Hookers Fly Shop and Guide Service. Your Smokies Fly Fishing Experience.

Fly Fishing on the Western North Carolina Fly Fishing Trail

Posted on February 9, 2014 by jasoncole

The fly fishing on the Western North Carolina Fly Fishing Fishing Trail has been hot all winter long. The Tuckasegee River, Ravens Fork, Scotts Creek, and Caney Fork have been our go to streams over the past few weeks. The Tuck generation schedule has been all over the place over the past few weeks with a few days of low water in the am hours. Yesterday, I had the pleasure of guiding three new clients on the Tuckasegee Delayed Harvest section along North River Rd. Beginners Brad, Cliff and Scott all picked up on the basics rather quickly and began putting fish in the net just a few minutes after stepping into the river. Overall each client put around 8-9 rainbows in the net. Cliff hooked into but eventually lost the biggest fish of the day, which looked to be in the 18-20″ range.

Begginer Fly Fishing Trip on the Tuckasegee River

Today, I decided to take advantage of the fly shop’s short hours (10am-2:30pm) and hit Scotts Creek for the afternoon. The water has been on the high side pretty much all winter long so I knew heavy nymphs would be the ticket. Earlier at the fly shop I had tied up some #14 Olive Jig flies. This particular fly is tied on an Umpqua Comp Jig Hook #14 with Coq De Leon tail, olive thread body, chartreuse wire rib with a golden olive Hareline Hares Ice Dub collar. I fished this as my point fly and fished a Pink Rainbow Warrior for a dropper. The first 8-9 fish came on the jig fly. Later I switched the dropper to a small Pheasant Tail and hooked into several more fish including a 16-17″ brown. By the end of the day close to two dozen wild rainbows were put in the net and two very nice wild browns. Not a bad afternoon on the water.

Fly Fishing Scotts Creek

Nice Scotts Creek Brown Trout

Hookers Fly Shop guide Miller Watson was also on the river today doing a float trip on the Tuckasegee Delayed Harvest. Miller says the big Tuckasegee Browns were actively chasing large streamers today. The big browns seem to be sensing the major winter storm that is headed this way in the next couple of day. Below are a few pics from the Tuckasegee float trip. Book a trip now by calling 828-587-4665. Or use the form below.

Big Tuckasegee Brown on a Tuckasegee Float Trip

Hookers Fly Shop guide Miller Watson showing off a nice Tuckasegee Brown Trout

Use the convenient form below to book a trip or inquire about our services and one of our employees will contact you in less than 24 hours to confirm the trip. In the message line list the type of trip, length, number of anglers and the date of the trip.

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Cherokee Fly Shop

Posted on February 6, 2014 by jasoncole

Hookers Fly Shop and Guide Service is located in Downtown Sylva, NC. We are just minutes away from Cherokee. Our fly shop is fully stocked with all the hot flies and gear you need to fish this area. We also offer guided 1/2, 3/4 and full day fly fishing trips in Cherokee daily. Cherokee has plenty of water to choose from. You can fish a small stream full of wild rainbow and brown trout like Soco Creek or the bigger waters of the Oconaluftee and Ravens Fork.

Large Rainbow on Ravens Fork in Cherokee, NC

Guided Fly Fishing on Raven’s Fork Cherokee, NC

Guided Fly Fishing Trips on Ravens Fork can be absolutely fantastic. This stream is full of wild trout as well but here you will also find trophy rainbow, golden, brown and donaldson trout. We have had clients catch trout here in the 8-10 pound range. Further up Ravens Fork outside of the Trophy Section you will find another small tributary called Bunches Creek. This creek is stocked but also full of wild rainbow, brown and native brookies.

Trophy Rainbow

Our lead guide Jason Cole was born and raised in Cherokee and will be glad to show some of the best water this area has to offer. Jason has been fishing this area for over 30 years and has a vast knowledge of all the local honey holes. Hookers other guides also spend many days fishing and guiding these waters as well. Let one of our guides show you what Cherokee has to offer. Call 828-587-4665 and one of our friendly staff will be happy to answer any questions or set up a trip for you.

