Unicoi Outfitters Fishing Report - 6/12/26
The heat and humidity are hammering our area and making things a lot tougher on both fish and fishers. At least we see some cooler temperatures forecast for next week. Right now these hot days and skimpy rainfall totals have trout stream temps skyrocketing. Hit higher elevations before lunch for stockers and little wild fish, or park yourselves below Blue Ridge or Buford dams for cooler and happier trout.
Bass and bream like this warmer water and are still cooperating, while stripers are evacuating to cooler waters deep in reservoirs or way up the rivers. It’s a good time for some river floats!
Several folks took long road or plane trips to distant locales and shared some great fish stories and pics with us.
Locally, tomorrow is a free fishing day in GA and some kids fishing events are on the DNR calendar.
Catch all the angling intel and event list in our full report, here:
https://www.unicoioutfitters.com/fishing-reports
(Link in bio)
Stop in either UO store for supplies and advice. Don’t leave home without sunscreen, bug dope, and a packable poncho for those badly needed, sudden summer downpours. Stop in either shop for breaking intel.
Unicoi Outfitters: Friendly. Local. Experts.
www.unicoioutfitters.com
Sautee: 706-878-3083. Open 8-5 daily. (2454 GA Hwy 17, Sautee-Nacoochee.)
Clarkesville: 706-754-0203. Open 8-5 from Monday thru Saturday.
Wes’ Hot Fly List:
(Wes said last week’s list is still a good bet this week)
Dries: yellow stimulator, purple haze, yellow humpy, micro chubby, water walker, tan elk hair caddis.
Nymphs & Wets:
Squirmies, Mops, and buggers for stockers. Soft hackles, zebra midge , micro girdle bug, frenchie, duracell, jig CDC pheasant tail.
Mountain streams: Pheasant tail, prince nymph, small Frenchie, sunken ant, and soft hackle partridge
Streamers:
Sparkle minnow, jig mini bugger, bank robber sculpin.
Reservoir Bass & Stripers:
Cowen’s somethin else, low fat minnow, game changer, Clouser.
River bass:
Topwater: Boogle popper, stealth bombers
Streamers: Thrasher, leggy boi, feather changer, black woolly bugger, clouser minnow.
Bottom bouncing flies: crittermite, crawfish jambalaya, jig bugger.
Bream:
Boogle bugs, Bumble butt, prince nymph, bream reaper.
Carp:
Carp it bomb, hybrid worm, ball peen craw.
Headwaters:
Less than a half-inch of rain last week hardly dented our drought flows, so headwaters remain very low and clear. Now, with these hot days and nights, they’re also heating up. Bummer. Their slow, thin streamflows catch much more heated air and sunshine than high flows, so mountain trout waters are baking. Get out early and hike high, under thick tree canopy, for the coolest water and happiest wild fish. Little yellow or black bugs will get you plenty of looks and eats, assuming you’re stealthy.
UO guide Sydney: “I had a “wild trout” trip earlier this week. We did well with a dry dropper rig. Early in the day the fish hit our dries (409 yeagers and micro chubbies). Then we got caught in some rain and fish stopped coming up, but they hit our droppers (Montana prince, small soft hackles, and small pheasant tails without a bead. One chunky stocker was mixed in with the little wild bows.”
UO buddy RSquared: “Wednesday, I was able to take the day off from my chores in AA, (Almost Alabama) & head northeast to one of my favorite blueline steams. Several recently fallen hemlocks and increased riparian growth made it good for the fish, but tough on this old flyrodder. I had to work hard for a handful of southern specks . Yellow Elk Hair Caddis & yellow hoppers were the two hot dry flies for me.”
UO buddy Weston texted us today and said: “Thanks for the tips on the Smokies streams. I hit some high elevation headwaters and ended up with a slam this morning via a dry/dropper rig.”
