During the late Summer and early Fall, many freestone trout streams become
very low due to the lack of rainfall. In these cases, it the air temperatures become
very hot, trout streams can get in bad condition and fishing can become very
tough and stressful on the trout when you are successful.

As always, the streams to be affected the most in terms of water level are the
small, headwater streams. There’s little water left in them in severe cases.
Although i have no real scientific justification for saying this, I do believe the
eastern native brook trout are more capable of surviving these tough
environmental conditions than the other non-native species of trout. They hide
from their predators and manage to survive even when the water is extremely low.

If the water temperature is not too warm and catching trout isn’t going to place
too much stress on the trout, you can be sneaky and make good presentations
you can still catch plenty of fish. Everyone is probably aware that you should stay
low, dress correctly and stay hidden from the trout. Those things are basic for
fishing small streams, especially under low water conditions. What prompted this
writing is a factor that I think many anglers overlook.

If you move extremely slow, the trout are far less likely to notice you. Before I get
to the point, you may want to review our articles on how trout see. Trout can see
almost all the way around themselves. There’s only a small area directly behind
them, called the blind spot, that is not within their peripheral vision. I have found
that as long as you move extremely slow, they won’t notice you in their peripheral
vision area of coverage nearly as quickly as they will when you move at a normal
pace. By that I mean not only move you body very slowly, but refrain from the
making the movements necessary to cast.

The trout’s vision is not very different from bass. Both species can see almost all
the way around themselves. For several years, I had the opportunity to
experiment with bass in my close friend’s aquarium or Tom Mann’s Fish World in
Eufaula, Alabama. Tom allowed me to go up to the top of the aquarium and
experiment with fishing for the huge bass in the large tank.

The tank is about the size of a small house and looks much like a large swimming
pool from up top. Below, windows allow visitors to look into the aquarium from an
underwater perspective. If you approached the water from up top where visitors
are not allowed, every fish in the aquarium would shoot for the nearest cover.
They had become used to the people down below looking through the windows
and had learned they didn’t pose any danger. That was not the case up top.

Trying to cope with the fish spooking every time I attempted to cast to them, I  
used every method I could think of each time I tried to approach them without
their knowing it. I discovered that if I moved like a snail, they didn’t notice me. If I
moved any faster than that, they did. Even though my clothes didn’t blend in with
the color of the walls behind me, they still didn’t notice me as long as my
movements were very, very slow.

When I learned to cast with an underhanded cast or flip of the rod, they would all
try to eat the lure, that is until one got it. You could fish with the same lure for the
rest of the day and they would only hide from it but that is another subject.

I discovered that by using this same procedure, I could approach trout in
extremely clear spring creeks in Pennsylvania without spooking them, but doing
so is not easy. Moving at a slow, slow pace is not easy to do. It seems you will
never get into a position to cast and then when you do, you must do so with the
flip of a wrist, side-armed and very low. That means you can’t cast very far and
that means you have to get very close to them. I have caught brown trout as
close as fifteen feet from me in shallow, extremely clear water, when I was
standing my full height which is six feet, two inches.

Most of the time I make the mistake of moving too fast. I am not very patient any
way and fishing at the pace of a snail isn’t easy for me to do. What I am
describing is not a cure all for catching fish in low, clear water by any means.
Casting to a trout may take twenty minutes of ultra slow-motion movement before
you attempt the first and only cast you will get. I usually stoop down to my knees
in slow motion when I do get close to the fish and then cast side-armed with as
little body movement as possible.

Please note that I’m not contending that this is the way to fish normal, low water
conditions. I don’t think that extent of extreme caution is necessary in most
cases.  I do wish to stress the point that trout do not notice your presence by
identifying or determining that you are some type of creature from out of space
that is going to harm them. Without turning and placing you in their very narrow
binocular area of vision, they cannot see you well enough to determine anything
other than something is in their area that doesn’t belong there.

If you were in the woods observing the forest and one of the trees suddenly
moved a couple of feet, you would spook. If a tree started moving towards you at
a rather fast pace, you would really freak out. When a portion of the trout’s
surroundings suddenly moves, it will freak out. Slow your movements way down
and you will catch more trout under low water conditions.

