The results were amazing. I’m not sure if there was anywhere better in the southeast to find a better opportunity to land a true monster brown trout. Of course people will say the South Holston or Cumberland, and while they’re not necessarily wrong…they probably never fished the Caney when it was truly on.
Trophy brown trout are still around the Caney and we see them fairly often. But a dam repair project in 2009 slowed the brown trout down as well as the tailwater in general. I’d say it’s recovering now, and many people are pushing the USCOE to work on providing better minimum flows, which would help the river immensely.
I love guiding people on the Caney Fork River because It’s a beautiful river with great fishing possibilities. It’s proximity to Nashville make it a popular destination for the locals as well as travelers looking for a fun, refreshing day on the water. I’ve been guiding folks on the Caney Fork River for many years and it’s always exciting to hear folks say that they can’t believe a fishery like this lies in middle TN.
A variety of techniques and styles will work on the Caney Fork. It’s not uncommon to see many people using spinning rods and all sorts of lures and bait ranging from corn to salmon eggs. For us fly fishermen, we tend to lean more towards small scuds and sow bugs, small midges, and the occasion mayfly or caddis pattern.
Most fly fishermen will approach the Caney Fork with a 9 to 10 foot flyrod, somewhere between a 4 and 6 weight, with a 9 to 12 foot leader tapered down to 6 x fluorocarbon. Strike indicator nymphing rigs work well in the low water of the Caney Fork.
It's not uncommon to see some caddis and even a few mayflies hatching in the spring and early summer months. These sparse hatches will provide some dry fly action as we enter summer and the better dry fly opportunities with terrestrials (beetles and ants).
Streamer fishing can be productive in higher flows. The Caney Fork will often see sizable shad kills in the winter, making streamer fishing with white shad patterns very popular. It’s not uncommon to see some of the best fish of the year caught during the winter shad kill on the Caney Fork.