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Welcome to the Fishing Report from Townsend, Tennessee in the Great Smoky Mountains. The sun is shining brightly this morning. What a welcome sight after rain and storms.

Storms rolled across the area yesterday evening. Winds were high. US 441/Newfound Gap Road is closed this morning due to high winds. The other main roads were open.

Water levels rose sharply overnight. This morning the gauge on the Little River is at 3.55 feet or 1150 c.f.s. The daily normal is 382 c.f.s. We didn't receive that much rain so I expect that the river will return closer to normal fairly quick.

Water temperatures are good. This morning the Little River is up to almost 52F. Temperatures will rise today.

Other streams in the Park are high this morning also. The Little Pigeon system is high. The Oconoluftee is too. The tailwaters are still flowing way to high to be fishable. Norris Dam (the Clinch River) is generating, sluicing and spilling. That is pretty much every method TVA has to get water downstream. The average hourly outflow is almost 24,000. Hopefully water levels on the lakes will get down to a good level soon so we can get out fishing on the big rivers this Spring.

The weather forecast for this week looks great for fishing in the Smokies. There is no rain coming until Thursday or Friday and that isn't supposed to be too much. Highs today are going to be in the 70's. The rest of the week will be 60's with lows only in the 40's.

Not counting today, fishing conditions have been good. The early Spring hatches have begun. Anglers are seeing Blue Quills and Quill Gordons. Trout are rising. Blue Quills are small mayflies usually in the #18 - #20 range. Quill Gordons on the other hand are large, #10 - #12. Wet flies work well during a Quill Gordon hatch.

If you head to the mountains today you will have to be careful of water flows. 3.5 feet is up in the range that the whitewater kayakers like. You will need to stay out of the water. Long rods will give you a better drift while allowing you to keep to the edge of the stream. Smaller streams like West Prong of Little River and Laurel Creek can be good options also.

Spring Break has started. We are seeing an influx of families and especially college kids who are escaping the continuing winter weather of the north. This continues for a few weeks then will settle down once again.

I'm not going to update the fishing gauge this morning because of the high water but I wouldn't be surprised if it is inched up towards excellent by the end of the week. Spring is here!

If you go to the Smokies today enjoy the beautiful weather but be cautious around the water. Have a great day and thank you for being here with us.

Daniel Drake
March 10, 2019

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