Fishing

Cast a line on the Blue Ridge Parkway

The Boone Area is widely known for great fly fishing and angling on lakes and streams. On the Parkway itself, more than 100 miles of pristine streams test your knowledge, skills, and wits while fishing for rainbow, brown, and native brook trout. No special trout stamp is required and only artificial lures with a single hook are allowed. The Parkway encourages catch-and-release fishing: no barbed hooks. Thirteen artificial lakes along the Parkway, from ponds to sizeable bodies of water, contain native and stocked species. 

FISHING REGULATIONS

A fishing license is required on Blue Ridge Parkway land for the state you are fishing in (under 16, no license needed). Licenses are easily available online, from North Carolina at www.ncwildlife.org/. On all Parkway waters, fishing is allowed from one-half hour before sunrise to one-half hour after sunset.

Fishing is not permitted from bridges, dams, or walls. Swimming is not permitted in Parkway waters. More specific regulations are often posted at the angling site, such as along the Linville River near the Linville Falls Visitor Center (turn at Milepost 316.4).

Learn more about Parkway regulations and what kinds of fish can be found in parkway waters at the National Park Service's Website.

Popular Fishing Spots

At Price Lake, in Julian Price Park near Blowing Rock (milepost 295 on the Parkway), anglers and paddlers can rent canoes and kayaks for use on the Parkway's largest lake at Price Lake Boat Rentals. 

Nearby Moses Cone Park (milepost 292.7) contains popular fishing spots Trout Lake and Bass Lake. There is also fishing at Doughton Park (milepost 239.2).