There are many grate rivers and streams here in the south, and I plane to highlight many of them in the future. The Clinch River is just one of those rivers. If you want a stream that produces challenging, but exciting fishing year round, then the Clinch is river you've been looking for.
The Clinch River is a beautiful river that head waters in southwest Virginia, just to the east of Tazewell,Virginia. The Clinch winds its way through the mountains of Virginia and Tennessee, before emptying into the Tennessee River near Kingston, Tennessee. The river covers three hundred miles and is impounded once north of Clinton, Tennessee.
The impoundment at Clinton, is called Norris lake. The dam was completed in 1936. The lake now covers 30,000 Acers, that is when TVA isn't generating power, and has 800 miles of shore line. Norris lake has it's share of game fish including bass, walleye, catfish, and more. If your interested you maybe even able to hunt down a golden ghost or two.
Above the Lake you can find a good selection of fish to chase as well. According to the web site The Nature Conservancy in Tennessee there are 17 rare fish species that call the Clinch River home. Of course, most of them are not game fish. Also it is the home of one of my favorite warm water prey, Smallmouth bass. As well, in the fall the walleye begin to run up the river out of the lake. And redeye, I am told, also inhabit these waters. And further to the north, near Tazewell, Virginia, trout come back into the picture. One web site for the State of Virginia lists brook trout as one of the natives of the Clinch.
I'm not so sure of the claim that there are brookies in the head waters of the Clinch. I grew up within twenty minuets of the Clinch river. I rode a school bus three times a week for two years by the south fork of the Clinch river, I never imagined that there would have been brookies living in those waters. This is not to say their not there but its not a stream on the top of my "To Fish" list.
If you have a "To Fish" list, add the twenty or so mile section below Norris Dam to it. This section of water is touted by many as one of the best tailwaters in Tennessee. A fourteen to sixteen inch trout is not uncommon on the Clinch, but be ready, for there are many much larger fish that lurk in these waters. For example, a state record brown was pulled from these waters weighing in at 28 lbs.
Although a State record fish won't be nipping at your fly every time you make a cast, there are still some real hogs in there. The guys over at the Creel were telling me that some of their customers only hunt for large browns on the Clinch. These guys will spend most of their day with large streamers, an intermediate sinking line, and whole lot of casting and stripping. The best way to do this is out of a drift boat and when generation is at two or more. Currently, that is a daily thing due to all the A/C units running.
The thought of the A/C brings up another subject, wading. before I moved to Tennessee I had never been around a tailwater like the Clinch. The only one I had fish was in West Virginia on the New River. You could spend all day, bear legged, on this river in the middle of August with out any problem. The Clinch is an other story. The water stays in the mid fifty's year round which makes for good fishing, but unbearable wading without waders. I've done it but I don't suggest it.
If your going to wade please respect the water. I've heard stories of folks getting stranded on islands because they didn't check out the water release schedule. I have also heard stories of folks in float tubes getting dangerously close to the wier dam, which is about a mile below the main dam, during high generation.
It's not worth getting killed over! If you don't have access to a boat with a motor, stay out of the weir pool during generation. There are plenty of options for those without boats. when generation starts just pack up and head down stream. A public access area call the Peach Orchard is only about a fifteen to twenty minute drive and can give you another couple of hours of fishing. Drive to the highway 61 bridge, park at the jail house, and you could fish for another five or six hours before the water reaches you. If you do park at the jail house, ask first and they will tell you where to park and where to walk. If you get to close to the jail house you may set off a alarm that would ruin your day. I have parked there my self and they are very helpful.
When it comes to the fishing and rigging aspect of it, unless you are streamer fishing, small and light is the name of the game. The flies you will be throwing will be in the 18-20 range, and you will want an eleven to twelve foot, 6x-7x leader. As far as the rod goes, a nine foot five weight with WF line should be sufficient. Bead Head Pheasant Tail and midge patterns are your best bet, but you might want to also bring along some size 16 scuds that are as natural as possible. Also, from April to June sulfurs come off and are also small in size.
If you are coming from out of town there are many places to stay in the area. Clinton has several hotels and Knoxville is only about a thirty minute drive from the Clinch. There are also a number of rental cabins and lodges in the area that boast of river front property, so you may want to do some checking around. One plus to staying in Knoxville is if the Clinch is a bust it's only an hour drive or so to another tailwater or the Great Smokie Mountains.
The Clinch is not an easy fish but it can be very rewarding. Even some of the days when I didn't catch fish, I was able to learn something. I believe you'll enjoy fishing the Clinch I know I do.
Matthew
Water Release Schedule
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2 comments:
I've fished the Clinch quite a bit over the years on my spring trips to Tennessee. In fact, when I first started making the trip out from my Northern California home in the late 90s, I came specifically to fish the Clinch's monster Sulphur hatch.
Sadly, I only caught the tail end of the glory years, and in recent years, I've been too preoccupied with the Smokies and one or two of the other tailwaters to spend much time on the Clinch.
In fact, the last trip was two years ago when the Sulphur hatch sputtered, and Ian Rutter convinced me to throw a streamer the size of a medium-sized bird.
To this day, Ian won't let me forget the monster brown trout I missed on the streamer. Something about pearls before swine, but in any case, I can personally attest to the fact that the rive holds some seriously big trout.
Honestly, I have never tried the large streamer approach but every one tells me it is THE WAY to fish the Clinch. And sadly, yes, the Sulphur hatch is not what I am told it use to be. It is very unpredictable and very light. As a matter of fact I have never fished a dry fly on the Clinch, though I have thought about fishing a midge pattern in the weir pool from time to time.
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