Hunter Morris is a renaissance kind of guy with a background in business, fly fishing and music. We were lucky enough to spend the day with him recently talking about all three while floating and fishing the Toccoa River.
In setting up our adventure into North Georgia, we contacted Unicoi Outfitters in Helen. Jimmy Harris, co-owner of Unicoi Outfitters, befriended us and really helped us set things up for a great 4 days in the area. While we were in the area, Jimmy recommended we come out to an education event being held at Smithgall Woods State Park and on Dukes Creek. When we arrived, we walked in on Ron Thomas, a guide for Unicoi Outfitters and creator of Tie 1 On, a series of fly tying classes and videos. Ron was talking about fly tying and had the audience engaged and ready to start tying. These two were perfect for our first authentic ramble.
We spent a great half day with Chuck Head of Unicoi Outfitters fishing the Upper Chattahoochee River. This portion of the Hooch (as its know to the locals) is much different than the tailwater that runs out of Lake Lanier near Atlanta. Chuck was able to put us on fish using both nymphs and streamers. Watching these big, beautiful fish chase streamers was truly a highlight. Their aggressive pursuit of the streamers is simply amazing to watch. Almost as much fun as catching them…. almost.
The Chattahoochee is truly an “urban” fishery. There are over 7 million people living in the greater Atlanta area, driving over the river to and from work… yet there are 48 miles of trout water and over 11,000 linear acres of protected land along the river. If you are EVER in Atlanta, get away from Hartsfield International Airport and come see Chris and the team at River Through Atlanta. Hope you enjoy this short video highlighting the sights and sounds of the river. Fish on!
River Through Atlanta owner and lead guide Chris Scalley took us on an awesome all day float trip down the Chattahoochee River. We had a blast and caught some beautiful rainbows and brownies. This is an amazing fishery and having Chris guide us along the way made it extra special. He’s a native and has been fishing the river for decades.
In part 2 of his interview, Jimbo discusses fishing the Guadalupe. What to bring…. how to fish…. fly sizes that work best… what kinds of flies. Yes…. this is the part I know you’ll want to watch and take notes on. Jimbo gets into details to help make your trip more productive. Enjoy!!!
In part 1 of his interview, Jimbo Roberts, Head of Fisheries for the Guadalupe River Trout Unlimited (GRTU) chapter discusses a bit of his fishing background, but focuses on the fishery itself and how GRTU got involved. Amazingly, it started with beer!
We decided to test our our ability to capture quality video and interviews along the way a while back on the Guadalupe. Our fishing buddies who really are two “characters”, James Kelley and Dan McCormack, came down to fish. There will be much more on them in a later post.
We hooked up with Alvin Dedeaux and JT Van Zandt of All Water Guides and had an incredible day on the river fishing. All of the video from the Guadalupe Ramble video as well as this video was shot by Keith Mitchell (Digital Aspirations).
At each spot we fish, we hope to capture interviews with local guides…. Hence, Guide Talk! In this case, Alvin and JT were game to share some of their adventures, best stories and most importantly to all you fly fishers out there…. tips on catching fish on the Guadalupe River. In addition to being awesome guides, they are truly “characters”. Their interview was priceless!
Please share your thoughts on what kinds of questions you’d like us to be asking the guides we float/wade with along the way. We want to make sure we capture the info that is helpful to fly fishers coming to the river for the first time.
The Guadalupe is our “home” river. It runs from the Texas hill country to the Gulf of Mexico. While there are several dams along the river, the one closest to our home base is Canyon Lake Dam. Below the dam, the river flows along limestone cliffs in an area that is heavily used for recreation. In the summer months, you’ll find a flotilla of tubers going down the river enjoying the cool, clear water. When winter comes, the river becomes home to the southernmost trout stream in the US. The river is stocked with trout in the winter months by both the Texas Parks and Wildlife department and the Guadalupe River Trout Unlimited chapter.
Barb and I fish the “Guad” whenever we can from late fall through spring and plan to setup our RV right on the river when we aren’t traveling the country to the other 99 trout streams in the Top 100 (according to Trout Unlimited). I had the distinct pleasure of floating the river with some dear friends and a couple of great guides from All Water Guides, Alvin Dedeaux and JT Van Zandt. More on them in another post coming soon. For now, enjoy this short video highlighting the beauty of this river.
To gain a full understanding of just what Barb and I are embarking on, you have to go back to March 16th of 2013. While Barb was visiting family in Indiana, I attended an all day (and night) SXSW tribute to Levon Helm at Auditorium Shores in Austin, TX. Levon, who passed on April 19, 2012, was the drummer and regular lead vocalist for The Band. Those of my generation know their songs… Chest Fever, The Weight, Up on Cripple Creek, The Last Waltz and more. Many artists performed that day in honor of Levon but at the end of the night, it was the Levon Helm Midnight Ramble Band that played, along with some very special guests including Carolyn Wonderland, JJ Grey, Steve Earle, Ivan Neville, The Mastersons and members of Spirit Family Reunion. There was something very special in the air that night (wink wink) and an idea was hatched.