UO Fishing Report - 5/29/26
Wow, we asked for the rain and we sure got it: at least four inches in most watersheds. Those storms keep a lot of folks off the water, but sure improved stream conditions for at least a little while.
Stream trouting is good in the headwaters, tailwaters, stocked streams, and for one more week in the NC delayed harvest streams to our north. Just outwalk stormflows by hiking uphill, where smaller waters shed their runoff quicker . Our private waters trips are just about done for the spring.
The first week of June is National Fishing Week and GADNR offers two free fishing days, so introduce a friend to fishing for free!
Speaking of free, come to our First Friday event on June 5th at our Sautee store! Catch all the details in our full report, here:
https://www.unicoioutfitters.com/fishing-reports
(Link in bio)
Good luck as we dry out this week. Stop in either UO store for supplies and advice.
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:
Dries:para-Adams, para- light cahill, tan elk hair caddis , tan and black Micro Chubbies, 409 Yeager yellow, black Para-ant.
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 for blueline wilds.
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, gill scorpion, bream reaper, girdle bug, prince nymph.
Carp:
Carp it bomb, hybrid worm, headstand.
Headwaters:
They’re in darn good shape and little wild fish are still slamming fluffy dries. Bluelines shed stormflows quickly, usually within a few hours. Plus, they rarely get too muddy to fish because of protected national forest lands and few unpaved roads. Fish dry/droppers in high water and single dries as flows drop. Don’t forget a raincoat in case a storm cell sneaks up on you.
Athens Jay hit some local bluelines last night and this morning. He said he lit up the little wild bows on a parachute light cahill.
Delayed Harvest:
Y’all have one more week of it to our north. NC’s DH season lasts til the first Saturday of June. Their hatches usually run 1-2 weeks later than GA streams, so some caddis, cahills, and sallies will still bring fish up on cloudy days and at dusk. Dredger’s dry/dropper recipe from last week’s report should still search really well during the day.
Stockers:
The GA stocking season is still going strong and the rains should help spread fish out. GaDNR’s stocked brookies have been a hit with anglers this week. Check out the newest stocking list here and sign up to get your own copy each Friday afternoon.
The catching has been pretty good for folks who have avoided the muddy stormflow crests and fished the stained waters on the rise and fall. Bait, lure, and fly anglers have all scored in the higher flows .
UO buddy RSquared: “As I predicted, Ga. DNR Fisheries delivered a fresh load of Rainbow Trout to AA (Almost Alabama) on Friday in time for the Memorial Day weekend. However, since then, we have received almost 8” of rain which flooded & muddied our streams, rivers, & lakes in NW Georgia & NE Alabama. This has temporarily diminished our catch rates on all the species of fish that I pursue. It is hard to complain about the rain since our drought stricken state desperately needed the precipitation. On Wednesday, I ventured west to Alabama’s Little River Canyon National Park in hopes that the fast moving Little River would have cleared & drained enough to fish. That was not the case. It was a raging beauty to watch but unsafe for an old man to fish alone. The good news is, our streams & rivers should be at a perfect level as the weather improves next week.”
UO guide Sydney had a fish-filled week last week, with a bunch of personal and professional trips. On the stocker side, she reports:
“Went fishing after work on Monday had some fun with stockers in downtown Helen while it was pouring.
Then our Wednesday “Gilligan Special” trip through Helen, with four new fly fishers, produced some nice fish in the dirty water using pats rubber legs and squirmies.
Finally, Smith Creek was fun yesterday on a dry/dropper rig and also by stripping small streamers.”
Private Waters:
We’re nearing the end of our spring guiding season. Heavy rains and muddy water forced several cancelled trips for us last week, but the trips we were able to take were pretty good. Cooler, stained water had trout more comfortable and wiling to grab our clients’ bugs. Double nymph rigs worked best in high, colored water.
As we dry out next week, it will be back to dry/dropper setups and thinner tippets. At least the predicted cooler weather should help stream temperatures and keep fish active for another week or two. After that, the only private water action will be on properties high in the watersheds and/or on north slopes, where colder water can hang on longer into June and maybe July.
Tailwaters:
No recent reports. Most tailwaters were blown out by the rains and muddy tributary inflows.
Warm Rivers:
Same for our bass rivers: blown out.
I crossed the Hooch this morning on my way to work here in our Clarkesville store. It was clear enough to fish this weekend. Whether it stays clear enough will depend on where tonight’s storms fall. The key is to watch all USGS river gauges upstream from your planned float reach. If you don’t see a flow spike, chances are that you’ll avoid a muddy slug. We will still eyeball the river at a bridge crossing before heading further to put-ins.
Ponds:
Small lakes are still holding up well. Catch the topwater action before the summer heat sends the bigger bass and bream to cooler depths. UO guide Alex’s older son, Forrester, caught this nice largemouth on a shallow superfluke in a local pond.
Lakes: no recent reports, as monsoon rains and lightning bolts kept sane anglers off the water for most of the week.
Afar:
UO guide Sydney: “I managed some vacation time with family in Florida last week. Due to the storms, fishing conditions were tough with the wind and rough water. But we managed sone inshore action with trout and reds.”
UO buddy and GA Women Fly Fishers leader Megan reports: “Lindsay Podrid, Carolyn Dukes, Jacqui Geraci, Gina Christensen, and Megan Nellen - 3 days fishing in Belize with weather conditions not ideal or typical of late May, but some excellent shots at the big three, thanks to the experienced guides out of El Pescador on Ambergris Caye. We had a lot of fun! Georgia ladies who like fly fishing or want to learn how ought to join our club!”
Events:
Don’t forget our “First Friday” gatherings at the Sautee shop! Our first one is next Friday. Details:
Speaking of free, introduce a friend to fishing on one of Georgia’s free fishing days. Details:
That’s the latest news as we welcome June. At least we have a drier, cooler week to enjoy, so take advantage of the great opportunities at hand. Stop in our Sautee store for your trout bugs and our Clarkesville store for an awesome selection of bass lures. We’ll see y’all soon, maybe even next Friday night!
Unicoi Outfitters: Friendly. Local. Experts.
www.unicoioutfitters.com