Can Fly Fishing Businesses Recover From Helene?

As folks continue to work themselves out from under the impacts of Hurricane Helene, we’re starting to get an idea of just how much it’s going to take to help the area truly recover. To that end, Ella Adams, for Inc Magazine, recently did an in-depth story about the fly fishing businesses in North Carolina that are trying to rebuild after the hurricane.

Tourism is a huge part of the economy in North Carolina’s high country, and Ella Adams writes that some businesses earn up to 40% of their annual income solely in October, thanks to the combined tourist draw of changing leaves and great late-season fly fishing.

“Visitor spending in 2023 reached a combined $1.17 billion in the seven High Country counties: Watauga, Ashe, Allegany, Wilkes, Yancey, Mitchell, and Avery,” Adams writes.

Infrastructure in the North Carolina mountains still impedes a lot of traffic, but the true problem facing the area’s fisheries is what the hurricane did to the rivers and streams. The flooding introduced a whole host of pollutants into the rivers, which has harmed the fish population to some degree. More worrying, though, is what that pollution has done to the aquatic insect life.

“Although there are still some native trout left in the streams, Spencer Hoke, a guide at Speckled Trout Outfitters, says he’s worried for their survival because the trout’s main food source, aquatic insect populations, have been alarmingly low following severe flooding and the influx of pollution,” Adams writes.

North Carolina utilizes an extensive hatchery system and delayed-harvest regulations to support its trout streams, according to Adams. The hatcheries were impacted by flooding from Helene, and stocking of trout in delayed-harvest streams is postponed indefinitely until the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission can fully assess the damage to its hatcheries and the local ecosystems.

You can read more about how these fly fishing businesses plan to weather the storm, by taking a look at Adams’ piece here.