Thus far in 2025, we have been thrilled to see solid numbers and healthy classes of smallmouth bass in the wake of Hurricane Helene. The New River and its inhabitants are incredibly resilient! With another excellent walleye run in the rearview mirror, we are now looking ahead to April and turning our focus to catching large, pre-spawn smallies. Add an occasional lake-run striper to the mix and April can offer some of the best all-around fishing opportunities of the year!
Fishing Reports
New River: Early spring temperatures have been above average in the New River Valley, and that has the smallmouth chewing! The river is currently running about at its seasonal medium, and the fish are moving into their usual pre-spawn locales. This is a great time to target trophy fish with Gamechanger style flies. To throw these large streamers and successfully land big smallies requires beefy rods (7-8 wt.) with intermediate lines and stout leaders (0-1x). Please be careful handling these heavy females and return them to the water as quickly as possible so that they can continue to populate the river. Note that the pre-spawn bite can continue well into May, depending on water temperatures and spawning conditions. Prime dates are going fast!
Smith River: The Smith River in Bassett has been bouncing from high water to low water the past few weeks. High flows during February and early March made wading difficult. Now, we are seeing the direct opposite with flows only in the 75cfs range. This has made floating difficult, while wade fishing has been excellent. Wading in the stocked sections through town has been effective with small mayfly and caddis patterns along with the usual attractor nymphs. The word from the Army Corps of Engineers is this flow will continue for the next few weeks. Hopefully a normal rain pattern will kick off our spring fishing and reduce the high pollen count. Over the next month or so, we will see small caddis (18-20), march browns (14-16), blue wing olives (18-22), and midges (18-24). The occasional sulphur will mix in before the long-awaited buffet of food it provides for trout starts up in earnest. If we get a period of high water with stable temperatures, streamers will move some bigger fish. Let’s get out there!
South Fork of the Holston River (in Virginia): The South Fork of the Holston is running low and clear at around 60 CFS at the Riverside gauge. As water temps creep higher with sunny afternoons, expect wild rainbows to get more aggressive and start looking up. Prospecting with a yellow sally or small stimulator/dropper combo can prove effective.
Trophy Trout Stream: Our private water is loaded with big rainbow trout. Streamers such as wooly buggers are still the fly of choice, but caddis will be in play on top as those hatches start to become more prevalent. Don’t forget, if you have a friend who you’ve been wanting to introduce to fly fishing, we have the perfect place to take them for a lesson!
Now is an awesome time of year to fish in Southwest Virginia. We hope to see here real you soon!
All the Best, Mike
