Tuckaseegee River Fly Fishing: Looking for a fun time fly fishing? We recommend heading west from Asheville to tussle with a trout on The Tuck. Located near Western Carolina University, the Tuckaseegee is a tailrace formed by two dam-fed forks. From the Hwy 107 bridge at Love Field to the Dillsboro dam, the Tuck is regulated as Delayed Harvest, which is catch-and-release from October until June. The river here is wide, offering plenty of room for backcasting and the 49,000 trout stocked each year. Best floated in a drift boat, the Tuck can be waded when only one fork is running for power generation.
The Tuckaseegee River flows through the towns of Sylva, Webster, and Dillsboro in Jackson County, North Carolina. It is a little under an hour’s drive from the shop. This river is one of the most incredible places to fish if you love to throw a streamer.
Many anglers new to the “Tuck” arrive to find a river far larger than they’d imagine. This is the only NC tailwater within our range to float and it is superb. This is not a traditional NC mountain stream by any means. The river can be as wide as 100 yards and is rarely less than 40 yards in width. For the angler that finds casting as enjoyable as fishing, this river is more like the Western rivers seen in the media.
From October 1 through the first Saturday in June it is designated as “Catch and Release Only”. During these times it is heavily stocked – it actually receives more fish than any other river in North Carolina. It fishes good through the winter and really turns on as the air temperature warms in the spring. The river also has a good number on insects, especially in April during the Blue Winged Olive and the Black Caddis hatches.
This river is a great place for beginning anglers or advanced anglers wanting to catch lots of medium sized fish and a few larger ones.
Directions from Asheville: Take I-40 W to Exit 27 (Hwy 74 W). Follow Hwy 74 W to Exit 85 in Sylva. At third light turn left onto Hwy 107 S. Before you reach WCU, turn right onto S River Rd. Look for the black-and-white Delayed Harvest signs.
