Hazel River

37 degree air temp doesn't bother trout much but its pretty tough on fisherman.  John Caldwell and I had planned to fish today and alittle cold wasn't going to dissuade us.  We certainly fished and explored the beautiful Hazel River, it was catching that eluded us. The Hazel is obviously named after someone's great aunt and is located about half way between Old Rag Mountain and Sperryville, VA just off Rt 231.

Driving over the Hazel on 231 it doesn't look impressive but looking West, there's enough depth to the hollow to know that there should be some trout up there. We suited up just off the corner of Rt 600 and Horseheads Ln and headed up the hikers easement/driveway to the SNP entrance.   This is beautiful country with small secluded streamside homes reached by wooden bridges over the river.  It was the kinda cold that makes knit tying a challenge and where an exposed hand quickly finds a fold in your shirt to get out of the biting wind.

The pools and runs were beautiful and we decided to walk upstream of Sams Run which follows in from the left before we approached our first hole.   John did a great job as he hadn't flexed a long rod in a long time a managed, cast, drift and line management very well, no easy task in the cold in this tight high gradient river.  Where we started, the Hazel has about as much flow as the upper Rapidan by the cabins with a bit more gradient.

In most situations we fished 'upstrairs' standing in one pool and casting into the one above.  I understand the trout population in the Hazel isn't what it is in the Rapidan but cold streak we're mired in kept them out of sight and inactive for the three hours we explored the river.

I'll come back here, hopefully John can come again, and fish this same section again and make sure I pull a few brookies from this beautiful stream.