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Welcome to the Fishing Report from Townsend, Tennessee in the Great Smoky Mountains. At 5:36 am, the temperature outside is 33.4 degrees.
This will be another beautiful day, foggy this morning, then sunny later. No rain is expected today.
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PREDICTED HIGHS AND LOWS TODAY
LOCATION |
HIGH |
LOW |
TOWNSEND |
56 |
41 |
GATLINBURG |
57 |
40 |
ELKMONT |
56 |
38 |
CADES COVE |
56 |
40 |
NEWFOUND GAP |
53 |
36 |
MOUNT LECONTE |
43 |
32 |
CHEROKEE |
59 |
33 |
SMOKEMONT |
54 |
37 |
BRYSON CITY |
60 |
37 |
MAGGIE VALLEY |
57 |
37 |
COSBY |
58 |
40 |
Little River is flowing at 617 cubic feet per second (cfs) or 2.87 feet on the flow gauge. Median flow for this date is 146 cfs. The water temperature is 47.8 degrees this morning.
Little Pigeon River is flowing high at 1,090 cfs, compared to median flow of 220 cfs.
Oconaluftee River at Birdtown is flowing at 933 cfs, compared to median flow of 271 cfs. The water temperature is 44.4 degrees.
Cataloochee Creek is flowing at 234 cfs. Median flow there is 54 cfs for this date. The water temperature is 42.8 degrees.
Water temperatures in the Smokies are in the 40’s this morning. The streams are still flowing higher than normal, but they have receded since yesterday. They will continue to recede today. If you go fishing today, be careful wading as some areas will be swift, depending on which drainage you are fishing.
Today will be sunny and warm, so stream temps will rise later, though they are still falling this morning.
I think fishing may be fair, it could be slow or it might be good. I hope you find fishing to be good if you go. I would wait a while for the water to warm. While you are waiting, the flows will be receding more. Fishing conditions will improve some later, except for the bright sun shining on the water.
I would plan on using heavily weighted nymphs. Try a Tellico, Prince, Girdle Bug, Pheasant Tail or Hare’s Ear. Get your nymphs down deep. Streamers might work. A Muddler Minnow or any sculpin pattern might entice a large trout.
As the water warms, trout and insect activity may improve. You may not see any bugs on the water. If you do they will probably be blue wing olives, small black stoneflies or midges. If you see trout rising, try to determine what they are taking and switch to a dry fly or emerger pattern.
We are busy at the shop, despite less than the optimal fishing conditions we have had lately. The holidays are coming. Gift cards will be selling like candy soon. Customers buy them online, call us at the shop or come by to buy them.
The new Fishpond gear arrived and customers are loving the new 2019 gear collection. The best seller so far is the new wading staff. We had several in stock from the first shipment two weeks ago, but they sold out quickly. Daniel ordered a dozen more. We should have them by now.
I am still working on the fly tying department. I printed sales reports yesterday, of every item we stock, and how much of each we sold over the last 3 years. I will put those numbers in a spreadsheet today, and decide what needs to go to make room for more new tying materials and tools. We have a very large fly tying department, 700 square feet, but we can’t expand it much more without remodeling the entire second floor of the shop. I order every week to keep the department stocked.
People are raving about the newly opened missing link of the Foothills Parkway. This 16-mile road offers views of Townsend and the Smoky Mountains, most have never seen before. Today will be a good day to take the drive. Expect heavy traffic. Wait until the fog lifts.
Have a great day and thank you for being here with us.
Byron Begley
November 18, 2018
Respond to: byron@littleriveroutfitters.com
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