Pigeon River Tributaries North Carolina Fishing Report & Options for Selecting Flies: Email us at (sales@perfectflystore.com) with the dates you will be fishing and we will send you a list of our fly recommendations. Please allow up to 24 hours for a response. 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. Orders over a $100 are shipped free via Priority Mail.
We also have custom Perfect Fly selections in 3 different price ranges for this stream that come with or without fly boxes. They 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
Rainbow Trout (wild and stocked with
holdovers)
Brown Trout (wild and stocked with
holdovers)
Brook Trout (stocked with holdovers)
Size
Medium
Location
Northwestern North Carolina
Nearest Towns
Bethel
Season
Year-round except hatchery
supported trout water is closed
during the month of March
Access:
Good
Non-Resident License
State of North Carolina
Weather
Season:
The season runs year-round
Winter:
Trout can be caught some days during the Winter
Spring:
Spring is the best time for fly fishing the Pigeon River’s
tributary streams because of the hatches.
Summer:
Summertime is marginal, the water can become too
warm.
Fall:
Fall is a beautiful time to fish these streams and a good
time to catch one of the large brown trout.
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.
Copyright 2013 James Marsh
Fly Fishing The Pigeon River Tributaries North Carolina
The Pigeon River itself is basically too warm to hold trout but it has several tributaries that do provide good trout fishing. Some areas are stocked and others are designated as wild trout streams. Most of the fishable waters lie within the Shining Rock Wilderness Area near the Blue Ridge Parkway above Bethel North Carolina.
The most productive of these streams is probably the East Fork of the Pigeon River. The section of the river that flows along Highway #276 doesn’t contain trout, or at least isn’t designated as trout waters by the state. The six mile section of its headwaters above Highway #276 does. It contains a population of wild brown and rainbow trout. It lies within the Shining Rock Wilderness Area and requires hiking to get to its waters. The stream is accessible from the Big East Fork Trail that follows along the stream. Its trailhead is located near the highway #276 bridge over the East Fork. The stream is small to medium size in this area. The East Fork has two small tributary streams – North Prong Shining Creek and Dark Prong Creek both of which are rather small but have wild trout.
Another stream that is a main tributary of the Pigeon River is the Little East Fork of the Pigeon River. There are about two miles of wild trout waters above the Boy Scout Camp Daniel Boone located on the Little East Fork Road. It can be accessed from highway #215
above Bethel. This is a small stream but worth fishing.
The Middle Prong starts just below the Blue Ridge Parkway and flows through the Middle Prong Wilderness Area. It is a tributary of the West Fork of the Pigeon River. It’s also called the Middle Prong of the West Fork of the Little Pigeon River. It’s strictly a small, wild trout stream that provides about five miles of trout water.
The West Fork also has trout but it’s stocked. It also begins just below the Blue Ridge Parkway. Highway #215 follows right along the stream. The section below the confluence of the Middle Prong flows through private property. The section upstream of the Middle
Prong confluence flows through the Pisgah Game Lands and is open to the public.
There’s also a Right Hand Prong of the West Fork. It’s a small wild trout stream that’s a tributary of the Middle Prong. It’s accessible by hiking upstream from its confluence with the Middle Prong near highway #215.
Richland Creek is another tributary of the Pigeon River. It flows right through Waynesville North Carolina and is a Delayed Harvest stream. About two miles of the stream is stocked. There’s a special handicapped access area to this stream.
Downstream several miles from the main headwaters of the Pigeon River, below Waterville Lake just off Interstate 40 near the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, are two more tributaries that hold trout. Hurricane Creek and Cold Springs Creek. Hurricane Creek is
located on Pisgah Game Lands but offers only about a mile of fishing. It’s accessible from Forest Service Road 233.
Cold Springs Creek is located farther down the Pigeon River near the Tennessee-North Carolina state line. It’s accessible from Forest Service Road #148 just off I-40.
It provides about a mile of stocked water.