Copyright James Marsh 2013

When you’re fishing a freestone stream, you most likely try to place your fly in
every likely pocket, current seam or any other place a trout could be holding.
Even the clearest lie can conceal a trout. If you place your fly in the right spot, a
trout may take it, that is, if a trout is there. If trout are not there then you
certainly want get a rise. If a trout is there, then you may or may not get a rise
depending on many factors some of which are in your control and some of which
are not in your control.  If you don’t get a rise, you either try again or you move
on the next likely holding spot.

In many cases, anglers prefer to locate trout by spotting the fish or their rises,
but in small, headwater, freestone streams you are usually not usually able to
spot them. Never-the-less, most successful anglers try to envision a trout in each
and every likely spot. In other words, they consider that if a trout did exist in that
lie, exactly where it would be positioned and exactly where it would be feeding.

Of course, you also must first take into consideration the type of food the trout
may be eating, not necessarily what species of trout food, more particularly if the
trout may be feeding on food that is drifting on the bottom, somewhere beneath
the surface or floating on the surface of the water.

If you do spot a trout, then you want to plan a way to approach it, select a fly to
best imitate whatever it is you think it may be taking and then make your
presentation. You know the fish is there. It’s up to you to catch it.

When you are fishing fast pocket water, moving from one pocket, current seam
or likely holding spot to another, you don’t ever know if a fish was there or not,
unless you spook them. This is the nature of fishing freestone streams. It’s
completely different from fishing spring creeks, for example, where you are able
to determine if a fish is in a certain place or not. Instead of finding a feeding fish
and approaching it to try to catch it, you fish in place you “think” a fish may be
holding.

Most of the time, there’s not enough of any one insect or other food for the trout
to be feeding on selectively. In other words, there are no hatches taking place.
Since there’s a lot of water that could cover up a trout, there are a lot of places
you could place your fly to try to get a fish to take it. If you cover them all, you
will be spending a lot of time casting to places where there simply are no fish. If
you only present your fly in places where fish are most likely holding, then you
are going to increase your odds tremendously.

Assuming you make good presentations, use the right fly and don’t spook the
trout, presenting your fly in the most likely holding lies is the only way you can
increase your odds of catching trout in small, fast water freestone streams. If you
were fishing competitively, against others and thank goodness you this isn’t the
case in most trout streams, you would go a step farther. You would only present
your fly in the most likely holding lies or the choice places. In other words, you
would make your first cast count, and make only one or two more cast and
then you would move on.

In the competitive bass fishing world they call this the hit and run approach.
Instead of fishing a hundred yards of the stream in an hour you would fish it in
ten minutes only casting to the most likely holding spots.

Am I recommending this method of fishing? No, I’m not. Trout fishing would
become work and less fun. I am strictly trying to point out the way you increase
your odds of catching fish in small, fast water freestone streams. You only place
your fly in the likely holding and feeding lies.

Copyright James Marsh 2013

The stream’s volume of water and rate of flow strictly depends upon Mother
Nature. The amount of water in the stream can vary drastically with the seasons
of the year. Heavy rainfall that usually occurs in the spring months makes the
freestone streams large and turbulent and sometimes flood beyond their normal
banks. In the late summer and fall months of the year, most freestone streams
reach their lowest levels. Sometimes the flow can become so slow and the
dissolved oxygen levels so low that it become tough for trout to survive. This is
especially true in the lower sections of the streams in the foothills.

At the headwaters, most eastern freestone mountain streams support native
brook trout. These fish are usually small, averaging from four to eight inches
because they have less space to live and less food to eat but they are also
usually very aggressive and lighting fast. Most of the time, trout found in the
acidic, headwater streams feed opportunistically. It is rare that they have enough
of any one species of food to feed on. Selective feeding times are few and far
between.

The angler usually does not have to be concerned with specific patterns of flies.
Most of the time, attractor or non-specific type flies that imitate a variety of  
insects will work fine. There are a few times when the trout do concentrate on a
particular insect. There is usually a few species that can cause selective feeding
for short periods of time in the headwater streams.

