Jerry's son, Josh, is the chief guide for Smoke Hole Outfitters. Josh suggested a variety of patterns for late-spring and early-summer angling on the North Fork. The younger Hedrick recommends emergers, such as size 16 or smaller Blue-Winged Olives, sizes 16 through 20 sulfurs, size 14 slate drakes and sizes 16 and 18 light Cahills. Effective nymph patterns include size 14 and 16 Pheasant Tails and Hare's Ears.

Spin-fishermen, continued Hedrick, should do well with two old reliables: in-line spinners and salmon eggs. A key for doing well with those choices is to only spool 2- to 4-pound-test on a light-action spinning rod.

"One of the great things about the North Fork is the variety of trout-holding cover," he said. "When you first arrive at the river, you will usually see push water, then a riffle, next several runs and finally a pool. Somewhere in that pool will be an eddy next to a bank that is heavily wooded. The sweet spot is where the riffle starts to spread out but is still moving at a fairly good pace. That pattern of habitat repeats itself over and over as you go down the river."

Jill Teets of Smoke Hole Outfitters emphasizes that the group's facilities are very family friendly. She said that the family log cabins on site offer two bedrooms and a large kitchen. The North Fork flows just 50 yards behind the buildings. The historic Smoke Hole Caverns is also on site. The Seneca Indians used these caverns to smoke wild game -- thus the name for the area.

When settlers came to this area of the Mountain State, they quickly saw the value of utilizing the caverns as a place to make corn whisky, hide valuable possessions and perhaps even escape from the law. A system of walkways leads through the caverns. Also nearby are hiking trails, mountain biking and horseback riding. A variety of hunting and fishing trips are also offered throughout the year. For more information, contact www.smokehole.com; or call toll-free (800) 828-8478.

DISTRICT III
Elk River
Located east of Charleston, the Elk River features populations of catfish, muskies, smallmouth bass and assorted members of the panfish clan. But if I wanted to introduce a youngster to bass fishing, then I would recommend another member of the black bass family that the Elk contains good numbers of -- the spotted bass, also known as Kentucky bass.

The Elk possesses a number of attributes that make it a topnotch spotted bass waterway. Those traits include low-gradient shoreline cuts, downed trees, and numerous brushpiles. Of course, in the Mountain State, spots don't grow to the size that largemouths and smallmouths do. Nevertheless, good numbers of fish in the 8- to 11-inch range fin the Elk, a size of fish tailor-made for young anglers who are using light tackle.

Numerous float trips exist on the waterway. Among the possibilities are Sutton Dam to Gassaway (five miles), Gassaway to Frametown (4 1/2 miles), Clay to Elkhurst (mileage varies depending on the precise put-in point), Elkhurst Road to Queen Shoals (eight miles), Queen Shoals to Clendenin (three miles), Blue Creek Bridge to Big Chimney Bridge (six miles), Big Chimney Bridge to Mink Shoals (3 1/2 miles) and Mink Shoals to Kanawha River (five miles).

Another reason why the Elk is a marvelous stream for families is that it lacks major rapids. One of the interesting aspects about fishing in the Mountain State is the difference in terms that exists. For example, on the upper Potomac, anglers speak of floating and fishing riffles. On the Elk, in contrast, the term riffle is infrequently heard as fishermen speak of checking out shoal water.

Typically on the Elk, the riffles, that is, shoals, create very small drops in the stream bottom. Anglers should encounter little difficulty running these shoals during the late-spring and early-summer period. Although by late summer, portaging is often required as the Elk can become quite shallow.