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Welcome to the Fishing Report from Townsend, Tennessee in the Great Smoky Mountains. At 5:15 am, the temperature outside is 57.2 degrees.
We got almost no rain yesterday, only a trace in Townsend and .17 inches at the Knoxville Airport.
Rain does remain in the forecast through Monday with chances each day between 50% and 70%. Thunderstorms are a possibility through the period.
It will be cool today, topping out at 70 degrees. A warming trend begins tomorrow with highs in the upper 70’s rising to the mid-80’s Saturday through Monday.
Little River is flowing at 507 cubic feet per second (cfs) or 2.65 feet on the flow gauge. Median flow for this date is 200 cfs. The water temperature is 55.9 degrees this morning.
Little Pigeon River is still flowing high at the Sevierville gauge. Flow is currently 1,060 cfs, 2.83 feet, compared to median flow of 364 cfs.
Oconaluftee River is flowing at 883 cfs, 2.38 feet, compared to median flow of 453 cfs.
Tellico River is flowing at 298 cfs, 1.70 feet, compared to median flow of 216 cfs.
Cataloochee Creek is flowing at 170 cfs, 2.84 feet, compared to median flow of 95 cfs.
West Prong of the Little Pigeon River at Gatlinburg is flowing at 203 cfs, 4.00 feet, compared to median flow of 56 cfs.
Some streams are flowing quite a bit higher than normal. Some streams are fishable, but you will find swift water in others. Be careful wading. Little River looks pretty good this morning. It will be swift in some spots.
If you are wondering about fishing in the Smokies this weekend, like most of us are, it all depends on how much rain we get. If we have more days like yesterday, fishing may be good. Otherwise, the streams or some streams may be flowing high. The thunderstorms, if they occur, will be scattered. So, we may have good conditions in some streams while in others, the water may be flowing high. Water temperatures will be good through Monday.
Nymphs will probably work best due to the higher water. Add plenty of extra weight to get them down. High sticking or Euro Nymphing will be a good option. Dry flies may work too. Nymph choices should include Tellico, Prince, Hare’s Ear, Green Weenie and Pheasant Tail. Some good dry fly choices include Yellow Neversink Caddis, Yellow Stimulator, any Yellow Sally pattern and Light Cahill or Sulphur.
Some roads in the Park that have been closed will re-open Saturday, including Tremont Road and Upper Tremont Road. Opening Tremont Road is a big deal for anglers. That will give us access to upper Middle Prong of Little River, Lynn Camp Prong and Thunderhead Prong. There are many pull-offs on Tremont Road so parking in the area will improve. Other roads are opening Saturday. You can see the list on the Park’s website by CLICKING HERE. Scroll down to “Which Roads Will Open May 23rd” and open the window. Formerly open roads are also listed so it is a little confusing.
Elkmont Road will remain closed. I hated to read that.
Many lowland rivers are flowing fairly high this morning. Wading will be limited in many of those rivers.
TVA and the Corps will be generating at most dams today. TVA is spilling at Douglas Dam. The turbines may be off early this morning at Center Hill and Wolf Creek Dams. Look at the TVA website yourself before going. We are all hoping for less generation and flows on the tailwaters this weekend.
Except for the chance for thunderstorms, fishing will be good on many lakes today and through the weekend. The chance for bad weather may limit the number of boaters on the lakes. It may be overcast often through Monday. I would not normally go lake fishing on Memorial Day weekend. This one may be an exception.
Have a great day and thank you for being here with us.
Byron Begley
May 21, 2020
Respond to: byron@littleriveroutfitters.com |
