Brookside Guides

Overview
Our WNC trout waters are filled with lively rainbows, browns and brook trout. Fish with our fly fishing guides from Pisgah National Forest to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Beginning anglers can sign up for a day or weekend of fly fishing instruction and guided fishing with our skilled, patient and fun guides.

More advanced anglers can choose from the over 4,000 miles of freestone mountain trout water located within easy reach of our home base in Asheville, NC. The Davidson River, one of the most exciting and challenging rivers in our area, is listed in Trout Unlimited’s “Top 100 Trout Streams.”

Western North Carolina’s temperate climate makes this a great destination for fly fishing 365 days a year. Spring and fall offer the best hatches while in winter months anglers often find they have rivers to themselves as they search for trophy trout.

No matter what the season, you’ll have your choice of fishing on wild trout waters filled with big, wary browns or hiking to streams in the beautiful Smoky Mountains that hold the prize catch, native Appalachian brook trout.
 
Fishing Trips
$
450
/ Boat
Capacity:
1 - 2 anglers
Days:
Daily
Duration:
1 day
Our float trips are for smallmouth bass and trout on the Holston, Watauga and French Broad Rivers. Floating these rivers allows you to cover more productive water, and water that is ... morenot accessible to wade fishing. During these trips you may have opportunities to get out of the raft and wade fish “back cuts” and special riffle areas that are known to hold better than average fish.

For these trips we recommend 5 weight or larger rods from 8 to 9 foot in length.

On float trips NO STUDDED wading boots are allowed and waders are recommended year round due to the constant cool water temperature.

This trip includes lunch and non-alcoholic beverages. Lodging and fishing licenses are not included.
$
450
/ Boat
Capacity:
1 - 2 anglers
Days:
Daily
Duration:
1 day
Our float trips are for smallmouth bass and trout on the Holston, Watauga and French Broad Rivers. Floating these rivers allows you to cover more productive water, and water that is ... morenot accessible to wade fishing. During these trips you may have opportunities to get out of the raft and wade fish “back cuts” and special riffle areas that are known to hold better than average fish.

For these trips we recommend 5 weight or larger rods from 8 to 9 foot in length.

On float trips NO STUDDED wading boots are allowed and waders are recommended year round due to the constant cool water temperature.

This trip includes lunch and non-alcoholic beverages. Lodging and fishing licenses are not included.
Guides
I moved to Western North Carolina with Patty, 12 years ago after living in South Fl for 30 yrs, where my family enjoyed year-round offshore and backcountry fishing. ... more

Soon after arriving here my son sent me a fly rod and I started fishing on the Green River where I fell in love with fly fishing and the peace of being on the river. It doesn’t get any better than a day on the water with my son and grandson.

I especially love exploring new waters and learning the skills required to fish them. A pastime soon turned into a passion, and soon started to tie my own flys and build fly rods. I am thankful for the many friends that have helped me learn more about the sport over the years and enjoy passing on what I’ve learned.

I stay very active in the fly fishing community as a member of Hilltop Fly Tyers, the Fly Fishing Federation and Trout Unlimited, where I am currently in charge of stocking the Green River. I also volunteer for the Pisgah Center for Wildlife Education as a Master Angler, for Becoming an Outdoor Woman, and Project Healing Waters where I teach fly tying at the Asheville V.A. I believe fly fishing is all about having fun and sharing an experience.
I grew up in the upstate of South Carolina but my family roots go back several generations in the mountains of Western North Carolina. When I was in graduate school, my father gave ... moreme an inexpensive fly rod kit and a book about fly fishing.

The first fish I ever caught with it was a rainbow trout on the Chattooga River that darted out from under the bank to snatch my dry fly. That one fish turned an interest into a passion and I still remember it very clearly even though it was almost 15 years ago. Since that day, I have chased freshwater and saltwater species around the country and world. I tie my own flies as a member of the Hilltop Fly Tyers (8 years) and was invited to the join the Team Stonefly competitive fly fishing team in 2012.

