Look for woody cover along the Elk River's relatively rock-free banks and you'll likely find smallmouth action. Photo by Ron Sinfelt

By Bruce Ingram

Late last June, the Outdoor Writers Association of America (OWAA) held its annual conference for the first time in Charleston, West Virginia. Outdoor scribes from across America journeyed to Charleston, in part because the Mountain State has such an excellent reputation for offering outstanding fishing. I, too, was among the assembled, ink-stained wretches.

When fishing excursions were being discussed among the writers, one thing became obvious. Many of those who had decided to wet a line had opted to go south of Charleston to the New River. Who could blame them? The New River is West Virginia's most famous body of water of any kind; the southern West Virginia waterway has a national reputation. And I personally relish my time on the New.

However, while most writers were journeying southward for an hour or so to reach the New, I headed east of Charleston for a 10-minute journey. My destination was one of the most overlooked rivers in the entire state - the Elk. My hosts were Chris Ellis, chief guide for the Mountain Connection at Glade Springs Resort, and J.R. Oliver, an information officer for the West Virginia Department of Transportation. Both individuals grew up along the Elk and have fished the river almost their entire lives.

"I caught my first-ever fish from the Elk and that was 26 years ago," said Ellis. "I guide on the New River and various other streams, but I still consider the Elk my home river. Since I was a kid, the smallmouth fishing has improved tremendously on the river. In fact, I would say the fishing is better now than it has ever been. I am not sure for certain why the fishing has become better, but I have some ideas.

"Mainly, the water quality is better. Decades ago, many of the little towns along the river did not have public sewage and now they do. Wastewater is no longer being dumped into the Elk. The second factor, I believe, is that the U.S. Corps of Engineers releases water from Sutton Lake (the impoundment on the Elk) in a more consistent manner. In the past, water would be released in gushes, which had to be bad for spawning fish. Now water levels are much more stable during the spring spawning season."

J.R. Oliver, who hails from Pinch, agrees with Ellis that the smallmouth fishing is better than it has ever been.

"I grew up on the Elk, so I feel that I know the river well. One of the positive changes I have noticed on the Elk is that access is so much better than it used to be. When I was a kid, the Elk was a hard river to put in and take out on. Another thing that makes the stream so productive is the varied habitat. Fishermen can work shoals, riffles, downed trees, water willow beds, outside bends - just about any kind of structure or cover that they can think of. The one type of habitat that people generally won't find on the Elk is a major rapid like those on the New. And for people who don't like to battle current, that is a very good thing," said Oliver.

"Another thing that I like about the Elk is that it is so close to Charleston. It amazes me on weekends to see all those people with boats leaving Charleston and heading for the New. Now don't get me wrong, I love to fish the New River. But I have had better days on the Elk than my single best day on the New. If conditions are right on the Elk, you can catch smallmouths in the 3-pound range."

Oliver adds that another plus about the Elk, when compared to the New, is that the former has much less boat traffic - a fact with which Ellis agrees. On the Elk, Oliver continues, fishermen can expect to see very few canoes or johnboats and only the occasional bank-fisherman. On the New, even during weekdays, hordes of people fishing from rafts or whitewater rafting are the norm.

Ellis also agrees with Oliver that a 3-pound bronzeback is a very nice fish on the Elk. But, again, a smallie that size, and a 3-pounder typically measures around 18 inches, is an excellent brown bass anywhere in the Mountain State. Ellis says that the majority of the Elk's bass are between 8 and 14 inches long.

But the Elk River also features several attributes that many other state rivers do not possess. First, the Elk has a very low gradient. On streams such as the New and Greenbrier, but especially the New, Class I and II rapids are common and Class IIIs and IVs exist. On the Elk, a Class I is a major rapid and Class IIs are uncommon.

Second, whereas state streams such as the New, Greenbrier and South Branch of the Potomac are known for their rocky habitat - and anglers have to be adept at fishing this form of cover in order to do well - the Elk contains comparatively little rocky structure. This river, explains Ellis, is filled with woody cover in many different forms.

Downed trees lie within every outside bend, and because the river seldom floods anymore, that cover is there year after year. Laydowns also are very common along straight stretches of the waterway. Another form of cover that is very common is a brushpile. All along both shorelines, expect to see areas where various kinds of woody flotsam have collected and sunk to the bottom. The river's eddies especially are clogged with wood.

Third, the Elk is a year-round bass fishery, according to Ellis. For example, the state's most well-known bass rivers are primarily fished from mid-spring through late fall. Again, as much as I love fishing the New, I am hesitant to venture forth on it in February or March. And I don't recall ever floating the New past mid-fall. I am too worried that the intense rapids might cause my boat to capsize and that I could experience hypothermia.

But given the low gradient on the Elk, anglers can experience the superlative fishing throughout the year. Ellis and Oliver both emphasize that some of their best days on this river have come in late fall as well as late winter.

Also, Ellis and Oliver like the Elk a great deal because it contains a second member of the black bass family - the spotted bass. Now over the years, I have caught a number of spotted bass on the New as it flows through North Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia. But during those years in those three states, I have only caught two spotted bass that topped 12 inches.

