The small feeder brooks high in the Blue Ridge and Alleghany Mountains are now producing excellent hatches of Gray Fox Mayflies. By using a low cautious approach you can often catch several trout in each pool on a Spirit of Pittsford Mills size 14. Early in the mornings before the hatch is heavy a good tactic is to fish a Mr. Rapidan Brown Soft Hackle size 14 ona 3 foot 6X dropper below the dry.
Stream Conditions: This is a great time to park on the Blue Ridge Parkway, Skyline Drive, and National Forest roads on top of the mountains and hike down the trails to fish the upper sections of the streams. You will get your best water level by coming in from the top/headwater areas of the streams.For more information on these streams and access, check out my book Trout Fishing in the Shenandoah National Park.
Skyline Drive is now open in all sections. This can change frequently if we have storms. To check the status of the Skyline Drive please call 540-999-3500, option 1, option 1 for the latest update before heading to these streams.
Recommended Gear: I am using a 6ft or 7 1/2ft 5X Leader on a 2 to 4 weight fly rod--preferably 8ft or shorter.