Welcome to the Fishing Report from Townsend, Tennessee in the Great Smoky Mountains. At 4:47 am, the temperature in Townsend is 41 degrees.

Today will be sunny with a high temperature around 81 degrees, dropping to the middle 50’s overnight.

It is going to rain tomorrow. There is a 100% chance for showers and thunderstorms. Rainfall amounts could reach three quarters of an inch. The high temperature will be in the low 70’s with a low around 50 degrees overnight.

Saturday and Sunday will be mostly sunny with a high in the middle to upper 60’s.

Little River is flowing at 468 cubic feet per second (cfs) or 2.54 feet on the gauge. Median flow for this date is 332 cfs. The water temperature is 49.1 degrees this morning.

Most streams in the mountains have receded back to near normal. What is most remarkable today is, water temperature. Right now, the water temperature is near 50 degrees in the low elevation streams. The high today will be in the low 80’s.

We will see water temperatures rise to well within the trout’s preferred range. Aquatic insects will be active too, though the hatches will be sporadic. You will most likely see Quill Gordons or Blue Quills on the water.

Fish in the low to middle elevations where the water is warmer.

Fishing for stocked trout in the low elevation rivers is good. Water levels are close to normal and the temperatures are great. Nymphs, dry flies, wet flies and possibly streamers will work for you.

TVA and the Corps will be generating all day at most of the dams. There are some exceptions. Check the predicted flows at Dale Hollow and Tims Ford. If you are boating, there are more options. Visit the TVA website to see what options you have.

When I was living in Nashville over 30 years ago, I fished the Tims Ford and Dale Hollow tailwaters fairly often. My go to river was the Caney Fork below Center Hill Dam. I usually ended up there on weekends. In the 70’s and 80’s, these rivers were not crowded at all. They say it is different now, especially at the Caney Fork. I guess everything is different now. There was no fly shop in Townsend back then.

Have a great day and thank you for being here with us.

Byron Begley
March 14, 2024

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Respond to: byron@littleriveroutfitters.com