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Home › Waters › North Carolina › Yadkin River below W. Kerr Scott Dam
Tailwater · Northwestern North Carolina foothills, the regulated reach below W. Kerr Scott Dam through Wilkes County from Buck down past Wilkesboro · North Carolina

Yadkin River below W. Kerr Scott Dam Fishing Guides

A foothills tailwater below a Corps storage dam that runs cold enough to hold trout well below the elevation where North Carolina trout usually live.

Mist lifting off a river between wooded Appalachian ridges
Gauge location. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Guides on the Yadkin River below W. Kerr Scott Dam

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About the Yadkin River below W. Kerr Scott Dam

W. Kerr Scott Dam impounds the Yadkin River west of Wilkesboro, and the reach below it does something the surrounding country cannot: it stays cold. Wilkes County sits in the foothills, well below the mountain elevations where North Carolina trout water normally begins, and in an unregulated river this stretch would be a warm-water smallmouth fishery and nothing more. Because releases come from the reservoir rather than from summer sun on shallow water, the tailwater carries trout through months when the free-flowing Yadkin above the lake would cook them.

The state manages part of this reach as delayed harvest water, stocking it heavily and running catch-and-release, artificial-lure-only rules through the cooler months before opening it to harvest in summer. That management makes it one of the more productive and accessible trout fisheries in the piedmont-facing part of the state, and it draws steady traffic from Winston-Salem and Charlotte. Brown and rainbow trout make up the bulk of the stocking, with brook trout in the mix, and holdover fish do survive in the deeper runs.

The tailwater is not only a trout fishery. Smallmouth bass use the rocky reaches, particularly as the water warms downstream of the coldest water, and largemouth, bluegill, rock bass and channel catfish fill the slower pools. White bass run up from below in spring.

The gauge below the dam publishes discharge, stage and stream velocity with no temperature sensor. Watch the discharge trace closely before wading. Releases from a Corps storage dam change quickly, water rises fast, and the safe wading window on a generation day can close in minutes. Check the current delayed harvest dates and rules in the state digest before fishing, because seasons here change.

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Version 1.0, dated 6 September 2026. Applies to every photograph submitted to GuidedFloats through the contact form, a species page, or the community board.

1. What you give us

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We choose which photos to publish and may decline any submission without giving a reason. We may crop, resize, sharpen or colour-correct a photo for display, and we may remove a photo at any time. We will not alter a photo in a way that misrepresents the fish, the water or you.

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We keep your name, email address, the credit name, the water and date you gave us, and the network address the submission came from, with the submission record, as our evidence of this license. We hold that record for as long as the photo is published and for the retention period described in our privacy policy. Location data that your camera or phone embedded in the file is removed before the photo is published.

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Posting to Yadkin River below W. Kerr Scott Dam.

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The name shown under the photo. Leave blank to stay anonymous.

Reader photo license v1.0 — the short version:

  • You grant Guided Floats, LLC a non-exclusive, royalty-free license to publish, resize and crop your photo on guidedfloats.com and in GuidedFloats’ own social posts and apps. You keep the copyright and can use the photo anywhere else.
  • You confirm that you took the photo yourself, that publishing it does not infringe anyone else’s rights, and that anyone recognisable in it (or a parent or guardian, if they are under 18) is happy for it to appear here.
  • Credit is printed beside the photo wherever it appears on the site, using the credit name you give us. Leave it blank and we use your name; write “Anonymous” for no name. Your email address is never published.
  • Withdrawing is one email to hello@guidedfloats.com naming the photo. It comes off the site within 7 days.
Read the full license

Version 1.0, dated 6 September 2026. Applies to every photograph submitted to GuidedFloats through the contact form, a species page, or the community board.

1. What you give us

By ticking the box on the form you grant Guided Floats, LLC (“GuidedFloats”, “we”) a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to store, copy, resize, crop and display your photograph on guidedfloats.com, in GuidedFloats’ own social media accounts and mobile apps, and in material that promotes the site itself, in connection with the fish, water or community feature you sent it in for. The license lasts until you withdraw it (section 4).

You keep the copyright. The license is not exclusive, so you can use the photo anywhere else and license it to anyone else. We will not sell your photo, license it on to anyone else on its own, or use it in paid advertising for a third party.

