After you get to your spot, you might want to rough it on your own. Or you can hire a guide. The Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries recommends literally hundreds of fishing places. You can find out about real gem daytrips. An especially fun one for lovers of both fishing and horseback riding is the package offered by Virginia Mountain Outfitters in Buena Vista, near Lexington.
Trips range from one to five days and include a clinic.
Farther north, in the charming tin-roofed town of Edinburg, Murray's Fly Shop is a good place to find out where you can fish in the Shenandoah Valley for the really big ones. Proprietor Harry Murray is the author of several books, including Trout Fishing in the Shenandoah National Park , and promises to help you catch fish. Wintergreen Resort in Nelson County offers Fly Fisher's Symposiums. Also for fly fishing, go westward in Bath County to Meadow Lane Lodge, site of a former Orvis Fishing School on the Jackson River. For details and the widest array of locations, the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries' Virginia Fishing Guide is a must.