Trout fishing in Surry County

[Johnnyboy]

Hey folks,

I am a rather novice (still) fly-fisherman living south of Fayetteville. After about a year or more of putting it off I finally took a road trip today to investigate some trout waters. After eyeballing it, I figured that Surry County was probably closest to home and nearest to major thouroughfares, so I packed up the wife and kid to go check it out. We found the three waters listed in a relatively outdated gazeteer we have, and ascertained that it is only about a three hour drive away, which is about my threshhold for a day trip. The only water I managed to get dwon to was Paul's Creek right at the bridge on Miller Rd, but I quickly determined that with out waders (which I forgot to pack) I wasn't going to get very far. So, anyhow, I came away with a few questions that I was hoping y'all could answer.

Firstly, I was curious if there was anyone who was specifically familiar with these waters in Surry County and could make any suggestions as far as access. I am not terribly sure about the laws associated with fishing designated trout waters, but I am under the impression that if they are in fact designated, the owners of the land they run through are by default amicable to fisherman being there. However, no obvious access occurred to me, except for where state roads actually cross the water, but even then figuring out how to get to the water seems tricky, such as where NC 89 crosses the Little Fisher near the I-77 interchange. There is an Exxon right there but the adjoining land is still fenced...

So just hoping someone could share the secret with me. Thanks very much for your help! I happen to be departing for Iraq in just a couple of days, but hopefully when I return in the spring time I can put the advice to good use.

Johnny