Places to Go: Lake James State Park

Wherever you are, do your best to take time to see what kind of outdoor beauty is around you.  It can be as simple as a bee on a flower, bird on a feeder, or a hike in your local park.  There's plenty of places to visit that can be hidden from plain sight, you just have to look for them.

However, this is not one of those "hidden" places.  This is an NC state park!  I hadn't been to this park before, and I had the opportunity to visit Lake James State Park for a short time while in the mountains.  I'm thankful for it, as I have a good feel for where I'd like to spend more time in the park when I go back to visit for a more extended time.  

-The park already has miles of hiking trails off the two main accesses of the park.  If you like mountain biking, they've got you covered too!  Two shorter loops and two longer ones so you have choices depending on your time and ability.  There's also planning of rental cabins, RV and group camping, more trails, and when I visited, looked like a state-of-the-art new visitors center under way as well.

-Plenty of camping at the park as well, however, some of those sites are access by boat only, which can be kinda cool, gives you a sense of seclusion with no roads being right behind your tent.  

-Speaking of boats, make sure to bring your boat, kayak, or canoe.  Oh and fishing gear.  Oh and swimsuit...in the summer anyway.  Not right now, it was 32 degrees and windy...like 20-30mph gust windy.  So yeah.  BUT, once it's warm, bring that boat down!  There's plenty of fishing to be had here, with many of the popular game species existing in the lake.

If that doesn't help you decide whether you should visit the park, then well maybe I can convince you by showing you some pictures.  As soon as you drive in, you see an overlook to the Linville Gorge.

Then you get to the lake and get these views:

How's that for you?  It's quite the scenery.  It's stuff like this that make you want to go back and visit again.  To see what else the park has to offer.  To hike the trails, fish the water, camp the woods.  If you're up in the NC mountains, give Lake James a try.  

Montana: Part 1

It's nearing dusk as the wind starts to whip the surface of the water.  I had to move to a protected area to have a hope of casting any distance, or at least have the wind help my cast versus push against it.  My little ultralight pole with a 6 pound mono wasn't quite the gear you'd imagine for this fishing, but it'd have to do.  My weedless spoon out in the water, all I could do is wait for a bite.  And I got one.

Around early to mid June of 2018, my parents and I planned a special trip for me for a location of my choice.  My choice of location: Montana.  Montana has been on my bucket list for a while, mostly for an elk hunt I want to do in the future.  But Montana also has some great scenery and fishing, so that also added to why I wished to come up.  I bought my license, got my gear ready and packed, and a day after my summer college semester ended, we headed out.

We stayed at a house overlooking Wade Lake in south-western Montana near the (apparently world famous, I would find out) Madison River.  I didn't know at the time, but it's famed for it's trout and for it's "50 Mile Riffle".  A river or stream is normally broken up into natural riffles, runs, and pools caused by the flow of the water.  Riffle is fast, shallow water.  Run is a steady flow of deeper water.  And a pool is slow moving water deeper than the run.  However, the Madison has a riffle that is nearly 50 miles long.  Unless I am wrong, a riffle that long is almost unheard of.  No matter, it was fun to fish.  I didn't have any luck there on the chances I had, but that's ok, I have a feeling I'll be back someday.  I did see a really nice trout, but that's not quite the same as catching it!

The Madison River, this is part of the 50 Mile Riffle

Wade Lake was an interesting one.  I fished it with my spinning rod versus my fly rod.  I did manage to catch a nice rainbow there, but during the day a lot of the shoreline was crowded, as it is a good kayaking/paddling lake, and has a campsite.  Which does make it a good weekend vacation spot I'd say.

Wade Lake Rainbow

While down in southern Montana, we visited Grand Teton National Park and Yellowstone National Park.  The views in Grand Teton were amazing, and I would definitely go back there.  Yellowstone, was also a great destination, though I think it felt different compared to the other national parks I've been to since the traffic and commercialization of the park have affected it in some ways.  A great place to visit, yes, but if you ask me, I'm probably going to Grand Teton and Glacier National Park(s) before Yellowstone again.  But, you won't be disappointed with any of them.

View of Grand Teton is the far left peak

Next up, Glacier National Park!

Fishing Shallow Rivers

Recently I've started fishing the local Haw River at different spots and the adjoining creeks, such as the Great Alamance Creek.  And when I went looking for tips on shallow water fishing, and even specifically the Haw, I came up with little.  So I've been exploring and fishing and experimenting different spots along the river, trying to learn about this local resource. While fishing in rivers is still new to me and I have plenty of room to perfect my performance, here are some of the things I have noticed that may come in handy for those who fish the Haw.  And it's likely that some of the things here apply to other small/shallow water bodies as well.

Fish the pools, not the main current
While trout may enjoy the main current of a stream or river, many fish simply do not.  Target calmer areas of the water made by rocks or sandbars.  Those calm pools and eddy's will generally house more fish.  This is especially true when the faster moving water, as is the case with the Haw, is particularly shallow and does not allow bigger fish to swim in those areas.

Try smaller lures
When fishing the shallower water, a surface lure can do the trick.  I like to use a Heddon Teeny Torpedo and I catch decent brim.  The smaller fish are especially fun on light tackle.
Another lure I like to use is a minnow with a spinner blade, such as Mepps Comet.  This will especially attract the smaller fish, such as brim or pumpkinseed.
One thing I would tell you?  Give fly fishing a try on smaller rivers, it's a blast.

Different spots for different fish
May sound a little obvious but hear me out.  Depending on what you want to catch, how much you want to catch, or in some cases WHO you bring with you (such as little ones) you need to try different spots to suit your desires or audience.  Smaller pools generally house the brim, which are fun for fishing newcomers and kids especially.  Those fish are fun, don't discount them.  AND, it provides an experience different than a cliche lake or pond to take new fisherman to (not saying in any way lakes or ponds is bad, they're a blast, it's just different than the norm).
If there are islands in the river, try the downstream side where there is generally a much bigger area of calm water.  That is where you will find fish such as bass or catfish.
If there is a slower moving creek (or if the river splits) with features such as big rocks or logs, try in those areas because bass be in the slower moving water and cover.

Caught this Pumpkinseed on a minnow jig