BirdTroutOpen the map When to fish Stein Branch, North Carolina
May, June and July — those are the months with the most insects recorded from the North Carolina mountains, 21 in May, 25 in June and 22 in July. North Carolina WRC classifies it as Wild Trout Waters, managed as wild — that is the season and creel row to look up. This site reads the water as cold from NCWRC's management tier for it, which is an inference from how the fishery is managed and not a temperature NCWRC publishes, and no gauge on it reports temperature, so the calendar below is the hatch record rather than a thermometer.
What's likely in September
24 insects peak in September in the North Carolina mountains. By month, not week.
Start with these — the patterns that match most of what is out now:
Mayflies
Blue-Winged Olive #16–22, Isonychia / Slate Drake #10–14, Little Yellow May #16–18, Mahogany Dun #16–18, Trico #20–24
Tie onPheasant Tail Nymph nymph · Parachute Adams dry · RS2 emerger
Caddis
October Caddis #8–10, Green Rock Worm / Green Weenie #10–14
Tie onPrince Nymph nymph · Stimulator dry · Walt's Worm nymph
Terrestrials
Cinnamon Flying Ant #16–20, Cricket #10–14, Black Ant #14–20, Grasshopper #8–12, Leafhopper #18–22, and 1 more
Tie onFoam Beetle terrestrial · Black Foam Ant terrestrial · Parachute Ant terrestrial
Crayfish, scuds and baitfish
Crayfish #4–8, Minnows + Dace #2–10, Sculpin #2–8
Tie onZonker streamer · Woolly Bugger (Black) streamer · Woolly Bugger (Brown) streamer
Worms, leeches and the rest
Water Boatman #14–18, Cranefly #6–10, Aquatic Worm #10–16, Damselfly #10–14, Dragonfly #4–10, and 2 more
Tie onWoolly Bugger (Olive) streamer · Walt's Worm nymph · Woolly Bugger (Black) streamer
The hatch calendar
Insects peaking each month. Midges, scuds and sculpins are left out: they peak every month, so counting them would flatten the bars.
Every insect recorded here, by month (52)
| Insect | Months | Hook | Active at |
|---|---|---|---|
| Little Black Stonefly | January–April | #16–18 | 34–46 °F |
| Little Brown Stonefly | February–April | #12–16 | 38–50 °F |
| Blue-Winged Olive | March–May and September–November | #16–22 | 38–58 °F |
| Quill Gordon | March–April | #12–14 | 42–52 °F |
| Blackfly | April–June | #18–22 | 40–65 °F |
| Blue Quill | April–May | #16–18 | 44–56 °F |
| Cranefly | April–June and September–October | #6–10 | 40–65 °F |
| Grannom | April–May | #14–16 | 48–58 °F |
| Green Rock Worm / Green Weenie | April–June and September–October | #10–14 | 45–68 °F |
| Hendrickson | April–May | #12–14 | 45–58 °F |
| Little Black Caddis | April–May | #16–20 | 46–58 °F |
| Alderfly | May–June | #10–14 | 52–66 °F |
| Caterpillar | May–September | #8–14 | 55–75 °F |
| Crayfish | May–October | #4–8 | 55–78 °F |
| Green Drake | May–June | #8–12 | 52–64 °F |
| Green Sedge | May–August | #12–16 | 48–64 °F |
| Inchworm | May–June | #12–16 | 50–68 °F |
| Large Blue-Winged Olive | May–June | #14–16 | 50–64 °F |
| Light Cahill | May–July | #12–16 | 55–68 °F |
| Little Sulphur | May–July | #16–20 | 50–62 °F |
| March Brown | May–June | #10–12 | 50–62 °F |
| Periodical Cicada | May–June | #4–8 | 55–78 °F |
| Spotted / Tan Caddis | May–August | #14–18 | 55–70 °F |
| Sulphur | May–July | #14–18 | 52–68 °F |
| Black Ant | June–September | #14–20 | 55–80 °F |
| Golden Stonefly | June–July | #6–10 | 55–68 °F |
| Isonychia / Slate Drake | June–September | #10–14 | 55–70 °F |
| June Bug / Beetle | June–July | #10–14 | 58–75 °F |
| Leafhopper | June–September | #18–22 | 58–75 °F |
| Little Sister Caddis | June–August | #16–20 | 60–74 °F |
| Little Yellow May | June–September | #16–18 | 58–70 °F |
| Little Yellow Sally | June–August | #14–16 | 55–68 °F |
| Yellow Drake | June–August | #10–12 | 58–70 °F |
| Annual Cicada | July–August | #6–10 | 60–78 °F |
| Cream Cahill | July–August | #14–16 | 62–74 °F |
| Golden Drake | July–August | #10–12 | 60–72 °F |
| Grasshopper | July–September | #8–12 | 60–80 °F |
| Japanese Beetle | July–August | #12–16 | 60–80 °F |
| Trico | July–September | #20–24 | 58–72 °F |
| Cinnamon Flying Ant | August–September | #16–20 | 58–78 °F |
| Cricket | August–October | #10–14 | 55–75 °F |
| Mahogany Dun | September–October | #16–18 | 45–58 °F |
| October Caddis | September–October | #8–10 | 45–58 °F |
| Water Boatman | September–November | #14–18 | 45–65 °F |
| Aquatic Worm | all year | #10–16 | 35–70 °F |
| Damselfly | all year | #10–14 | 55–78 °F |
| Dragonfly | all year | #4–10 | 55–78 °F |
| Hellgrammite | all year | #2–8 | 55–78 °F |
| Leech | all year | #2–10 | 35–75 °F |
| Midge | all year | #18–24 | 33–75 °F |
| Minnows + Dace | all year | #2–10 | 35–78 °F |
| Sculpin | all year | #2–8 | 33–72 °F |
The season
North Carolina publishes no season on this reach in the file this site reads. North Carolina WRC classifies it as Wild Trout Waters, managed as wild, and that is the row to look up in the digest — the season and creel rules follow the classification rather than the river. What the state designates on this water → North Carolina regulations →
Water temperature through the year
No gauge on this river reports water temperature. NCWRC publishes no temperature classification for it either — the Cold band is inferred from NCWRC's management tier for the fishery, which is a judgement about the trout and not a measurement of the water.
More about Stein Branch
Stein Branch — live water temperature, regulations and access