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Welcome to the Fishing Report from Townsend, Tennessee in the Great Smoky Mountains. Sorry for the delay on the report this morning. I've been fighting with a laptop.

Rain is falling across the area this morning. So far it has been failry light and water levels haven't risen much. I expect that to change so be careful and check flows before going.

At 10:30 the flow on Little River is 249 c.f.s. which is 2.10 feet on the gauge. Water temperatures are rising due to the warm rain. They have risen to 42.2 F and will go higher when the day warms.

Rain like this in the late winter can cause water levels to rise quickly. A warm rain can also make the trout get extra active. If you go you have to be careful. Falling into swift, cold water is a recipe for disaster. Have a change of dry clothes in the truck.

If I was heading out today I would use heavy nymphs to get down in the swift water. Pat's Rubberlegs, Double Tungsten Stoneflies, Blow Torch, etc will help get down to where the trout are. There is always a chance for some BWO (Blue Wing Olive) dry flies when the weather is gross. These little mayflies are small in the #18-#20 size range. A parachute or even hi-vis parachute makes them easier to see on the water.

Winter is a slower time of year for fishing but it doesn't last too long here in the Southern Appalachians. All it will take is some warm weather and we could be seeing our first hatches in about 3 weeks. Once the water warms enough the first bugs will be the big Quill Gordons and the tiny Blue Quill. Now is the time to get tying!

I'm going to cut this short so I can post it. Tomorrow's report will be much earlier.

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

Daniel Drake
January 25, 2021

Respond to: byron@littleriveroutfitters.com