As many of you may know, in the Eastern Appalachian Mountains, rainbow and
brown trout are a problem for the native brook trout. They will compete for the
same space and food. This has forced the smaller brook trout to exist only at
higher and more remote locations than they once did. In many cases, in the
middle and lower elevations of the streams in the Great Smoky Mountains
National Park, brook trout have been completely eliminated by the rainbow and
brown trout. The park service along with concerned anglers are working on
changing this in a few streams.

It doesn’t take much to upset the balance of nature in a freestone stream. Many,
many factors have done just that. The logging of timber has been a major  
problem for many streams. The construction of roads has also affected many of
the streams and in many different ways. The construction of lakes has
also affected many trout streams. This is a big issue with many western trout
streams. Acid rain is yet another adverse factor that has affected streams in the
Eastern United States. The list goes on and on.

For our purposes here, the main thing to be gained from these adverse affects
is that anglers should be aware of what makes a freestone stream produce good
trout fishing and what hurts them. Two important points to stop and register is
water temperature (which also affects the oxygen content) and water levels or
stream flows. Knowing these two things about a freestone stream is the first and
primarily the most important things to know.

By far the best source of information is the angler’s thermometer. It will provide
water temperatures that are accurate at the time you are fishing at the particular
point you are fishing.  

Stream flows can be obtained from this site under the Information Section for any
stream in the nation. Thunderstorms that occur in a different watershed can
change the flows very quickly.

The next most important thing would probably be the clarity of the stream’s water.
The stream levels and flow rates are good indicators of the water clarity but this
information alone is sometimes deceptive. Of course, once you are on the
stream, you can see the watercolor conditions for yourself.

The pH of the water is yet another factor that affects the trout and its food but it
is one you can do little about. You can change the way you fish to adjust to water
temperature and water levels but you can’t adjust for high pH levels. Of course,
just knowing the water temperature and level is not enough. The information is
worthless if you do not know how it affects the trout and how it affects your fishing

Copyright James Marsh 2013

When the rain and snow falls from the sky it is pure and free from minerals and
is slightly acidic. It usually has a pH of approximately six. This can be affected by
acid rain. The intent here is to show that the pH changes from the headwaters to
the slower moving water in the foothills and how this affects the aquatic insect life.

As the water flows downhill, the pH will usually increase depending upon the  
rocks, sand, gravel, and organic material (such as leaves and vegetation) the
water passes through. The pH of the headwater streams varies from region to
region depending on the composition of the soil and rocks.

Rain forest type terrain, such as is found in the Appalachian Mountains provides
the water a different chemical composition than the more barren slopes of the
Rocky Mountains, for example. If water passes through volcanic rock, it is going
to remain acidic much longer than water passing through a forest. The pH of the
water in the forest changes from the headwaters to the foothills.

The different pH values of the water from its origin in the mountains to the larger
streams or river in the valleys supports different groups of aquatic insects. The
water temperature is generally higher in the lower sections of the stream and this
can also be a factor that affects trout in that it changes the insect population.

The speed of the water is also a big factor in determining which aquatic insects
exist. Insects found in the fast flowing pocket water of the headwaters may be
quite different from those found in the slower moving water found at the lower
elevations.

Because the water is usually fast moving pocket water, mayflies found in the
headwaters are usually clingers. Caddisflies are not very plentiful in these waters
because of the acidic level of the water and consequent low algae levels.

Many species of stoneflies are in their prime habitat in the highly oxygenated
water. This water, which is usually slightly acidic, will not support plant life such
as algae. The aquatic insects must rely on other source of food.

When the stream becomes the “run, pool, riffle” type of stream, normally found in
the foothills, the more diverse type of water will usually support other many other
species of mayflies, caddisflies and stoneflies. Mayflies may include several
species of crawlers and swimmers. The caddisfly population and diversity will
increase and include many species of scrapers, predators, and shedders due to
the diverse type of habitat. Stoneflies are still usually present in the fast water.

