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Welcome to the Fishing Report from Townsend, Tennessee in the Great Smoky Mountains. At 5:22 am, the temperature outside is 65 degrees.
Scattered thunderstorms moved through late yesterday and last night. The Knoxville Airport reported a rainfall total of 1.49 inches while in Townsend we got .40 inches.
Showers and scattered thunderstorms are likely today through at least Friday. Rain could be heavy at times through the period. It will be cooler, with high temperatures in the mid-60’s to the low 70’s. It will be warmer this weekend.
Little River is flowing at 271 cubic feet per second (cfs) or 2.15 feet on the flow gauge. Median flow for this date is 211 cfs. The water temperature is 62.2 degrees this morning. The river has peaked and is receding.
All streams that have USGS gauge sites are reporting either rising water or levels that have peaked. None are “blown out” so far. Water levels are fine for fishing.
Fishing may be good today in the Smokies, unless thunderstorms bring heavy rain into some watersheds. Nymphs and dry flies have been working very well. Fishing has been very good.
Lowland river water levels are fine for now. There is a chance you may find stained water in the lower reaches of some rivers. Fishing for trout where they are stocked and smallmouth bass has been good. What happens next depends on the expected rainfall.
TVA and the Corps plan to generate at most dams today. One exception is Center Hill Dam. There may be others. Check the TVA website from the links below to see what is going on at your favorite tailwater today.
Lake fishing is good. Due to the predicted thunderstorms this week, I would stay close to the ramp.
It appears the secondary roads in the Park are still closed with no re-opening dates announced so far. We have a holiday weekend coming up. The Park is usually packed with people on Memorial Day weekend. You can view the list of open and closed roads, trails and facilities on the Park’s website by CLICKING HERE. I am going to be checking this page every day this week.
Things are going well at the shop. Business is good. Fishing is very popular right now. I read one article yesterday about bait shops. They can’t buy enough bait. They are selling all they can get. Evidently we have a live bait shortage in America. Demand is exceeding supply.
We do not sell live bait. A lot of people do ask.
My father, when he was living, had a great sense of humor. He lived in Nashville. We would talk on the phone often. He always asked, “How is your bait shop doing?” I just told him “The bait shop is doing fine”. He knew Little River Outfitters is a fly shop.
I do love visiting bait shops when we are traveling. The smell of the minnow and shrimp tanks bring back many fond memories of my childhood. I like talking to the people working in bait shops. You can get some great fishing information at bait shops. Sometimes you can learn more at bait shops, than you can at some fly shops, depending on where you are. I have found that to be true more than once.
I try to buy something to help their business. I remember buying a crab trap at a bait shop in Florida that I never used. I buy maps too. Sometimes, I buy live shrimp. I make it a point to visit every fly shop I can find when I’m traveling. And, I don’t remember ever passing up a bait shop without stopping in.
Have a great day and thank you for being here with us.
Byron Begley
May 19, 2020
Respond to: byron@littleriveroutfitters.com |
