I get bit, I set the hook, feel the trout for approximately 1.03548 seconds then nothing. It was great and fueled the fire, the thing felt pretty good size. I spend a bit of time here and get a total of three hits, now all of them were on my line about the same amount of time, but none of them stayed on the line. The third one felt like it may have been a really good one.
I head upstream a bit thinking the fishing must be better up there. So as I go apparently the tester came out in me. As I was walking I began the process of testing the gripability (I know that’s not a word) of my wading shoes and the durability of the waders as I slip and fall on the rocks. No worries, there were no injuries and Bigfoot would have seen me fall before anyone else, consider this a bonus. I fish here a spell, catch nothing, heading downstream.
I walk down stream and fish a spell, I get one more bite, this one did not get on the line at all, my reflexes must be getting real slow. I fish there a bit longer then head out to take out wife for Valentine’s Day. You may think it was 3 days ago, however, the weekend makes a better time, lunch deals are cheaper, and fortunately she is as tight as I am. The day was great, didn’t catch any, but had plenty of opportunity and a great time on the river. With what I experienced today, don’t be surprised if I take a snapshot of Bigfoot in the near future. Anyway, email us with your fishing reports and pics, we will post it for you, good fishing and God bless.
 12 Feb 2012
Well this is my first journal entry for February, but my second trip to the SOHO (South Holston River). You are probably a little upset that I had been on a fishing trip without providing documentation through the journal entry. Please accept my apologies, I will include a little info on the trip for you, it was about two weeks ago. I did however, have to move some things on this site to set this up on a monthly link and my goodness I got to go a bunch in January, so I can’ t really complain too much about missing a few days here and there.
The last trip saw my version of the zebra midge in which I use black thread for the body, and gold for the stripe. I am not sure what the name of this bead headed bad boy would actually be called, by most pros probably junk, but anyway, I saw it get broken off by a nice trout. That trip I got about 5 hits and did not get a single one on the land. They were once again generating, and I got skunked.
Last week I saw the generators were stopped but I had switched my work schedule for the week and was unable to go. I have been fighting and losing a battle with sinus or something, but today I had enough. So about 2:00 I headed to the SOHO. I got the imitation zebra and an egg pattern. I am 99.999% certain the egg pattern will be a waste of time, but it was already tied on and I thought, why not.
When I arrive I see a gentleman that has just started fly fishing, I think he said he bought the fly rod about 3 weeks ago. In the conversation I am taken back to when I started, then I realize, there is no reason that I do not know any more than I know during all this time. I really need to pay attention more at what I am doing and try to learn. We talked for a few and I wish him the best of luck and hope he enjoys fly fishing as much as I do, then it was time to start.
I hit the spot where my line was broken last time and realize, hey, it’s cold out here. Fished there a while and produce a net full of nothing. So I go down to where I have gotten a hit every time I have been while generating. Toss it in for a while and realize, it is still cold and the wind is not heating things up. Again produced a net full of emptiness. I move around a little and then decide perhaps I should switch some flies up.
I change up my flies and I am not going to state what I used. The reason I am leaving that information off is due to my lack of experience. Sometimes it is like throwing darts for me, I will use what I have in the box and not consider what I should use. This will help you to understand why I sometimes come up empty. After getting them tied, I say them cause I used a dropper, trailer, or whatever you would like to call the second fly. I do this so that I can have a better shot at getting me one.
I go back to each little spot, think to self, it is still cold out here, and look at my net, zero. I had been there a couple of hours, had a great time and took the above pic. Thought the ice on the tree was a nice touch and just enjoyed a little bit of the Lord’s creation, the packed it up. Can’t wait for the next trip whether I catch anything or not, I just like fishing, catching just adds that much more to it.
