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Welcome to the Fishing Report from Townsend, Tennessee in the Great Smoky Mountains. At 4:48 am, the temperature is 57.9 degrees.

It will be sunny today with a high temperature in the middle to upper 80’s, dropping to the low 60’s tonight. Memorial Day will be sunny and warm. Expect a high temperature in the upper 80’s. There is a slight chance for thunderstorms tomorrow afternoon and evening.

Little River is flowing at 833 cubic feet per second (cfs) or 3.17 feet on the gauge. Median flow for this date is 194 cfs. The water temperature is 57.9 degrees this morning.

Streams in the mountains have been slowing receding but they are still flowing much higher than normal. Most streams or areas in the streams are too swift to safely wade.

I know many of you would like to fish in the mountains today. You may find a small stream to fish. Some may have receded to a safer fishable level. You might stand in safe water on any stream, and cast heavily weighted nymph rigs, high sticking or Euro nymphing.

You could do the same on the stocked trout sections of the rivers flowing out of the mountains.  

Currents are swift so be careful.

The lowland rivers where you would normally be fishing for smallmouth bass are flowing high. Wading will be very limited.

If you are planning to fish on a lake today, go early. By early, I mean at daybreak. Launch your boat, canoe or kayak and cast to the banks with streamers, swimming nymphs, poppers or foam floating flies. As the sun rises, find shaded banks to fish. By mid-morning, it may be time to go home. The launch ramps will be in constant use by pleasure boaters. The lakes will be packed with boats and personal watercraft.

This may be a good day to fish on a tailwater. I looked at several generation schedules and found some that wading anglers can work with. I also saw others that won’t work out for wading angers. If you are boating, you have more options.  

TVA is spilling at Douglas Dam. The lake has risen to beyond full pool, so they are pulling water out quickly. Some other lakes are still a little below full pool. Norris Lake is a good example.

I have been very busy stocking the fly tying department. Orders arrived late last week from Wapsi, Umqpua, Hareline, Semperfli and Firehole. Semperfli and Hareline arrived yesterday. Our fly tying suppliers are doing a much better job keeping us supplied now. That has not been the case from some of them during the past year or longer.

I have a list in my office on a clip board, of every item in the fly tying department that is out of stock and turned off on the online store. The list is updated at least daily and several times on some days. We have over 2,500 fly tying items on the online store. Late yesterday, that list showed only 82 items out of stock. It has been as high as 180 items and as low as 20.

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

Byron Begley
May 29, 2022   

Respond to: byron@littleriveroutfitters.com