If you do not see today’s Fishing Report, please refresh your browser to empty your cache.
Welcome to the Fishing Report from Townsend, Tennessee in the Great Smoky Mountains. At 5:38 am, the temperature outside is 32.9 degrees.
It will be sunny and warm today with a high of about 58 degrees. Tonight, the low will fall to 44 degrees. Tomorrow will be very warm with a chance for rain and a high in the low 60’s. Tomorrow night will be warm and wet with a low in the mid to upper 50’s.
Little River is flowing at 235 cubic feet per second (cfs) or 2.05 feet on the flow gauge. Median flow for this date is 188 cfs. The water temperature is 45.5 degrees this morning.
Water temperatures rose two degrees in Little River yesterday. Then, the temps fell overnight. We will see that trend continue through Tuesday, though the nights will be warmer causing water temperatures to rise further.
Fishing in the Smokies is fair and should improve over the next two three days. Fish in the lower elevations where the water is warmer. Also, wait a while before going fishing, when the water is warmer.
Nymphs and streamers will work best. Good nymph choices are Tellico, Pheasant Tail, Hare’s Ear and Prince. My streamer choice would be a muddler minnow or another sculpin imitation. Fish your nymphs and streamers deep. You may see surface activity at times. Blue wing olives and midges may be on the water and trout could be feeding on them. Be ready for that.
Lowland river fishing where trout are stocked is fair to good. You might want to fish a delayed harvest stream in Tennessee or North Carolina. Stocked trout are packed into the water at high densities, and food is scarce. If the water is warm enough, they will be hungry. Stocked trout are used to eating on a regular basis at hatcheries.
TVA and the Corps of Engineers are generating around the clock at most dams, limiting tailwater fishing opportunities. I checked the water level at Norris Lake and it is higher than TVA would prefer. That is probably the case in many reservoirs.
The Townsend Christmas Parade will be held today. There will be a lot of people in town to enjoy this well known Christmas celebration. There will be many floats, bands, antique tractors, horses, ATV’s, and old cars and trucks. Of course, Santa will be here.
The parade usually begins at 2:00 pm and lasts about two hours. During that time, you will not be able to drive through Townsend on highway 321. You may want to plan your day around this event. The parade usually begins right at our store and terminates on the Maryville side of town.
This is going to be a great parade day, so if you are passing through town, get out and enjoy our annual Christmas celebration. Or, make plans to be here. Our parade is very popular and well attended.
Have a great day and thank you for being here with us.
Byron Begley
December 8, 2019
Respond to: byron@littleriveroutfitters.com
 |
A bamboo fly rod made by Walter Babb and 10 dozen flies tied by him will be auctioned off on Saturday December 14th at about 5:30 to 6:00 pm. This auction benefits the Needy Family Fund of Sweetwater Tennessee. This organization is made up of 20 area churches and raises money to buy food for families in need for Christmas. The auction will be held at the Sweetwater Primary School located at 500 Highway 322 East in Sweetwater.
You do not have to be present to bid on the rod or the flies. Call Phil Roy beforehand, at 423-337-1212 to register. You will be given several phone numbers to call in your bid during the live auction.
Below is what Walter told me about these auction items:
“The rod I made for the Needy Family Auction this year is a seven foot, 2 Piece, 4-weight Wayne Cattanach taper. Wayne is the author of Handcrafting Bamboo Fly Rods, one of the teaching books for me. This is a flamed single tip rod with a Hormigo Negro wooden spacer. In Spanish it is called an ant tree. Reel seat, spacer and ferrules are made by Baily Wood of Classic Sporting Enterprises. Also, the rod bag and rod tube are made by REC.
The box of flies are 10 dozen of my favorite nymphs. They include, three types of Tellico Nymphs, the Gray Squirrel nymph, George Nymph, Bead Head Peasant Tail, Atherton’s Medium Nymph, Bead Head Prince Nymph and Mr. Rapidan Emerger. This is my core group of nymphs that I use in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Cherokee National Forest and in Western North Carolina. I carry a few others for special occasions or hatches.” |
|