2. What you confirm

You confirm that you took the photograph yourself (or otherwise own the rights to it), that you have the right to grant this license, and that publishing the photo does not infringe anyone else’s copyright, privacy or other rights.

If any person is recognisable in the photo, you confirm that they have agreed to its being published here, and that a parent or guardian has agreed on behalf of anyone under 18. Please do not send photographs of other people’s catches, screenshots, or pictures copied from other websites or social media.

3. Credit

We print the credit name you give us beside the photo wherever it appears on the site, and record it as the photo’s creator in the page’s structured data. If you leave the credit blank we use the name you gave us on the form. Write “Anonymous” if you prefer no name at all. Your email address, phone number and the exact spot the photo was taken are never published.

4. Withdrawing the license

You can withdraw the license at any time by emailing hello@guidedfloats.com, or by using the contact form, and telling us which photo you mean. We will remove the photo from guidedfloats.com within 7 days of receiving your message and stop using it in anything new. Copies that are already outside our control — search-engine caches, social posts that have already gone out, printed material already produced — may take longer to disappear or may not be recallable, and we are not responsible for those.

5. What we may do

We choose which photos to publish and may decline any submission without giving a reason. We may crop, resize, sharpen or colour-correct a photo for display, and we may remove a photo at any time. We will not alter a photo in a way that misrepresents the fish, the water or you.

6. Your details

We keep your name, email address, the credit name, the water and date you gave us, and the network address the submission came from, with the submission record, as our evidence of this license. We hold that record for as long as the photo is published and for the retention period described in our privacy policy. Location data that your camera or phone embedded in the file is removed before the photo is published.

7. Versions

The version of this license you accepted is stored with your submission and printed with the photo. A later version does not apply to a photo you have already sent unless you agree to it.

Access

W. Kerr Scott Dam tailrace access - the primary parking and bank access below the dam.
Yadkin River Greenway, Wilkesboro - long stretches of walkable bank on the lower reach.
Bandits Roost Park - Corps recreation area with river and lake access.
Smithey Field access - a delayed harvest entry point.
Wilkesboro town access - bank fishing on the middle tailwater.
Warrior Creek confluence - walk-in access on the lower reach.
W. Kerr Scott Reservoir ramps - lake access for anglers fishing above the dam.

Seasons

Spring: strong stocking and delayed harvest fishing, with white bass running in the lower reach.
Summer: harvest season opens and the coldest water near the dam holds the trout as the lower reach warms.
Fall: delayed harvest resumes and the tailwater fishes at its best in cool water.
Winter: cold and productive for trout, with the fewest anglers of the year.

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Questions

What is the current flow on the Yadkin River below W. Kerr Scott Dam?

As of Sep 17, 5:00 am, the USGS gauge YADKIN RIVER BL W KERR SCOTT DAM NEAR BUCK, NC reads 265 cfs. Conditions update every 15 minutes.

What species can you catch on the Yadkin River below W. Kerr Scott Dam?

Anglers target Bluegill, Brook Trout, Brown Trout, Channel Catfish, Largemouth Bass, Rainbow Trout, Rock Bass, Smallmouth Bass, White Bass on the Yadkin River below W. Kerr Scott Dam in North Carolina.

Where can you access the Yadkin River below W. Kerr Scott Dam?

W. Kerr Scott Dam tailrace access - the primary parking and bank access below the dam. Yadkin River Greenway, Wilkesboro - long stretches of walkable bank on the lower reach. Bandits Roost Park - Corps recreation area with river and lake access. Smithey Field access - a delayed harvest entry point. Wilkesboro town access - bank fishing on the middle tailwater. Warrior Creek confluence - walk-in access on the lower reach. W. Kerr Scott Reservoir ramps - lake access for anglers fishing above the dam.

When is the best time to fish the Yadkin River below W. Kerr Scott Dam?

Spring: strong stocking and delayed harvest fishing, with white bass running in the lower reach. Summer: harvest season opens and the coldest water near the dam holds the trout as the lower reach warms. Fall: delayed harvest resumes and the tailwater fishes at its best in cool water. Winter: cold and productive for trout, with the fewest anglers of the year.

Where are the fishing regulations for the Yadkin River below W. Kerr Scott Dam?

Regulations change by season and section. Read the current rules on the North Carolina agency site: https://www.ncwildlife.gov/fishing/regulations