Since the water has poured through rocks, gravel, sand and other types of soil
and since organic material such as leaves may have accumulated in the stream,
the water is less acidic than it is in the headwaters. It will normally support specie
of aquatic insects that rely on organic material that has become more prevalent
due to the higher pH. Its increased temperature is also conductive to supporting
other insects.

After the stream reaches the valleys it slows down and congregates in larger
pools with riffles. Since the water temperature is much warmer than the water at
higher elevations and since the pH has become even more alkaline, plant growth
may be present. The stream’s substrate usually consists of more soil and less
rocks and burrowing mayflies may exist. The caddisfly population may increase
since there is a lot more organic material available for the larvae. Shedders,
predators and scraper species may be prevalent. Stoneflies my not exist in the
less oxygenated warmer water.

Copyright James Marsh 2013

A freestone stream is born at the top of a mountain as drops of rainwater and
melting snowflakes. As gravity forces these droplets to seep through the
crevices of rocks, soil and organic matter, they combine into small trickles of
water. These trickles eventually collide and become larger and larger. They form
tiny streams that you can step across.

The tiny streams eventually join other tiny steams to form larger ones. These tiny
streams are made larger along the way by many other trickles of water and
eventually become streams that are large enough to be named and shown on
maps. These streams are usually the headwaters of what will become a large
freestone stream or river.

Generally, water in the headwater streams is fast moving pocket water. Most
headwaters fall through steep gradients and rapidly flow downhill. As the stream
reaches the lower elevations of the foothills the gradients become less and less
and the flow of the water decreases accordingly. As more and more water
collects the streams become wider. The water in the larger streams slows as it
moves through the valley.

As the stream reaches the lower elevations of the valley and the flows decrease,
the temperature increases. Eventually the water will become too warm to support
trout and other warm water species of fish such as smallmouth bass will become
more prevalent. The slower moving water will not hold as much dissolved oxygen
as the faster moving headwaters. This also becomes an important factor in the
stream’s ability to support trout.

Copyright James Marsh 2003

At the headwaters, most eastern freestone mountain streams support native brook trout. In the west, most headwaters support native cutthroat trout. Some of the western freestone stream headwaters also support wild brook trout, or decedents of brook trout that were at one time stocked. These fish are usually small, averaging from four to eight inches because they have less space to live and less food to eat but they are also usually very aggressive and lighting fast.

Most of the time, trout found in these headwater streams feed opportunistically. It is rare that they have enough of any one species of food to feed on. Selective feeding times are few and far between. The angler usually doesn’t have to be concerned with specific patterns of flies. Often, attractor or non-specific type flies that imitate a variety of insects will work fine. That written, there are also times when the trout do concentrate on a particular insect. Depending on the aquatic insect population and makeup, there are usually some species that can cause selective feeding for short periods of time in the headwater streams.

It doesn’t take much to upset the balance of nature in a freestone stream. Many, many factors have done just that. The logging of timber has been a major problem for many streams. The construction of roads has also affected many of the streams and in many different ways. The construction of lakes has also affected many of the streams by slowing down the flow of water and changing the levels of parts of the freestone sections of the stream. Acid rain is yet another adverse factor that has affected streams in the eastern states. The list goes on and on.

For our purposes here, the main thing to be gained from these adverse affects is that anglers should be aware of what makes a freestone stream produce good populations of trout and what adversely affects them. Two important points to stop and register is water temperature (which also affects the oxygen content), and water levels or stream flows. Knowing these two things about a freestone stream is the first and primarily the most important things to know. Water temperatures can be obtained by a stream thermometer. Water levels can usually be obtained from U.S. G. S. real-time stream data. Thunderstorms that occur in a different watershed can change that very quickly.

The next most important thing would probably be the clarity of the stream’s water. The stream levels and flow rates are good indicators of the water clarity but this information alone is sometimes deceptive. Of course, once you are on the stream, you can see the watercolor conditions for yourself.