Winter Fishing on the Tuck

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Guided fly fishing trips near Atlanta Ga

Posted on February 3, 2014 by jasoncole

Hookers Fly Shop and Guide Service is located in the heart of the Great Smoky Mountains. We are just minutes from the Tuckasegee River which is considered by many to be one of the top streams in the Southeast. The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is just a 20 minute drive from our fly shop and offers some of the most scenic fly fishing in the country. Many of our new and repeat clients over the years have come from the Atlanta, Ga area. Atlanta is close enough to drive up for a half day, 3/4 or full day of fly fishing and still have enough time to drive back and be home for dinner. If you are looking for a multi day adventure lodging in our area is not a problem. There are plenty of cabins, Bed and Breakfast, campgrounds, motels and hotels to choose from. You can find several links on our homepage for area lodging.

Guided Fly Fishing on the Tuckasegee River

The Tuckasegee is a favorite for anglers driving up the the day. It is located just off of Hwy 441 in Dillsboro and Webster. The section of river just above Dillsboro is the Tuckasegee Delayed Harvest. Here anglers can choose between a wade trip or a float trip on one of the heaviest stocked streams in the Southeast. We offer 1/2, 3/4 and full day wade and float trips on this river. This section of river is catch and release single hook artificial only from October 1st through the first Saturday in June. Over the course of the catch and release period this stream is stocked with close to 50,000 fish. That is roughly 10,000 per mile. The Tuckasegee also provides some fantastic summer fishing as well. We float a section of river downstream of Dillsboro, NC that is full of trout, smallmouth bass, spotted bass, perch and even walleye.

Guided Fly Fishing in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park – Deep Creek 2012

Several years ago Jackson County introduced the first ever Fly Fishing Trail. The Western North Carolina Fly Fishing Trail highlights 15 prime fishing locations from small wild brookie streams to bigger western style streams like the Tuckasegee River. Our guide service is proud to cover all of the areas on this trail especially the Tuckasegee, Scotts Creek, Caney Fork, Ravens Fork, Panthertown Valley and the Chattooga.

Big Tuckasegee Rainbow Fall 2012

If you are not looking for a guide please stop in and see us anyway. Our staff will be happy to advise you on the current streams conditions, fishing reports, gear and the latest hot flies. Brands we carry include; Bauer Reels, Ross Reels, Lamson Reels, Redington, Temple Fork Outfitters, Fishpond, Umpqua, Sage, Brodin Nets, Wolf Moon Nets, Nomad Nets, Rio, William Joseph, Wapsi Fly Tying, Hareline Fly Tying, Montana Fly Company, Spirit River Fly Tying and many more. Stop in and see why people call us “The Best Little Fly Shop in the Smokies”.

Nice Brown on a Tuckasegee Float Trip

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Large Rainbow on a Tuckasegee Guide Fly Fishing Trip

Categories: Uncategorized | Tags: fishing trips on the tuckasegee river, float trips on the tuckasegee river, fly fish the smokies, fly fish the western north carolina fly fishing trail, fly fishing float trips on the tuckasegee river, fly fishing guides for the smokies, fly fishing guides for the tuckasegee river, fly fishing guides near atlanta ga, fly fishing guides on the tuckasegee river, fly fishing near atlanta ga, guided fly fishing in the smokies, guided fly fishing on the western north carolina fly fishing trail, tuckasegee river float trips, western north carolina fly fishing trail | Comments Off

Guided Fly Fishing Trips in the Smokies

Posted on February 2, 2014 by jasoncole

Guided Fly Fishing trips in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The Great Smoky Mountains National Park offers some of the best fly fishing opportunities in the Southeast. However, the fishing here can be extremely frustrating for most anglers but at the same time it can very rewarding.

Beautiful Smoky Mountain Brown Trout

There are dozens of streams in the Smokies and most of them are home to Rainbow, Brook and Brown trout. Some of the lower elevation streams even hold smallmouth bass. While a few of the streams have all three species of trout there are a few of the higher elevation streams that only have the Brook Trout or “Specks” as most of us locals like to call them. In fact, the brook trout that are found in these mountains are unique only to the Southern Appalachian Mountains. These fish tend to be much smaller than the more well known Northern Brook. This beautiful specimen is the only native trout to the area. Pictured below is a beautiful Southern Appalachian Brook Trout from Straight Fork, which is located just north of Cherokee, NC.

