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Welcome to the Fishing Report from Townsend, Tennessee in the Great Smoky Mountains. The sky is clear and the sun is shining. Today will be warmer than yesterday but no rain is officially in the forecast. It is summer in East Tennessee so the possibility of a storm popping up is always there.
Last night, after getting home, there was a cloud to the northeast. in a short time that cloud grew to a massive size. Thunderstorms are amazing to watch, especially when they are at a distance so you can see the whole cloud. Seeing the towers build capped by pilei. The best are when the anvil shape rolls out in the classic form. Last night's storm over Maryville popped up quickly, thundered, and I assume rained hard, then it was gone.
Storms like that can be a hazard in the mountains. They can cause stream levels to rise rapidly. The chance for afternoon storms isn't something to keep you home, just to keep you vigilant.
Today will be warmer than yesterday. More chance for rain and cooler weather is coming soon.
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PREDICTED HIGHS AND LOWS TODAY
| LOCATION |
HIGH |
LOW |
| TOWNSEND |
89 |
70 |
| GATLINBURG |
88 |
69 |
| ELKMONT |
84 |
67 |
| CADES COVE |
86 |
70 |
| NEWFOUND GAP |
77 |
63 |
| MOUNT LECONTE |
76 |
58 |
| CHEROKEE |
86 |
65 |
| SMOKEMONT |
79 |
64 |
Fishing conditions in the Smokies continue to be very good. Water levels are above normal and temperatures are good. This morning the stream flow gauge on Little River is giving a reading of 2.24 feet or 303 c.f.s. This is higher than the daily normal of 117 c.f.s. The water temperature is 66F.
I was upstairs doing Monday paperwork yesterday so I didn't get to talk to too many fishermen. Given the conditions I would expect that the fishing was good. If I had the opportunity to go today I would head to a mid to high elevation stream. Little River up towards Elkmont Campground or hiking upstream along the Little River Trail would be a good destination. The Middle Prong of Little River is also always a good bet.
Light colored, especially yellow dry flies are working now. Yellow Stimulators, Neversink Caddis, Rob's Hellbenders, Doculators, Yellow Sally, Little Yellow Stone etc. Sizes are going to be #14 - #16. Parachute Adams and Elk Hair Caddis are always good patterns also.
If you are out mid-day (not the ideal time) try some terrestrial patterns. Beetles and ants in the shade under a tree can loosen the lips of finicky summer trout. To me ants are hard to fish because I can't see them. I use them as a dropper behind something like a Mike's Magic Beetle #10 or Stimulator. Green Weenies and Barbie Bugs also make an excellent dropper.
Fishing on the tailwaters should be good. Check the TVA site to be sure. I always have to be careful to check higher on the page. Some of the dams are sluicing or even spilling water. This doesn't get reflected in the generation chart.
I have been seeing a lot of smallmouth and carp pictures on Facebook and Instagram. Those fisheries should be improving after the higher water and cloudy conditions clear. Josh Pfeiffer with Frontier Anglers posted some photos of Bill and Sheila Bolinger. Bill said the trip was some time ago. They caught some great smallmouth. They didn't get anything above 20 inches but plenty in the 14 to 17 inch range. Josh told them that it would be topwater fishing to start. Apparently the weather cooperated with cloud cover and the popper action lasted all day long. Bill said that if he knew it would be topwater like that every trip we could give up trout fishing.
If you head out to the stream catch a trout/smallmouth for us. Have a great day and thank you for being here with us.
Daniel Drake
August 7, 2018
Respond to: byron@littleriveroutfitters.com
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