Today I was on the phone with my good friend James Marsh discussing fly fishing for trout in the Southern states vs. fly fishing for trout in the Northern states; and there are differences. The major difference is that there appear to be far more trout anglers in the Northern states than in the Southern states. He pointed that numerous books that have been written about fly fishing in the North but very few written about fly fishing for trout in the South.
However, did you know that we have excellent fly fishing for trout actually within the boundaries or very close to Southern cities like Columbia, South Carolina and Atlanta, Georgia? The Saluda River flows thru Columbia and the South Carolina state record for brook trout has been caught in the Saluda. The Chattahoochee River flows through Atlanta and offers good fly fishing from Helen Georgia down to and through Atlanta. Another friend of Trout University, Chris Scally runs River Through Atlanta, a guide service that conducts guided trips on the "Hooch". Why do these streams in particular contain good populations of aquatic insects that feed the hungry trout populations? The answer is that there are numerous dams in the South. and the outflows from these dams provide some of the best fly fishing.
The Great Smoky Mountain National Park has hundreds of miles of excellent trout fishing available within driving distance of many cities in the South, and there is excellent fishing in many streams in Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia etc. Many of these popular trout streams are described here at Trout University's Southeastern USA river report.
So I scratched my head and thought about some things like the homes of Orvis, L.L.Bean and Cortland Line are located well above the Mason-Dixon Line. Also, it is a well known fact that trout have great difficulty surviving in water temperature above 70 degrees F; and just maybe the bass grow bigger and faster in the South making bass fishing more popular than trout fishing. Certainly, there is a great deal publicity about trout fishing in the North. However, the sport is growing in the south; and I for one, am happy to see it.