Trout Fishing Update from Al Simpson

From Al Simpson, one of our most accomplished trout fishermen.
Trout fishing is pretty limited in Virginia right now. The streams are so low that the state is not stocking mostly lakes. That said, there are a few streams with enough water flow to sustain holdovers from last year. Here's three I have fished recently:

Back Creek in Bath County - Has many deep runs and holes and a few nice rainbows can be found in them. The fall run of brown trout from Lake Moomaw has not occurred yet because it is too warm.

Mossy Creek- Always tough fishing, but especially now. I have been catching 10-12 inch fish, mostly on midge pupa patterns, size #20-22.

Bullpasture River- The canyon portion always sustains holdovers. In late October I caught several browns in the mid-teen range, and saw one approaching 20 inches. Difficult access, but worth the effort!

South River, SRW (Lyndhurst/nursery area)-  Don’t know where the trout are; lots of chubs and a few sunfish.

South River, Waynesboro section-  The fly shop stocked it in late October, I haven’t fished it but it is probably the best local fishing available.