After teaching and guiding friends of all skillsets for many years, I realized that I loved watching someone else land a fish as much as I enjoyed doing it myself. Some of the greatest lessons I have learned about fly fishing have come while teaching others.

Every day on the water is a learning experience whether I am with a client, a friend, or just by myself. It is one of the things I enjoy most about this sport. Becoming a professional guide was an easy choice for me and has allowed me to pass along the skills that were so patiently taught to me.
I am the son of an East Tennessee native and fish with my 80 year old dad often. I have lived in East TN and WNC the last 25 years, the last 12 years in Hendersonville, NC. I have ... morea wife Charlotte and two kids Krystalyn (22) and Paul (17). I also fish regularly with my “World Famous Fishing Dog” according to Linda Michael, Shadow, a Black Lab and Chow mix.

I have been fly fishing over 37 years and tie my own flies. I leaned to fly fish on the Davidson River in the Pisgah National Forest and Big Santeehlah Creek in Graham County, NC. I am a member of the Hilltop Fly Tyers (10 yrs), a Master Angler volunteer for the Pisgah Center for Wildlife Education (3 yrs), a CFR River Helper (3 yrs) and have served three co-current terms as president of the French Broad Fly Fishers – a FFF Charter Club.

I’ve been guiding friends new to the sport over the last 10 years. I started guiding wade and float trips commercially in 2009. I have a 16′ fiberglass EMR drift boat and enjoy floating the South Holston, Watauga, Tuckaseegee for trout and the French Broad and Pigeon rivers for smallmouth bass. In the last four decades, I have covered hundreds of miles of well known and little known trout streams in WNC, East TN and the Smokies. Occasionally, I find my way to Montana to fish the Big Horn.

I am a fly fishing enthusiast because of the simultaneous simplicity and complexity. Fly fishing offers something new on every trip. It is a sport where one skill is built on another. I consider myself a student first and then try to pass that knowledge along to others willing to learn.
I graduated from Western State of Colorado in 2002 with a BS in recreation. The Gunnison Valley, CO is where I fell in love with fly fishing. ... more

My fly rod has caught fish in the Trinity Mountain Range, CA, Eureka, MT, British Columbia, Belize and now Western Carolina.

The love of fishing runs a close second to the love of my new family. Gratefully, my wife supports fishing and my two year old daughter, Trinity Lane, has already caught her first trout.
Starr Nolan has been guiding and teaching fly fishing in Western North Carolina for the past 13 years. She has extensive experience guiding experienced anglers and has taught hundreds ... moreof people from age 7 – 82 how to fly fish.

In addition to private instruction and Brookside Guides Fly Fishing Schools, Starr has guided and taught in the following programs:

Casting for Recovery Carolinas and GA:support and education weekends for breast cancer survivors. Starr has coordinated this program and lead retreat weekends as a volunteer since 2002.

Rivercourse: Instructor and guide for this week long fly fishing and conservation camp for kids organized by NC Trout Unlimited chapters.

John C. Campbell School: Fly fishing faculty instructing week long fly fishing classes for adults, 2006- 2010. www.folkschool.org

The Kawana Fly Fishing Club: Guide and instructor for the annual fly fishing weekend on the Linville River since 2008.

Being an Outdoor Woman: Fly Fishing Class: a program that teaches women outdoor skills.

The Charleston Angler: Fly Fishing classes for all skill levels since 2002.

Starr was a featured angler on ESPN2’s show “Rods and Wheels” in 2008.

Starr is past President and Board member of Land O’Sky Trout Unlimited www.landoskytu.com in Asheville. She is a member of the Federation of Fly Fishers and the Atlantic Salmon Federation.

Starr enjoys fly fishing all over the world. Favorite spots include: fishing for native brook trout on small streams in Western NC, fishing “anywhere” in Montana, floating the Kenai River in Alaska, and stalking bonefish on the flats in the Bahamas.

When she’s not fishing, Starr is playing fiddle in her band All Strings Considered, playing traditional mountain music in Asheville.
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