The pH of the water is yet another factor that affects the trout and its food but it is one you can do little about. You can change the way you fish to adjust to water temperature and water levels, but you can’t adjust for various pH levels. Of course, just knowing the water temperature and level is not enough. The information is worthless unless you know how it affects the trout and how it affects your fishing.

in the foothills, the more diverse type of water will usually support other many species of mayflies, caddisflies and stoneflies. Mayflies may include several species of crawlers and swimming nymphs. The caddisfly population and diversity will increase and include many species of scrapers, predators, and shedders due to the diverse type of habitat. Stoneflies are still usually present in the fast water sections of the stream. Since the water has poured through rocks, gravel, sand and other types of soil, and since organic material such as leaves may have accumulated in the stream, the water in the lower elevations is less acidic than it is in the headwaters. It
will normally support specie of aquatic insects that rely on organic material that has become more prevalent due to the higher pH. Its increased water temperature is also conductive to supporting other insects.

After the stream reaches the valleys it slows down and congregates in larger pools connected by riffles. Since the water temperature is much warmer than the water at higher elevations, and since the pH has become even more alkaline, plant growth may be present. The stream’s substrate usually consists of more soil and less rocks and burrowing mayflies may exist. The caddisfly population may increase since there is a lot more organic material available for the larvae. Shedders, predators and scraper species may be prevalent. Stoneflies my not exist in the less oxygenated warmer water.

Again, knowing what is written above, won’t be of much value, unless you have a good knowledge of how to adjust your fishing strategies and techniques to adjust for various types of water in the freestone streams.

Copyright James Marsh 2013

Generally, trout streams are classified as freestone trout streams, taiilwaters and spring creeks. Of course, there are streams that have various combinations of spring creek water, tailwaters and freestone stream water, In this case, we are only covering freestone streams.

A freestone trout stream is born at the top of a mountain as drops of rainwater and a melting snow pack or snowflakes. As gravity forces these droplets of water to seep through the crevices of rocks, soil and organic matter, they combine into small trickles of water. These trickles eventually collide and become larger and larger. They form tiny streams. These tiny streams eventually join other tiny steams to form larger ones. These little streams are made larger along the way by many other trickles of water and eventually become large enough to have a name and be shown on a map. Often, these small streams are the headwaters of what will become a large freestone stream or river.

Generally, water in the headwater streams is at a higher elevation than the main stream. At some point, if not its entire length, most headwaters fall through steep gradients and rapidly flow downhill. As the stream reaches the lower elevations the gradients become less and the flow of the water decreases accordingly. As more and more water collects, the stream become wider and wider. The water in the larger streams slows down as it moves through the flatter terrain of the valley.

As it reaches the low elevations of the valley and the flows decrease due to the increased volume of water, the temperature increases. Eventually the water will become too warm to support trout and other warm water species of fish such as smallmouth bass start showing up The slower, moving water will not hold as much dissolved oxygen as the fast moving headwaters. This too becomes an important factor in the stream’s ability to support trout.

Depending upon the rocks, sand, gravel, and organic material (such as leaves and vegetation) the
water passes through as it flows downhill, the pH will usually increase. The pH of the headwater streams varies from region to region, depending on the composition of the soil and rocks. Rain forest type terrain, such as is found in the Appalachian Mountains and the Pacific, provides the water a different chemical composition than the more barren slopes of the Rocky Mountains, for example. The pH of the water also changes from the headwaters to the foothills.

The different pH values of the water, from its origin in the mountains to the larger streams or river in the valleys, supports different groups of aquatic insects. The water temperature is generally higher in the lower sections of the stream and this can also be a factor that affects trout in that it changes the insect population.

The speed of the water is also a big factor in determining which aquatic insects exist. Insects found in the fast flowing pocket water of the headwaters may be quite different from those found in the slower moving water found at the lower elevations.

Because the water is usually fast moving pocket water, mayflies found in the headwaters are usually clingers. Caddisflies are not very plentiful in these waters because of the acidic level of the water and consequent low algae levels.

Many species of stoneflies are in their prime habitat in the highly oxygenated water. This water, which is usually slightly acidic, will not support plant life such as algae. The aquatic insects must rely on other source of food. When the stream becomes the “run, pool, riffle” type of stream, normally found in lower elevation trout streams, the pH is generally higher and the water begins to support more species of aquatic insects that eat algae.

