Welcome to the Fishing Report from Townsend, Tennessee in the Great Smoky Mountains. At 4:46 am, the temperature is 53 degrees.

We can expect showers and possibly a thunderstorm today with a high temperature in the upper 60’s. Rainfall amounts between a tenth and a quarter of an inch are possible with higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.

Showers and thunderstorms will continue tonight. A quarter to a half of an inch of rain is possible. The low temperature will be in the low to middle 50’s.

Tomorrow will be partly sunny, with a chance for thunderstorms and a high in the middle 70’s and a low around 50 degrees.

The weekend will be warm with a low chance for rain Saturday and a greater chance Sunday.

Little River is flowing at 149 cubic feet per second (cfs) or 1.88 feet on the gauge. Median flow for this date is 268 cfs. The water temperature is 52.3 degrees this morning and steady.

Most if not all streams in the mountains are flowing lower than normal. That may change soon. Water temperatures are warming somewhat.

Fishing has been and will be better today in the low elevations where the water is warmer. Recent cold nights have kept the water chilly in the middle and high elevations. Fly fishing, especially with dry flies has been slower in all but the low elevations. As the water warms, dry fly fishing will improve. There are many species of aquatic insects hatching. You will likely see Yellow Sally Stoneflies and Sulphurs.

Fishing for stocked trout in the low elevation rivers will be good today. It will be overcast which is beneficial. Water temperatures are fairly warm in these rivers so trout will be active. Try nymphs, caddis pupa, midge pupa, squirmy worms or small streamers.

Fishing for smallmouth bass in the lowland rivers is probably going to be fair but fishing will improve as the rivers warm. Streamers and nymphs will probably work best.

This may be a very good lake fishing day but you will likely get wet and maybe encounter a thunderstorm. It will be overcast and winds are predicted to be light unless you are caught in a thunderstorm. I would cast to the rocky banks with weighted streamers. Retrieve slow and let your fly sink deep. This could be a good smallmouth bass fishing day on the lakes.

There are long breaks in the generation scheduled a several dams today with short periods of pulsing mixed in. Tailwater anglers have a lot of options whether you are wading or boating. Plan your tailwater fishing day by first visiting the TVA website from the links below.

Ranger Outdoors is one of our larger manufacturers and distributors. They are located here in Tennessee. Their offering include, Chota, Miss Mayfly, Daiichi Hooks and Anglers Sport Group fly boxes.

They just announced a partnership with C & F Design to be the exclusive North American distributor. C & F is a Japanese company, known for their high quality fly boxes, fly tying tools and fly fishing accessories. Evidently, they will distribute the entire C & F lineup.

Paula and I have a lot of older C & F waterproof fly boxes that we still use and enjoy. I’m looking forward to seeing and selling their new modular fly boxes as well as their fly tying tools.

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

Byron Begley
April 27, 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.

Respond to: byron@littleriveroutfitters.com