Fly Fishing Virginia

Virginia Trout Fishing

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The best trout fishing in Virginia begins in the small streams of Appalachia. The smaller tributary streams of the Clinch River, Smith River, and Holston River are home to both stocked and wild trout. While the stocked trout are a great way for beginning to introduce themselves to fly fishing, the wild brown, brook, and rainbow trout offer anglers a larger challenge. These wild trout can often be selective when it comes to feeding during periods of the year, and are significantly more spooky than their stocked counterparts. There is no better place to find these wild trout than within the boundaries of Shenandoah National Park. The small feeder streams of the Potomac, Rappahannock, Roanoke, and James Rivers all host populations of beautiful native brook trout within the park. 

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Shenandoah National Park Trout Fishing

Of the headwater streams that begin within Shenandoah National Park, these streams provide some of the best trout fishing opportunities for visiting anglers. The Robinson River, Big Run, and Hog Camp Branch all possess healthy populations of wild brook trout. Both of these scenic trout streams have relatively easy access from the paralleling trails that run much of their lengths withing the park. Ivy Creek, Hawksbill Creek, Naked Creek, as well as the upper stretches of the Conway, Hughes, and South River are also deserving of honorable mentions within the park.  ​

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Radipan River Fly Fishing

Beginning in Shenandoah National Park, this trout stream extends out of the park to the Radipan WMA. The lower stretches of the river are easily accessible to anglers and therefore see more traffic than the upper stretches. Withing the National Park, eager anglers can put in the extra effort to hike to the more remote stretches of the river to find more seclusion. The maze of rhododendrons and understory brush can make navigating the river difficult in places. Anglers will be rewarded with some of the best wild trout fly fishing in the state though. ​

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Crooked Creek Fly Fishing

Crooked Creek is a popular trout stream for both locals and visitors. From April through September, the creek is stocked regularly with trout within the WMA. For beginners to trout or fly fishing, Crooked creek is and excellent place for beginners to visit. The upper reaches of Crooked Creek is also known to hold populations of wild brook trout. Anglers looking to land the Appalachian Slam (brook, rainbow, and brown trout) can put themselves in an excellent position to do so here. ​

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Big Tumbling Creek Fly Fishing

Much like Crooked Creek, Big Tumbling Creek is home to another Fee Fishing Area. The near 7 mile stretch around the town of Saltville is stocked in the same April through September window. This is another excellent area for beginners of the sport to visit. A special kids only section is also available just below the dam. Bright, flashy fly patterns work best in Big Tumbling Creek. Junk flies such as eggs, mop jigs, and squirmy worms will garner the most attention from stocked trout. ​

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South River Fly Fishing

The South River near the town of Waynesboro is one of the largest tributaries of the Shenandoah River and offers 3 different opportunities for fly anglers. Upstream of town, the fly fishing only section of river is home to stocked and wild brown trout and rainbow trout. Two seperate stretches within town offer stocked trout opportunities. For anglers looking to keep a trout or two, Ridgeview Park is a good place to visit. A two mile stretch beginning around Constitution Park and extending downstream is catch and release only. Here trout become more familiar with the many insect hatches throughout the year. The spring and summer months bring hatches of numerous mayfly species including sulphurs, BWOs, Quills, and Tricos. Having a few caddis patterns on hand around May and October is usually helpful as well. Downstream the waters of the South River warm. Here Smallmouth bass and a variety of other sunfish species can be found.

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Whitetop Laurel Creek Fly Fishing

Whitetop Laurel Creek offers a diversity of trout fishing opportunities near the town of Damascus. In its high elevation stretches the incredibly scenic stream is paralleled by the Appalachian Trail and Virginia Creeper Trail. Fishing this section is more like a backcountry adventure in Appalachia. Anglers can find wild trout and some of the best wild brook trout fishing in the state. Downstream, below the town of Konnarock, a special regulation section flows just over 5 miles through a steeper canyon. Here anglers are required to use artificial lures only, and must release all trout under 12" in size. This section can be rugged to navigate but quite productive for determined anglers looking to venture out to find rainbow and brown trout. The lower elevation stretches of Whitetop Laurel Creek are stocked seasonally. Additional stretches of the creek are also managed under special regulations. You can learn more about these sections and other nearby trout streams in our article on Fly Fishing Damascus. 

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Mossy Creek Fly Fishing

Mossy Creek is likely the most unique trout stream in Virginia. The creek is frequently visited destination by local anglers looking to try their hand at skittish and finicky brown trout. While Mossy Creek isn't the best place for beginning fly anglers to visit, the rewards for persevering on the stream will likely be a good sized brown trout. The stream itself sets up quite similarly to the Letort trout stream of Pennsylvania. Figuring out Mossy Creek can be difficult but manageable for anglers looking to spend the time and go home empty handed on occasion.

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Holston River Fly Fishing

The North and South Fork of the Holston begin in the western portion of Virginia. Both the freestone runs in Virginia as well as the fly fishing on the Holston River Tailwaters in Tennessee is excellent. Anglers can find both stocked and wild trout populations of trout throughout the headwaters. A variety of hatches occur throughout the year, and anglers will have to utilize a variety of flies to be productive on the North and South Holston. We dive into these details further in our articles on Fly Fishing the Holston River in Virginia. 

