A cancelled trip to Western North Carolina left me with a day off and a warm weekend with no place to fish. The trout we stocked last month have never left my mind so I headed down, once again, to the Red River Gorge.

2 days spent hopping from hollow to hollow to see what the watershed at the bottoms held was hard work but well worth the labor. Spring is in the air and the signs were all around me as I trudged up and down from ridgeline to runoff and back. Wildflowers and budding trees stretched toward the sun as warm winds whipped the bare canopy overhead.

I came to chase trout but Swift Camp, where we had dumped 500 fish a few weeks ago held nothing as far as I could tell. Not even chub or crawfish. I did see several spawning pairs of brook lamprey. A first for me and a bit creepy not having ever seen them before or even realizing they existed. Apparently filter-feeding scavengers and not parasitic, they are native and common.

Parched Corn is another stocked creek, one that holds brown trout, I’m told. Deep in the bottom of a hollow, the creek was overgrown and shallow if not scenic and secluded. I found a nice pool sheltered under a large rock that appeared empty and I stopped for lunch. Munching a PB&J and prepping my rod, I peered into the water through polarized lenses and saw no movement or signs of life until I tossed a small piece of bread onto the surface. The bottom of the pool instantly erupted with dozens of chub that savagely attacked the crumb until it was devoured. I smiled as I tied on a small egg fly and cast onto the surface to see a repeat performance. Only the largest of the little fish was able to swallow the fly and eventually I snagged what appeared to be the biggest chub in the waters. Fun enough, but I was looking for trout so I trudged back out to see what Chimney Top Creek held.

I moved downstream on Chimney Top after making the long, muddy descent to the valley floor. Small creek chub darted in every shallow pool as I worked any rocks or logs that might hold a waiting trout. No luck on that front, but I did draw out a monster chub from under a rock. My first time catching one of this size and coloration on a tenkara rod. Such a beautiful little fish. The video shows my catch and release. Catching it was the highlight of my trip.

The Red River was running decently and I worked the riffles for a while but never even got a nibble. I’ve not had much luck in the stretch of river along the road but it looks so perfect that I always stop to try. Maybe when it warms, I’ll snag a smallmouth. But today, it was just soul rinsing and no fish for the net. Enough for me on any day, though a fish would be nice.

After doing chores around the house on a beautiful Saturday, I headed down to Gunpowder Creek to test my waders. The parking lot had one spot left and I slid into it with no delay before suiting up and heading to the creek. Lots of dogwalkers but nobody else fishing that I could see. Pity, but more for me. I started at the honey hole and after an hour or so of teasing the riffles, I finally pulled out a nice little rainbow. I used the net and executed my least traumatic catch and release to date. I try my best but sometimes these little guys get more abuse than I mean to give them. Today though, this one swam away and was just a little late for whatever he’d been doing before I interrupted. Next weekend is the big North Carolina meetup and I think I’m ready. I learn a little more every time I go out and today I feel like I’m getting better at the hook set. Trout are nibblers and it’s sometimes hard to secure that connection. A lot of finesse and focus pays off.

I took the day off of work to drive down to the Daniel Boone National Forest to volunteer with Bluegrass Trout Unlimited and stock trout from Wolf Creek National Fish Hatchery. We shared stories and laughs waiting for the stock truck to arrive and I am grateful to have met such good people. Once the fish were netted and put into bags, we carried 500 trout in backpacks to release into Swift Camp Creek as freezing rain and high winds whipped through the area.

The group left for lunch at Miquel’s Pizza but I stayed to look for an arch that I had just learned was in the area. I’ve been fishing this creek for a few years but had no idea Castle Arch was just up the hillside across the creek. When I say up, I really mean UP. It’s been said this is the hardest .4 mile uphill hike in Clifty Wilderness and I tend to agree. With screenshot notes from Kentucky Hiker Project saved to my camera roll, I set off to find this hidden gem.

