If you do not see today’s Fishing Report, please refresh your browser to empty your cache.

Welcome to the Fishing Report from Townsend, Tennessee in the Great Smoky Mountains. At 6:01 am, the temperature outside is 54.7 degrees.

Today will be cloudy, with a high temperature in the low 60’s. Tomorrow will be similar. There is a 50% chance for rain today, and a higher chance tomorrow. We are drenched here. Townsend got 1.21” of rain yesterday. The spring peepers were singing loud last night. The dogwood blooms fell from the trees.

Little River is flowing at 965 cubic feet per second (cfs) or 3.28 feet on the flow gauge. The river is still rising quickly. Median flow for this date is 234 cfs. The water temperature is 54 degrees this morning.

Tellico River is flowing at a record rate for this date at 1,120 cfs. The river was much higher yesterday. Other streams in the Park, that have gauges, are flowing high.

No heavy rain is predicted today. But, no heavy rain was predicted yesterday, and it happened.

I think fishing will be slow in the Little River watershed this morning. The water is high and still rising. If the river peaks and recedes some, fishing may be fine. It is not raining now, here in Townsend. The weather radar does not indicate any heavy rain in the Park, though there are spots of light rain still falling.

If I were you, I would wait a while before going. Watch the flow gauge. If it falls to near 2.5 feet, go. The water temperatures are great. The water will be swift. Be careful wading if you go.

You may find stained water in some streams.

If you are here on a fishing vacation, and I know many are, look for some streams that are more angler friendly. You can usually find fishable water, on Anthony Creek at the Cades Cove Picnic Area, when other streams are flowing high. Check all three prongs of Little River. Maybe one is flowing lower. The West Prong or Laurel Creek might be better than the East. Drive up the Middle Prong. Hike to Lynn Camp Prong. And, the East Prong at Elkmont may be better than the other prongs.

Nymphs will probably work best for you. If you are fishing an area where the water is swift, stand near the bank and “high stick” a nymph or a pair of nymphs. It will be overcast today, which is an advantage to the angler.

This might be a good day to walk along the Middle Prong on the road, and pick likely spots to fish, if the water is clear.

If you are here for the weekend too, fishing conditions Friday through Sunday will be very good, if we do not get too much rain tomorrow. A quarter of an inch is predicted. If we get more, the streams may be somewhat high Friday. Saturday and Sunday will be sunny, warm and dry.

The trout tailwaters could be a good option today. It looks like TVA will not be generating much on the Clinch River at Norris Dam. The same is true on the Holston, below Cherokee Dam. Look at the TVA website to see the predicted generation schedules, then make a determination yourself, before going.

I got an e-mail from Gary Troutman yesterday. Smallmouth fishing on the tailwaters is picking up. Gary and Josh Pfeiffer guide anglers on these rivers for smallies. They also guide on Little River and the Little Pigeon for smallmouth bass. I know them both well. They are experts. Much of what I learned about fly fishing for smallmouth bass, I learned from them.

Check out their fishing report, updated this weekend by CLICKING HERE. Floating the tailwaters with these guys is a lot of fun. Book a trip with them.

I hope this turns out to be a good fishing day for you.

UPDATE: LITTLE RIVER AND OTHER STREAMS ARE FLOWING VERY HIGH. THE WATER IS STAINED IN MANY STREAMS. FISHING IS SLOW IN LITTLE RIVER AND PROBABLY IN MOST STREAMS ON THE WEST SIDE OF THE PARK.

Have a great day and thank you for being here with us.

Byron Begley
April 25, 2018   

Respond to: byron@littleriveroutfitters.com