Fly Fishing the Oconaluftee River Fall 2012

On our guided fly-fishing trips to the Smokies you can do a half-day, ¾ day or a full day trip. All of these trips are wade trips and we provide all the necessary gear for a day in the Smokies. Full day trips include a stream side lunch.

Jackson with a nice brown on Deep Creek

If you are the more adventurous type Hookers Fly Shop offers overnight backcountry trips to the more remote locations of the park. We can hike in, boat in or even paddle canoes or kayaks in. Our backcountry trip leader, Jason Cole has plenty of knowledge and information about staying and playing in the backcountry. Jason has been backpacking and camping in the remote areas of the park since he was five years old that’s almost 30 years of backcountry experience. He has been leading trips professionally for almost 9 seasons now. If you would like more information about these trips please feel free to email or call.

Kylon fishing in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park

If you would like to book your fly-fishing trip to the Smokies just send an email or call and speak to one of our friendly staff and we will be glad to help you plan your trip. hookersflyshop@yahoo.com 828-587-HOOK

“The mountains are calling and I must go.” – John Muir

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Categories: Backcountry Trips in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Fly Fishing Cherokee, Fly Fishing in Cherokee, Fly Fishing in North Carolina | Tags: float trips on the tuckasegee river, fly fish bryson city nc, fly fish the tuckasegee river, fly fishing, fly fishing deep creek, fly fishing in gatlinburg tn, fly fishing little river tn, fly fishing near smokemont, fly fishing near tremont, fly fishing north carolina, fly fishing the great smoky mountains, flyfish cherokee nc, flyfish hazel creek, flyfish townsend tn, flyfishing in waynesville nc, great smoky mountains fly fishing, guided fly fishing in cherokee nc, guided fly fishing in gatlinburg tn, guided fly fishing in the smokies, guided fly fishing in the smoky mountains, nc fly shop | Comments Off

Guided Fly Fishing in Waynesville NC

Posted on February 2, 2014 by jasoncole

Guided fly fishing trips in Waynesville, NC. The West Fork of the Pigeon River starts just off the Blue Ridge Parkway in Haywood County. This river system offers wild Brookies in the higher elevations and wild browns further down stream. The river also has approximately five miles of hatchery supported water ard two miles of Delayed Harvest waters. The Delayed Harvest section is stocked with 10,590 trout between Oct and May. That is over 5000 fish per mile! This section slows during the summer months but the Upper West Fork and the Middle Prong have plenty of hatchery and plenty of wild fish as well.

West Fork of the Pigeon Brookie

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Guided Fly Fishing on the West Fork of the Pigeon

Categories: Fly Fishing near Asheville, Fly Fishing near the Blue Ridge Parkway, Pigeon River Area | Tags: fly fish asheville nc, fly fish cherokee nc, fly fish jonathan creek maggie valley nc, fly fish jonathan creek nc, fly fish maggie valley, fly fish maggie valley nc, fly fish waynesville nc, fly fishing in waynesville nc, fly fishing shining wilderness, fly fishing the pigeon river, guided fly fishing near Asheville nc, guided fly fishing near waynesville nc, guided fly fishing on the east fork of the pigeon, guided fly fishing on the west fork of the pigeon | Comments Off

Nantahala River

Posted on February 2, 2014 by jasoncole

The Nantahala River is known the world over for its great white water action, and is a place that truly exemplifies a great trout river. The Nantahala is listed as one of the nation’s top 100 by Trout Unlimited. It has also been featured in Eastern Fly Fishing Magazine, North Carolina Sportsman, Trout Magazine, and countless others. The Nantahala River is the most diverse fishery in all of the state. It is arguably one of the finest rivers in the South Eastern United States. Nowhere else can you fish so many different types of water in the same river system! From tight Mountain Laurel choked headwaters, laden with Brook Trout, to a very impressive tailwater supporting some of the baddest Brown Trout in the state, the Nantahala has something for every taste.