Crossing the stream wasn’t too hard in my waterproof boots and I found the first landmark which is a camp just across the water. Straight up the hill and through the rhododendron until I hit the rock face which I then skirted until finding the spot where some climbing is required. I wasn’t absolutely sure this was the correct point of ascent but after a few minutes of gut checking, I pressed on and was rewarded with a view of a truly impressive rock arch. The wind was incredible as it rushed through the arch so I crossed over to the other side of the ridge and continued up to the top where there is a small camp and an expansive view of the valley.

The weather continued to worsen so I didn’t stay long and made my way back to the truck thinking how lucky I am to have my health and the ability to still scramble through this rugged countryside. Once back to the truck I drove to a roadside pullout that has a waterfall and boiled up some lunch and coffee as the sleet and wind howled around me. Spring is surely coming soon and I can’t wait for the next adventure. If you have the desire and the ability to volunteer, please do. Public lands need the help and the organizations dedicated to protecting them can’t do it without our support.

Made it out this weekend for another trip down to the closed gravel roads in the Daniel Boone National Forest. My plan was to take the drone out to Chimney Top and get some footage of the rock structures in that area. Being that the road is closed, I figured I’d have the place to myself, and I did. One problem though, I forgot a critical piece of equipment that my drone needs to fly. I carted that backpack all the way down there for no reason. At least the skies were blue, the air was warm and the sun was shining. Also, I brought my tenkara rod and a small box of flies, so the day was not a total loss. I rode the bike back to the truck and made my way down to Swift Camp Creek. I’m volunteering next week to stock trout at that same trailhead, so I thought I’d scout upriver a little to see if there were any good deep pools with cover for the little guys. This same trail goes to Castle Arch Overlook, and along the way I saw amazing ice formations both on the trail and in the creek. There is a bend in the stream there that had massive columns of ice along the rock overhang but I wasn’t able to get back close enough for photos. There is almost no shoreline and the water had a fragile layer of ice on it that I in no way trusted. I will definitely be back in a pair of waders both for trout and then later for smallmouth. I had no idea the water looked so fishable in this area. I can only imagine that further upstream, it’s more of the same.

I saw snow in the forecast so I headed to East Fork for a wintery visit to the spillway. I did not expect to get so much snow so quickly and had to head out before really doing much at all. I’m glad they didn’t close the gate on the hill while I was there. The spillway was up, but not as much as I thought it would be with all the rain and melt we have going on right now. Kentucky has declared a flood emergency and many people have lost everything today. Keep them in your prayers and if you can help, please do.

Getting down to Indian Creek and looking for good spots to fish for trout has been on my list of things to do this winter. I fear I may have missed my window as spring rains and snow melt are already flushing the entire valley.

The service roads used to access this area are closed to motor vehicles for the season but foot and bike travel are welcome. I took the bike down and had a lot of fun cruising the gravel roads and bridges. I had the entire valley to myself. Though, on the hilltops, I was surprised and saddened to notice two new large homes overlooking the valley. Hard to pretend you’re in the backcountry when there are townhomes on the horizon. As grey and bleak as it was, the time I spent was memorable and I’m glad I got out. Maybe next time, I’ll even get to fish.

January has been bitter cold with a lot of snow making it hard to travel far from home so another trip to Gunpowder is my best option for close-to-home trout. I took the 13’ tenkara set up and remembered to bring the ‘good’ fly box this time.

After fishing the honey hole pretty hard for an hour, I started looking for a place to take the drone up. I didn’t wear waders today, so I moved downstream to find a place to cross in just my muck boots. The water was moving fast but was shallow enough to cross over and explore the middle area of the park. Spider ice on the side creeks was a sight to see. Also interesting was finding evidence of the hunt and stalk of a now-devoured robin. Possibly by a bobcat.

Much of the recent snow is now crystal clear melt water running fast through this area with chunky ice slabs laying in piles along the shoreline. In this lower wash the amount of slab ice is incredible to see as it is literal tonnage. The hard freeze turns this entire valley into a sheet of solid ice that breaks up and collects in the flood bottoms as the water recedes.

Not much evidence of spring out there though. Should see the beginning of shoots soon.

First trip of the year was every cold and totally winter. My line froze so fishing didn’t last long. My hands turned pink as the blistering cold wind blew in an unexpected squall and buried everything in a fresh new layer of white.