Born under a bad sign - Toccoa Tailwater

Sometimes things are just too perfect.  Saturday was one of those days.  Friday afternoon the temperature dropped.  It was below 40 degrees Saturday morning.  The temperature topped out at around 60 degrees.  Hardly a cloud in the sky.  The Toccoa generator was scheduled to shut off around 1:00 p.m. I debated between going to the Toccoa Tailwater at Curtis Switch or heading up to the mountains to fish Noontootla.  I decided on the former, and headed to Curtis Switch around 4:30.  I got to the parking lot/boat launch - not a single car. No anglers on the water.  It was either a perfect day, or something was wrong.  I checked the river thinking maybe the flow was too high for wading, but it was perfect flow for wading.   A few caddis were rising as I put on my waders, and a nice hatch of midges was coming off as well.  I had the whole stretch of river to my self, a hatch, and my six weight strung with some new flies I wanted to try.  

Then.... I stepped into the water.     

Hmmm. . . . Sure feels warm.  I usually get a little cold wading the Toccoa, but not today. I put my hand in the water - it felt like it was close to 70 degrees.  I waded downstream and immediately noticed blooms of something growing off the bottom.... and thick too.  I made my way quickly to my favorite spot about 1/3 mile downriver - I always see fish and catch fish in this section.  An extremely thick hatch of midges was coming off the water, mixed with some size 12 caddis (maybe October caddis?), but there were no fish rising. 

What looks like bubbles and colored white in the photographs are actually bugs.  

I switched to a size 18 rainbow warrior - usually this fly is a slump buster for me.  I got a fish within a cast or two, but it was a large hornyhead, and not the trout I was looking for.  I saw a few small trout rising, but they were few and far between, and very small.  I got out of the water after fishing for about 1.5 hours, and headed back home.  

I've had some tough days on the Toccoa, but that was many years ago.  The river looks to be in bad shape.  I'm not sure of the cause, though I suspect the extremely dry and hot summer has created a lack of cold water in the lake.  I sure hope we get some rain soon.