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Smith River Fly Fishing

The Smith River is likely the best trout stream in Virginia. The tailwater fishery begins below The Philpott Dam on Smith Lake. Anglers can find both Rainbow trout and Brown Trout on the river. The success of this fishery is due to the special regulations that revolve around the brown trout populations for the first 30 mile stretch of the tailwater. These slot regulations require anglers to release all brown trout between 10 and 24 inches. These revelations have allowed for a healthy population of wild brown trout to establish themselves in the river. Individuals in the 16-20 inch range are not uncommon on the tailwater. We dive further into this fishery, the seasonal insect hatches, best flies, and popular fishing methods in this article on Fly Fishing the Smith River. ​

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Jackson River Fly Fishing

The Jackson River tailwater below the Gathright Dam holds excellent populations of wild trout. Both rainbow trout and brown trout have been placed under strict regulations to ensure a healthy population with a good number of individuals reaching sizes greater than 20". Fly anglers can target these wild trout on everything from nymphs to big streamers. We take a deeper dive into the best flies, river access, and insect hatches in our article on Fly Fishing the Jackson River. 

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Clinch River Fly Fishing

The Clinch River begins in southwest Virginia and provides some of the best coolwater fisheries in the state. Though it's tailwaters are known for trout in neighboring Tennessee, trout are relegated to the Clinch's higher elevation tributaries. Smallmouth bass are the main attractor for visitors to the Clinch. While rock bass and other sunfish are also popular, the river's population of Musky get a fair amount of attention from trophy hunters willing to donate their time for a glimpse of these giant predators.  ​

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Fly Fishing Virginia Striped Bass 

For fly anglers along the Virginia coast, Striped bass runs occur in the spring months each year. These fish are aggressive, hard fighting, and a worthy challenge on the fly. The larger coastal rivers such as the James River and Rappahannock host some of the largest runs annually. In the winter months, Striped bass will congregate in the mouths of these rivers, and within the Chesapeake Bay to feed up on eels, menhaden, herring, and whatever else they can get their mouths around. Migrations begin cranking up around April as the fish enter the rivers for their spawning push. Inland stripers that were introduced to the larger reserviors of the state will begin their runs upriver at these times as well. This is when anglers can capitalize on targeting these voracious predators. Larger streamers in bright colors are excellent when searching for these fish. Timing is of the utmost important though as striped bass will constantly be moving once the reach the rivers. 

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Fly Fishing Virginia American Shad 

The American Shad run in Virginia is one of the most unique fly fishing opportunities in all of the US. Beginning as early as mid March, large schools of American Shad will enter the Rappahannock, Appomattox, and James rivers in eastern Virginia. The bite truly heats up in April. Old Mill Park, in the Fredericksburg is a great place for anglers to visit and not be cramped by other anglers this time of year. Brightly colored or flashy streamers in small sizes are best for garnering the shad's attention. They will need to be densely weighted or fished on a sinking line to get down in the water column where the fish live. Be sure to cover plenty of water to improve your odds of running into the transient shad. The bite will wane by the early days of May, so be sure to take full advantage of the month long window. ​

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The Best Flies for Fly Fishing Virginia

Whether you are traveling to Virginia or a local trying to spend a morning on the water, make sure you don't leave these flies at home.

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Junk Flies- Mops, Eggs, Worms will always produce on streams with stocked trout around, particularly within several days after being stocked. 

Midges- no matter where you are fishing in Virginia, a zebra midge, griffiths gnat, or matts midge will always be on the menu. You cant go wrong with anything smaller than size 20 in these imitations. The key is to find a size range that balances takes with the best hook up ratio.

Sulfurs- adams, or sparkle dun patterns in the size 16-20 range are the best imitations during spring hatches. Colors anywhere on the white, to manila, to yellow spectrum are best.

Caddis- Spring and fall bring the major caddis hatches to the southeast. These are best found on the high elevation free stone streams, but also show up on occasion in the tailwaters. Elk hair caddis or x-caddis in the 14-20 size range are best.

BWOs- Blue Wing Olives will hatch in early and late winter on the headwater streams and a few of the tailwaters. Adams or other small mayfly patterns in the size 18-24 range work best.  

Scuds and Sowbugs- These can be your bread and butter on the tailwaters. Patterns in the size 14-18 range are best. Weighting these patterns down can be key to getting more bites throughout the day.

Various Dry Flies- larger dry fly patterns such as a stimulator or oversized caddis are great patterns on the headwater streams in Shenandoah National Park and the western part of the state. These allow anglers to best see their flies and stay on top of the water longer. Trout here are less picky about what they eat and far more opportunistic when it comes to their meals.

Various Nymphs- The tried and true nymph patterns such as a hares ear, pheasant tail, perdigon, and caddis pupa will always be useful for anglers looking to pick off fish feeding lower in the water column. Sizes 14-18 are best but don't be afraid to get creative, especially around stockers.

Terrestrials- Beetles, ants, and hopper patterns have their place in the box, but really only in the warmer months of the year. 

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