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Welcome to the Fishing Report from Townsend, Tennessee in the Great Smoky Mountains. At 5:18 am, the temperature outside is 29.3 degrees.
Yesterday’s low temperature was 19 degrees at the Knoxville Airport. The normal low for the date is 40 degrees. The lowest temperature for the date was set in 1911 at 17 degrees.
The high yesterday was 39 degrees, compared to normal of 62 degrees.
It will be gradually warmer every day through the weekend. The high today is predicted to be 45 degrees, rising in the 50’s tomorrow through Sunday. Lows will range from the upper 20’s to low 30’s. No precipitation is expected during the period.
Little River is flowing at 134 cubic feet per second (cfs) or 1.70 feet on the flow gauge. Median flow for this date is 124 cfs. The water temperature is 39.7 degrees this morning and falling.
Water temperatures should bottom out by noon and hopefully begin to rise some. You can expect less than good fishing conditions today, due to the cold water. The water is colder in the higher elevations. For instance, the water temp is 36.1 degrees at Cataloochee Creek and falling right now.
Streams are flowing at a good level in the Smokies.
Trout become inactive when the water temperature falls to the low 40’s or below. Their metabolism slows. They don’t need food to survive.
We will see some improvement by the weekend. I would plan on fishing late in the day this week, when the water is warmer. I would also fish the lower elevations where the water is warmer.
Nymphs are your best choice of flies. Fish them weighted and deep, right on the bottom.
Tailwater fishing is better. Check the TVA website from the links below to see if you can work with their generation schedules.
There are not many tourists in Townsend. Just about everyone I see, I know or recognize. Traffic is very light. That will change soon, during the Thanksgiving holiday week. Our town will also be busy during the Christmas and New Year holidays. Then, we get to experience the lack of visitors and slow business until early Spring.
A friend came by the shop yesterday. She and her husband own a motel in town. She told me, “we used to have to go to the bank and borrow money to get us through the Winter”. I think they have been in business close to 40 years or longer. Business in Townsend is lean during the Winter months. It has always been that way. That probably won’t change in my lifetime.
Townsend is not a “boom town” like some gateways to the Smokies are. I prefer it this way. I think most residents and business people do too. We are “The Peaceful Side of the Smokies”. I believe most of us want to keep it that way.
That and all the friendly people living and working here are our attraction. And that is why most of us love living here. I moved here to get away from a "boom town". Of course there is the beautiful scenery, wildlife, hiking trails, streams, lakes and fishing.
Have a great day and thank you for being here with us.
Byron Begley
November 14, 2019
Respond to: byron@littleriveroutfitters.com
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