I caught the big brown in the picture at the top in late July one day after a hard rain. He put up a great fight, but I was unable to revive him enough to stay right side up. He was the only fish I killed this year except when camping - my parents said he was delicious!
When I first moved to Haywood County back in 1990, my go-to place when I only had a couple of hours to fish was East Fork Pigeon River in Cruso. The pros included great springtime dry fly fishing for evening hatches and a good population of wild browns, and it was only 15 minutes away. The cons - because it is all privately-owned below the game lands, access is spotty, and the fishing drops off substantially in late summer due to low water.
I started fishing Jonathan Creek in Maggie Valley in the early 2000s, and although it is 25 minutes from my house, it is only 15 minutes from work. It is managed as a hatchery-supported stream by NCWRC and is stocked on more dates than any stream except the Davidson River, mainly because Maggie Valley is a tourist town. For many years, most local fly fishers avoided it because of the "dough-bellies" - these are the same fishermen that spent much of their time fishing the West Fork Pigeon River delayed harvest stretch - guys, those trout are dough-bellies, too! It also has a great population of wild browns and rainbows and fishes just like a stream in the GSMNP during non-stocking weeks, with the added bonus of big stockers thrown in to sweeten the pot. The section downstream from Maggie Valley where the creek takes a 90-degree turn to the north and goes under I-40 is known by the locals as "J-Creek" and has produced some big browns (including a former state-record), but access is a little tougher and the water is a little bigger than I like. I fish down there some, but I prefer the easier access and greater numbers of fish in the Maggie Valley stretch. The section in Maggie Valley up to the confluence of Campbell Creek is still a good-sized stream. Above Campbell Creek, Jonathan Creek is half as wide, but retains two-thirds of it's flow. This means great water levels when other streams (including Campbell Creek) are reduced to trickles in the low water of late summer.
I'll start with the cons on Jonathan Creek - you are fishing behind hotels, campers and antique stores, and on stocking days you will need to take detours around bait-fishermen at the stocking spots. The pros - my unscientific opinion is that there are more trout per mile than any other stream in the county, the stream is beautiful, regardless of the surroundings, and it consistently has the best late-summer water-levels and fishing in WNC. This August, I fished it three times in a span of six days, for 2-3 hours each day, and caught 35, 35 and 50 trout, all on a green weenie! Others have recently discovered my little secret - Maggie Valley Fly Shop opened up across the street from Stompin' Grounds in 2022, and guides occasionally take anglers to Jonathan Creek now. I fished it on a regular basis for years before I saw another fisherman with a fly rod. These days, seeing vehicles with "Sage" stickers and river-quivers is a regular thing, but I still catch plenty of fish on my $150 Cabela's outfit every time I go. Enough talk - how about some pictures?
Here are some of my favorite stretches to fish:
And now, some random pretty trout caught this July and August:
The creek was radically changed by the flooding as a result of Hurricane Helene this September, but the trout are still there. If you ever plan to be in the area, don't hesitate to email me. I will at least give you some tips concerning access, and will fish with you if I can - raysuggjr@aol.com
If you want professional guide service, contact Shannon Young at Maggie Valley Fly Shop.
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