South Holston Fly Fishing Fest brings money home

BLUFF CITY, Tenn. – Webb’s Store owner Mark Price grinned at the mere mention of the weekend fly-fishing festival under way on a stretch of South Holston Lake just five miles down the road.

“I think just about everybody up there has been through here,” Price said Saturday afternoon while stirring a steaming pot of gravy.

He contends that his home-cooked meals are a big draw for anglers flocking to the river throughout the year.

They come from as far away as Germany, Australia and Japan, many returning home with one of the Webb’s Store T-shirts stocked by the front door.

It was no different with the sportsmen descending on the second annual South Holston Fly Fishing Fest, held through today on the river banks running alongside Stoney Hollow Road. In general, the trout teaming just below the surface of the South Holston River beckons anglers from all over the world. And the demonstrations and workshops by big name anglers boasted by the festival has netted its fair share of sportsmen, too.

From a financial standpoint, that’s good news for local lodging, camping, gas and food businesses, South Holston River Fly Shop owner Rod Champion said.

“Just today I’ve had customers from eight or 10 states,” Champion said, pointing out that those tourists spend their money somewhere.

“If only Tennessee understood what a tourist attraction this really is,” he said.

Festival creator Knox Campbell initially brainstormed the event to raise funds for the nonprofit River’s Way Outdoor Adventure Center for disabled and disadvantaged youth.

“I think we’ve really found a niche with this event,” Campbell said in a previous interview. “It’s a great way to appeal to people who love fly fishing while also helping to spread the word about the mission of River’s Way.”

The Holston River is already a favorite for fly fishing, Champion said. It’s a prime breeding spot for the insects that trout feast upon. On top of that, the river is stocked with plenty of fish.

“This is a world-class fishing location,” Champion said.

By Saturday afternoon, hundreds of fishing enthusiasts at River’s Way crowded around VIP anglers for tips on such skills as casting lines, angling from a kayak and finding the best fly fishing spots in Virginia.

Proof of the festival’s draw was evidenced by the lower-than-usual weekend sales of fly fishing equipment at Mountain Sports Ltd. in Bristol, Va., store owner Bobby Cheers said.

“That list [of experts] includes some of the best people in the business and it seems like a lot of our customers have been talking about it,” said Cheers, who has a booth set up at the festival.

Among the experts at River’s Way on Saturday was Beau Beasley, who directs the annual Virginia Fly Fishing Festival held along the banks of the South River in downtown Waynesboro, Va.

Now in its 11th year, Beasley said the Waynesboro festival, held on the third weekend of April, recently drew more than 1,500 anglers. The festival attracts more than just the serious hobbyists; sometimes, entire families make a vacation of it.

“When you’ve got people that are driving more than three hours one way, and they’re buying food and gas, that’s a good thing,” Beasley said.

Fishing is such a popular attraction for the region that Virginia and Tennessee will offer a dual-state fishing license for the South Holston Lake starting Thursday.

Under the agreement, Virginia and Tennessee residents fishing at South Holston can buy a special fishing license for the whole lake, which flows across the state line.

The special license will allow anglers to fish anywhere on South Holston for a uniform $21 fee.

Currently, Virginia and Tennessee residents must buy an out-of-state license to cast a line across their home state’s border. In Tennessee, a nonresident fishing license can range from $9 to $81, depending on the person’s age and duration of the license.

In Virginia, nonresidential fishing fees can range from $16 to $36.

To the dismay of Greensboro, N.C., resident Mark Stauffer, the new deal does not extend to the South Holston River, which is where the fly fishing is done.

Stauffer treks from home to the local river at least two weekends a month. That means he annually plunks down $81 for his out-of-state fishing license.

He capped a three-hour drive into Bluff City on Saturday with a stop by Champion’s fly fishing store to buy some wading boots. Someone stole his pair from the back of his truck during a stop at a gas station along Interstate 81.

“I wouldn’t mind a lifetime tri-state license for North Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia,” he said. “Maybe $500 or $600 for it. I’d pay that.”

As Stauffer left with a new pair of boots on his feet, Champion noted that the customer was a regular.

“See, he just spent $110 on a pair of boots,” the store owner said. “It’s all money thrown right back into right here.”

mowens@bristolnews.com | (276) 645-2549