Repeat Client Ed F. Fly Fishing the Nantahala Delayed Harvest Fall 2012

The Nantahala above the power house is designated Delayed Harvest, this is a favorite among anglers because of the great action year round, and high fish counts. One can catch numerous stocked trout as well as wild trout, the excitement in this particular section is endless. Below the power house the river changes faces once again to an impressive tailwater fishery. This is the section of the river where the world class white water rafting and kayaking take place. The fishing is great year round in this section too, even during the summer months when the rafting is going on. The Nantahala here features many deep pools, numerous runs and riffles that hold truly large trout. Matter of fact the North Carolina State Record Brown Trout came from this portion of the Nantahala, weighing in over 24lbs 10 oz! Talk about putting a smile on your face! The Nantahala River is truly a place worth visiting while in Western North Carolina.

Beautiful Nantahala Brown Trout

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Beautiful Wild Male Rainbow on the Nantahala River

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trout fishing in cherokee nc

Posted on February 1, 2014 by jasoncole

Guided fly fishing and spin fishing trips in Cherokee, NC.

The nearby Oconaluftee River flows out of the Smoky Mountains National Park through beautiful historic Cherokee N. C. home to the Eastern Band of the Cherokee Indians. The Oconaluftee River is a freestone river that begins life high up in the Smoky Mountains National Park. Many small feeder streams make up this beautiful river, to form one of the largest rivers that flows inside park boundaries.

Release shot of a large rainbow on Ravens Fork

Once outside the park, the “Luftee” as us locals refer to it, flows inside the Qualla Boundary where it’s waters are stocked with numerous healthy Rainbow, Brook, and Brown Trout. The Cherokee Indians are long know for taking care of their natural resources, and the Oconoluftee is no exception. The Tribe stocks the Oconoluftee River and other streams located on the Qualla Boundary twice a week, so there is no shortage on trout in the waters of the Oconoluftee. The Tribe does offer fishing permits, and the daily creel limit is 10 fish with no size restriction. The previous North Carolina State Record Brown Trout came from the waters of the Luftee weighing in at 15 lbs 9oz!

Large Rainbow on Ravens Fork in Cherokee, NC

The relatively new designation of the Cherokee Catch and Release waters on the Raven Fork offer yet another wonderful fishing opportunity. Fishaverage about 20 inches on this 2.2 mile stretch of water. Managed by Cherokee Fish and Game, the regulations are different from the state of North Carolina. Please be sure to visit out Regulations tab for more information.

Large Rainbow on the Cherokee Trophy Waters

Our lead guide, Jason Cole, is a member of the Eastern Band of Cheorkee Indians. Growing up in Cherokee, Jason has been fishing these waters since he was a young kid. He has a vast knowledge of the 30 miles of streams located on the Cherokee Reservation. From the smaller streams of Bunches Creek and Soco Creek to the larger streams of Raven Fork and the Oconaluftee, Jason has fished these waters for over 30 years. He has also guided hundreds of clients on these waters over the past 9 seasons. It would be tough to find a more experienced guide for these waters.

Nice Trophy Rainbow from Raven Fork

Outside of the trophy waters on Ravens Fork Cherokee has close to 30 more miles of stream to choose from. From the smallest stream, Bunches Creek to Soco Creek and the Lower Oconaluftee. Our guides cover all of these areas on our 1/2, 3/4 and full day trips.

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Categories: Fly Fishing Cherokee, Fly Fishing in Cherokee | Tags: cheorkee nc guide service, cherokee fishing trips, cherokee fly fishing trips, cherokee nc fly shop, fly fish cherokee nc, fly fish soco creek, fly fishing guides for cherokee nc, fly fishing guides in cherokee nc, fly fishing guides on ravens fork, fly fishing guides on the cherokee trophy waters, fly fishing in cherokee nc, fly fishing on ravens fork, fly shop near cherokee nc, guide service in cherokee nc, guided cherokee fishing trips, guided fly fishing near the smokies, guided fly fishing on the cherokee trophy waters, guided fly fishing trips in cherokee | Comments Off

Fly Fishing for Smallmouth Bass

Posted on February 1, 2014 by jasoncole

Hookers Fly Shop offers both wade and float trips in the Western North Carolina area, including the Little Tennessee River and the Tuckasegee River for Smallmouth Bass. Hookers Fly Shop is only outfitter that offers seven different sections to float on the Upper and Lower Tuckasegee river for smallmouth bass.