On the Elk, both men say that anglers have every right to expect a 12-inch or better Kentucky bass on any given trip. And fish between 13 and 15 inches are available. In a state as far north as West Virginia, spotted bass of that size are verging on being considered trophies. This is especially true given the fact that the state-record spot, from R.D. Bailey Lake, measured 19 inches and went 4.77 pounds. Largemouth bass are also present in the Elk and the closer the stream comes to flowing into the Kanawha, the more likely it is for bucketmouths to occur.

Black bass are not the only reason to wet a line in this central West Virginia waterway. Ellis and Oliver say that they are always on the alert to fish for walleyes and muskies. I would be the first person to admit that I don't know much about fishing for walleyes, having caught very few over the years. But on my late June getaway, I landed my biggest walleye ever, a 26-inch fish.

The three of us had gotten out of our canoes to check out a long riffle below a pool. I was working a crankbait through a 4-foot-deep run. At first when the fish struck, I thought I might have hooked a 5-pound mossyback, but the fish bore deep and did not leap - a possible indicator that it was not a brown bass, which are known for their aerial acrobatics. Several minutes later, I was able to beach a very tired marble-eye. The fish easily would have qualified for a state fish citation (walleyes have to weigh 5 pounds or better to do so) if I had chosen to turn it in.

Muskies are another game fish that are present in the Elk. Ellis says that when he comes to long, straight, deep pools, he sometimes puts aside his bass tackle and rigs a medium-heavy rod with a jumbo spinnerbait or plug. He then fan-casts the area with the hope that one of these members of the pike family will latch onto his bait. It is not unusual for fishermen to actually hook a muskie or two on any given trip. Actually landing these large predators is another matter, though. Oliver says that the muskie fishing is best in the early spring but that another peak period comes in the fall. Rock bass, catfish and various species of sunfish round out the game fish contingent on the waterway.

Oliver also suggests that fishermen familiarize themselves with state Route 4 (SR), the main highway that runs along much of the Elk. Bank- bound fishermen looking for angling opportunities can find plenty of places where SR 4 swings in close to the Elk throughout much of its length. Be sure to obtain permission from landowners before crossing private land to access the river.

A second trip is from Gassaway to Frametown (4 1/2 miles). The river alternates from being very narrow to very wide on this float and numerous riffles and shoals occur. SR 4 runs along almost the entire section, and Interstate 79 crosses the river right above Frametown.

Oliver says that one of his favorite excursions is from Clay to Elkhurst. Elkhurst Road runs along some 10 miles of this section, and the Pinch sportsman says that anglers can make this trip run anywhere from five to 15 miles, depending on where they want to take out on Elkhurst Road. Riffles very much characterize this float, and the trip is a little more isolated than many on the Elk are, although campers from time to time line the shore.

Elkhurst Road to Queen Shoals (eight miles) is also a trip very much worth taking, says Oliver. Residential development is very common here and the stream flows very placidly, making it a popular one with those anglers who own motorized johnboats. Many anglers like to put in at Queen Shoals and motor upstream in the major pool that lies at the take-out.

Ellis lists Queen Shoals to the water plant at Clendenin (three miles) as one of his favorite junkets. Riffles and small Class I rapids create a lot of what he calls "broken water" and the deep pools that appear periodically are known for their big muskies and walleyes. Oliver adds that the Queen Shoals float is a favorite after-work trip for people in the greater Charleston area.

The trip I took last June went from Blue Creek Bridge on river right to Big Chimney Bridge on river left (six miles). Because of various commitments, we were unable to get out until almost 8:30 a.m., and we had to take out at 1:30 p.m. Despite having limited time on the water, I found the fishing to be outstanding.

Upon launching, Ellis had told me not to wait until we encountered Class I rapids to fish hard, a common practice among river runners. Instead, he said to concentrate on the many laydowns that pepper the shoreline. The guide further advised me to run crankbaits and spinnerbaits through the wood and to toss topwaters over the cover.

While working one logjam, I hooked into a big smallmouth. The bronzeback jumped twice and then proceeded to wrap itself around a log and then a limb. I had 10-pound-test on a medium-heavy spinning rod, but I could not budge the fish. Chris Ellis got out of his canoe and slowly began the process of unwrapping the fish. Several minutes after the fight began, with thanks to Ellis, I was finally able to boat the bass.

The smallie measured 20 inches and would have qualified as a state citation (smallmouths have to weigh 4 pounds or more in order to do so). But bringing the fish to a weigh-in station would have stressed it too much, and it was far better to release her and see the fish streak away after I had taken a few pictures. Obviously, you know my answer when Ellis asked: "What do you think of the Elk's potential now?"

I was also able to catch a 13-inch smallmouth, the aforementioned 26-inch walleye, and several other smallmouths. Oliver, meanwhile, seemed to be on a strong spotted bass pattern and was busily catching Kentuckies. I would like to have seen how well we really could have done if we had been able to fish the Elk the entire day.

Two other floats remain. Big Chimney Bridge to Mink Shoals (3.5 miles) has goodly amounts of flat water, water willow, shoals and wood cover. Ellis states that this is one of the best trips for spotted bass. This is the last excursion totally on the Elk. The final float begins at Mink Shoals and does not conclude until you are on the Kanawha River, a distance of about five miles.

No matter how good the smallmouth and other game fish action ever becomes on the Elk River, the stream will probably never gain national recognition. But for those who live near this central West Virginia waterway or desire to travel to it, that is not such a bad thing after all.