Every now and then, there are magical days when all the variables align. It can seem almost too easy. The fish just eat what you’re throwing, and it’s glorious.
Of course, these days happen more often for those who have a fishery dialed in. And for the rest of us who can’t be on the water daily to learn a river, the next best thing is to go with someone who can.
That’s where Capt. Dane Law and Bill Stranahan, of Southeastern Anglers, stepped in during a recent trip on the Clinch River, northwest of Knoxville, Tenn. The Clinch is one of the Southeast’s premier trout fisheries. It is a 13-mile tailwater fed by cold, oxygenated waters of Norris Dam. Tennessee stocks the river with rainbow and brown trout. Bank anglers line up near stocking points to pitch baits for a seven-fish limit.
That’s all well and good, but for anglers in search of more than a fish dinner, the river is great because of all the trout that survive this initial onslaught. There is some natural reproduction in the river, and with a 14- to 20-inch protected length range and an allowance of one keeper fish longer than 20 inches, trout that reach the protected slot are free to grow. And they grow quickly…