Big Smallie on a Tuckasegee River Float Trip

Anglers can choose to fly fish, use traditional spinning gear or both. These trips are available in 1/2 day, 3/4 day and full day increments. We provide all necessary gear (both fly and spin) on all of our trips as well as lunch on full days and drinks and snacks on 1/2 and 3/4 day trips. (lunch can be added on to any trip upon request for a minimal fee.)

Bruce with a nice Smallie on the Lower Tuckasegee

Anglers will also have the opportunity to catch plenty of other species of fish on these trips. In addition to Smallmouth, Rainbow and Brown trout, Red Eye Bass, Largemouth, Spotted Bass, Walleye, and Perch are often brought to the net. There are even rumors that Muskie roam these waters.

Big Tuckasegee Smallie

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Categories: Guided Smallmouth Trips in Western North Carolina, Guided Smallmouth Trips near Asheville, Guided Smallmouth Trips near Franklin, Guided Smallmouth Trips on the Little Tennessee River, Smallmouth Trips | Tags: float the tuckasegee river, float trips on the little tennessee river, float trips on the tuckasegee river, fly fish franklin nc, fly fish the tuckasegee river, fly fishing guides for smallmouth, fly fishing in bryson city nc, fly fishing in dillsboro nc, fly fishing the little tennessee, fly fishing the tuckasegee river, guided float trips near franklin nc, guided fly fishing float trips on the tuckasegee river, guided fly fishing for smallmouth bass, guided smallmouth float trips on the little tennessee, guided smallmouth float trips on the tuckasegee river, nc fly fishing guides, north carolina smallmouth fly fishing guides, smallmouth bass fly fishing guides | Comments Off

Fly Fish the Smokies

Posted on February 1, 2014 by jasoncole

Beautiful Wild Brown caught and released in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Straight Fork Brookie

Nice Small Stream Brown Trout

If you are the more adventurous type Hookers Fly Shop offers overnight backcountry trips to the more remote locations of the park. We can hike in, boat in or even paddle canoes or kayaks in. Our backcountry trip leader, Jason Cole has plenty of knowledge and information about staying and playing in the backcountry. Jason has been backpacking and camping in the remote areas of the park since he was five years old that’s almost 30 years of backcountry experience. He has been leading trips professionally for almost 9 seasons now. Jason is also CPR and First Aid Certified and has had Wilderness First Responder training. If you would like more information about these trips please feel free to email or call.

Large Brown Stonefly

“The mountains are calling and I must go.” – John Muir

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Tuckasegee Fly Shop

Posted on January 27, 2014 by jasoncole

Hookers Fly Shop and Guide Service is the Tuckasegee River’s only fly shop and guide service. While there are other outfitters in this region,Hookers is only a short 3-4 minute drive from the Tuckasegee Delayed Harvest. The Tuckasegee Delayed Harvest is considered by many to be one of the top streams in the Southeast. With close to 50,000 trout stocked here annually it would be hard to find a stream with as many fish per mile as the Tuckasegee.

Trophy Rainbow

Our fly shop offers a wide selection of gear and fly tying materials as well as a dozens of fly patterns for our mountain streams. Brands we carry include: Sage, Redington, William Joseph, Umpqua, Rio, Fishpond, Dan Bailey, Brodin Nets, Wolf Moon Nets, Loon, Hareline, Wapsi, Montana Fly Co., Spirit River, Rep Your Water, Bauer Reels, Lamson Reels Ross Reels and more.

Big Nantahala Rainbow

Feel free to email or call anytime for stream reports, hatch reports,etc. If you would like to book a wade or float trip you can call or email or use the handy form below to contact us. 828-587-4665 hookersflyshop@yahoo.com

Tuckasegee Float Trip

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Beautiful Wild Brown caught and released in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park

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