Welcome to the Fishing Report from Townsend, Tennessee in the Great Smoky Mountains. 27 degrees.  I'm not sure I even want to comment on that.  The sun is going to shine today and everything will warm up.  Tomorrow is going to be much warmer, getting into the mid 60's.  That however is going to bring more rain on Friday.  

Water levels in the Smokies are good.  The gauge on Little River is reading 2.39 feet or 336 c.f.s.  That is right near the medium flow of 323 c.f.s.  Streams are clear.  

Water temperature dropped again yesterday.  The temperature in Little River this morning is 40.64F.  Cooling water usually causes slower fishing.  Hopefully with a sunny day and warmer overnight temperatures tonight and tomorrow we will see the water temperature come back up closer to 50. 

I expect fishing to be fairly slow today.  Starting out early you will want to be fishing nymphs.  Add weight till you are bouncing on the bottom.  As the day warms you might try some topwater flies.  The mayflies have been hatching and they can't stop their lifecycle just because winter isn't ready to leave East Tennessee.

Taking a glance at the TVA sites for the tailwaters it looks like another day of generation and high flows.  It seems as though we have had a large amount of rain this year.  Rain falls, the river rises, the waters subside and then it rains again.  We are a little above normal but we are 3 inches less rain than we had at this time last year.  I'd much rather have consistent rains than have those heavy deluges which cause flash floods and wash out the roads.

There is rain predicted for Friday.  About a half inch or so.  Thursday night is going to be warm with the lows only dropping into the 50's.  Water levels will rise but so will water temperatures.  This should kick the trouts metabolism into high gear.  In such conditions, fishing will either be terrible or epic.  Rising water is always a safety concern and requires you to be smart and careful.  Staying out of the stream is the best policy.  Casting streamers from the bank is what I would do.  Take you 5, 6 or 7wt rod and dust off the streamer box.  With streamers you are less concerned about a perfect drift.  Cast out across the stream, let the fly swing then start working it back.  A Game Changer is going to have the action get one of those big Little River brown trout thinking it is worth his time to fight the current for a nice meal.

That kind of fishing is a lot of casting and moving.  You may not catch as many trout as you would casting elk hair caddis into pocket water on a pretty, sunny day.  However, the trout you may see and hopefully hook will be above average.

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

Daniel Drake
March 15, 2023

IMPORTANT NOTICE: Parking Tags are now required to park your vehicle inside Great Smoky Mountains National Park for more than 15 minutes. Tags may be purchased at Visitors Centers, including the center in Townsend. Or, they may be purchased online. You can buy a daily, weekly or annual tag. CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION.

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