Fly and Gear ordering and delivery: We can get flies to you within two to three business days from the time you place your order via Priority Mail. If you provide a budget for flies, we will select them to match the budget and get them to you on time for your trip. Please see the bottom of this column for ordering options.
We have custom Perfect Fly selections in 3 different price ranges for this stream that come with or without fly boxes that make excellent gifts. Click Here To Order or Call us at 800 594 4726 or email us at sales@perfectflystore.com.
Type of Stream
Freestone
Species
Brook Trout (wild)
Size
Small
Location
Shenandoah National Park
Season
Year-round
Access:
Requires a fair amount of hiking to
reach
Non-Resident License
State of Virginia
Season:
The season runs year-round
Winter:
Trout can be caught on warm winter days.
Spring:
Springtime is the best time for fly fishing Big Run because of the aquatic insect hatches.
Summer:
Summertime is fine because the steep gradient and deep plunge pools keeps the water cool.
Fall:
Fall is a great time for fly fishing Big Run.
Recommended Tackle & Gear
Fly Line:
4, 5 or 6 weight
Leaders:
Dry fly: 9 to 12 ft., 5 or 6X Nymphing:
71/2 ft., 3 or 4X, Streamers 0-2X
Tippets:
Dry fly: 5 or 6X, Nymphing: 3 or 4X,
Streamer 0-2X
Best Fly Rods:
Perfect Fly Supreme Four, Superb Five
or Ultimate Six
Fly Reels:
For 4/5/6 fly line
Fly Floatants and Misc Items:
Floatants, KISS Strike Indicators
Tools & Accessories:
Nippers, forceps, retractors, etc.
Fly and Gear ordering and delivery:
Email us at (sales@perfectflystore.com) with the dates you will be fishing and we will send you a list of our fly recommendations. We can get flies and gear to you within two to three business days from the time you place your order via Priority Mail. If you provide a budget for flies, we will select them to match the budget and get them to you on time for your trip. Your can also call us at 800-594-4726 and we will help you decide what flies and gear to use. All orders are shipped free in the U.S. If under a $100 order requiring Priority mail is a charge of only $8.10. Orders over a $100 are shipped free via Priority Mail.
Copyright 2013 James Marsh
Fly Fishing Big Run Virginia
Big Run is a remote brook trout stream located in the Shenandoah National Park. It is remote enough that In order to fish some of the stream, it’s probably best to backpack in and camp. It can be a four hour hike to reach some areas of Big Run and if you did that round trip in a day, you wouldn’t be able to spend much time fishing. That written, there are many parts of the stream that can be fished within a day.
To reach Big Run, you should park at the Doyles River Parking lot near mile marker 81 on Skyline Drive. The Big Run Loop Trail leads down from the overlook to Big Run Portal Tail. It’s about a two and a quarter mile hike down the mountain. Big Run isn’t so big in the area where you first reach it. Below the confluence of Rocky Mountain Run, the stream gets a little larger, so it requires at least another thirty minutes of hiking to reach a better area. Don’t let this fool you. Big Run is the largest stream in Shenandoah National Park. It is just that you have to hike a long ways to reach the larger part of the good brook trout water. The reward is the fact Big Run has as good of a population of brook trout as any stream in the park.
There are two other ways to reach Big Run. You can take the trail from the Brown Mountain Overlook or you can take the Patterson Ridge Trail by hiking in from the
Loft Mountain Wayside. One thing you will need for sure, is a good paper map. We also suggest having a good GPS.
As with most other larger streams in the park, fly fishing Big Run will usually be more productive if you fish the stream during a hatch. There are plenty of them because the population of aquatic insects is very diverse. Quill Gordons, American March Browns,
Sulphurs, Eastern Pale Evening Duns, Cinnamon Caddis, Great Autumn Brown Sedges, Little Yellow Stoneflies and many other species of insects are present.
Fly Fishing Gear, Tackle and Trout Flies for Big Run Virginia
Fly Line:
We are recommending a 4 or 5 weight, floating fly line for all of the fishing. There are some anglers that prefer a 6 weight fly floating fly line for heavier nymphs and streamers. You could easily get by with a 5 weight most of the time.
Leaders:
Leaders should range in sizes from a 0X for streamers up to a 6X for midges and small dry flies. Lengths ranging from nine feet up to twelve feet in length are suggested.
Tippets:
Extra tippet material ranging from 0X to 6X should be available for the leaders we list above.
Fly Rods:
We suggest either a 4, 5 or 6 weight fly rod for each line size you choose to fish. It should
have a medium fast to fast action and be nine feet in length.
Fly Reels:
The fly reel you use for the 4, 5 or 6 weight line should be light and have good drags,
preferably disc drags,
Waders:
You would need waders on Big Run. You can wet wade during the warmer months. We
recommend breathable ones.
Wading Boots:
Felt soles or rubber sole boots would work. We prefer felt.
Wading Staff:
We would call this optional but is always a good idea on higher water. The stream is fairly
easy to wade in most places except on high water.
Flies:
We recommend our “Perfect Flies” because they are the best trout flies you can purchase. The large, holdover trout can be very selective. We have flies that imitate all the aquatic and terrestrial insects in Big Run. If you haven’t already done so, we hope you will give them a try.