The stream’s volume of water and rate of flow is strictly dependant upon Mother Nature. The amount of water in the stream can vary drastically with the seasons of the year. Heavy rainfall that usually occurs in the spring months makes the freestone streams large and turbulent and sometimes flood beyond their normal banks. In the late summer and fall months of the year, most freestone streams reach their lowest levels. Sometimes the flow can become so slow and the dissolved oxygen levels so low that it become tough for trout to survive. This is especially true in the lower sections of the streams in the foothills.

Copyright James Marsh 2013

Brown trout are much like salmon in that they will travel upstream long distances
to spawn. It’s thought that many of these trout will actually return to the same
location that they used in previous years to spawn. I understand some testing
that was done in North Georgia showed this to be a fact in the Southeast United
States.

To begin with, the trout need to be in excellent shape to begin the spawning
process. It takes a lot of energy to make the long distance moves some of he
brown trout makes. They need to be in prime condition prior to the spawn.

Ideally there are several factors that the trout take into account when spawning,
or maybe I should say, that Mother Nature takes into consideration. One is the
water temperatures but others are water depth, current, light penetration, type of
bottom and probably many other things that we may not even be aware of. In
most situations, depending on the type of stream, the water depth can vary for
sure. After the trout have made their trips upstream, all these things affect the
exact time and place the spawning process takes place.  

The female brown trout builds her redd using her tail to move the gravel around.
Some call this a nest. Bass anglers call it a bed. She selects small gravel areas.
They prefer gravel about the size of a single peanut but will take whatever they
can get as far as the size of the gravel is concerned. She cuts a trench or area of
bottom where she will deposit her eggs in the redd. At the right time, she will
deposit her eggs in the gravel. Prior to her covering them up and usually during
the same time period, the male will deposit his milt or sperm on the eggs. She will
then proceed to cover the eggs up with gravel. This process helps by improving
the flow of water through the eggs by cleaning the sand and dirt from the gravel.
It is my understanding that this is critical in whether or not the eggs make it.

This process may not all occur at once. She may move to another area of the
redd and repeat this procedure along with the male. It is my understanding they
deposit as little as a thousand eggs (not over two or three thousand), much less
than I would have thought. Obviously, many of these eggs never make it.

This entire procedure from the beginning to its end puts the fish in a stressful
situation. It takes a lot of energy. It is also my understanding, that the adult fish
experience their largest morality rate during the spawning process. The eggs
themselves can be destroyed by insects, fungus, and silt, to name a few things.
Anglers are another culprit that can destroy the eggs as well as the entire  
process of spawning.

During the spawning process the fish are very aggressive and territorial. This is
especially true of the male. During the time the fish are building their nest,
depositing their eggs and sperm, etc., anglers catching either the male of the
female, can destroy many brown trout. Even if the angler doesn’t catch the fish,  
he or she poses a threat to the process by adding additional stress to the fish. If
he or she steps in the nest either before or after the eggs have been deposited,
many or even most all of the eggs can be destroyed.  If the female doesn’t
deposit all of her eggs, she can die. These spawning fish are usually large fish.
Although it’s not exactly the same case with brown trout, they remind me of
redfish that must be older to  successfully spawn.

The angler can easily catch these spawning fish, smile and show others how
great they are at catching big fish and many will never know what actually
occurred.  It doesn’t matter if they catch the female or the male, a lot of brown
trout can be destroyed from the results. Both are critically important to the
spawning process.

Keep in mind that the brown trout are not native fish in the United States. They
were stocked in this country at one time many years ago. In some cases, the
fishery managers will tell you that fishing for spawning trout has little overall
effect on depleting the population of brown trout and I am sure that is correct. It
is not against the rules and regulations to catch the spawning brown trout in
many streams but in others, it is illegal and the season is closed during the
spawning time. If it is legal to fish during the brown trout spawn, doing so is a
decision that you must make on your own. If you can take pride in catching an
over aggressive, easily caught trout (male or female) that will stay in one area of
the stream trying its best to play its part in reproducing its like, then go ahead
and catch them from their redds. I think any true sportsman, wouldn’t want any.

Copyright James Marsh 2013