Stockers:
The GA program is still pumping out a lot of fish. I expect catch rates to soon dive in lower elevations (ex: Panther, Middle Broad) while still staying strong at higher elevations with colder water, especially before lunch. Go early! Check out the newest stocking list here and sign up to get your own copy each Friday afternoon.
Private Waters:
Done for the season.
Tailwaters:
Due to the discharge of cold winter water, they’re now a best bet for Georgia trouters. UO buddy Ryan: “Last night (11th) I hit the Hooch tailwater right as a weird 2-hour midday release was receding. When I first started, the glare from the sunset made seeing my sighter extremely difficult, and by the time I felt around 6-8 takes, the fish were already gone. Luckily the action picked up and visibility improved once the sun dropped further behind the trees. I landed 16 in ~2.5 hours, breaking off a few fish and missing probably another 10-15 takes that were just too quick. It was about a 50/50 mix of browns and stocked bows. I was tight lining with 6.5x tippet and sz 20 hares ear & PT jig nymphs. I went to pick my snagged fly off a submerged log and was surprised at the number of midge larvae hopped on my finger. No wonder why small dark nymphs and zebra midges work so well on these wild Tailwater browns.
Once I caught a rainbow, I put a pink egg on and proceeded to catch a limit’s worth of rainbows in short order before sunset. The action was worth me walking out in the dark!”
Warm Rivers:
No recent reports, but they should be a best bet for the weekend. Lack of storms have most rivers clearing and flows dropping, which will concentrate bass and bream in their summer refuges. I crossed the Hooch today both at Highway 115 and Duncan Bridge. Both sites had water clear enough to fish, so load up your yaks and canoes for some good weekend floats. Take a light rod with a bream popper, too, in case those river bass are moody.
Ponds:
Still going strong. Just aim for shadows at dawn and dusk and heavy shoreline shade during the day.
UO guide Sydney: “After some morning trout fishing today (12th), I hit Unicoi Lake for some bream. My hot bug today was a small jointed streamer that we have in the shop, the “ micro peanut envy “
Lakes:
Henry Cowen reports that Lanier’s summer, topwater spotted bass bite is heating up: “Here’s some fodder for your weekly report. Topwater on both lite tackle and fly!”
Afar:
UO buddy JS went on a bucket list trip to Idaho with his brother last week and had a blast with his first cutthroats ever. Where? I don’t believe he said. He did say: “This place is awesome for fishing. We have caught plenty of small fish but we have netted some really nice fish, too. Enjoy my pics from Notellum Creek.”
UO buddy Bluejay is working in Yellowstone this summer. On Wednesday he texted a few pics and said: “Still winter here!”
Athens Jay took a road trip back to his home waters. His first report: “Urban fly fishing on a road trip to New Orleans. Hit a ditch during my ride for this Rio grande cichlid that took a yellow foam Caddis.”
His second report: “Paddleboard fly fishing on a breezy day in the Louisiana marsh. My first saltwater trip on the paddleboard! There are some serious kayak anglers down here and I’m one of them, but I wanted to give the board a tryout.”
Good ole Hank the Yank checked in: “Bahama fodder. I hosted a trip to Grand Bahama Island. Fun was had, feeesh were caught. I’ll plan another one for 2027, so stay tuned if any of y’all are interested in going.”
UO buddy Nanette: “My brother and SIL are currently in Mexico (Pacific side). George caught this hefty, 70lb roosterfish yesterday on a guided trip. It took him 25 minutes to boat it. “
Events:
Georgia’s 2nd free fishing day is tomorrow. Details:
GADNR and the USFS often host kids fishing events at this time of See the list of kids fishing events here:
Note tomorrow’s event on the Tallulah River. Bring the kids!
That’s the latest news from a hot, humid north Georgia. Get out there early for trout or for kids fishing events. Avoid the sun and go early or late for pond and river bass in the shallows. Or get on a plane to more hospitable environs for your bucket list trip! Stop in either UO store if we can help you out.
Unicoi Outfitters: Friendly. Local. Experts.
www.unicoioutfitters.com