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Welcome to the Fishing Report from Townsend, Tennessee in the Great Smoky Mountains. At 5:06 am, the temperature outside is 64.6 degrees.
It will be warm today, in the mid to upper 80’s with a chance for thunderstorms this afternoon. Rain chances increase tomorrow. A high chance for rain is predicted Tuesday and Wednesday. It will be cooler, in the 70’s, through the period.
Little River is flowing at 93.8 cubic feet per second (cfs) or 1.53 feet on the gauge. Median flow for this date is 133 cfs. The water temperature is 65.5 degrees this morning.
Little Pigeon River, Oconaluftee River, Tellico River and Cataloochee Creek are flowing near or above normal today. Little River is flowing below normal.
Anglers are reporting good fishing in the Smokies on dry flies and nymphs. Stealth and presentation are essential to your fly fishing success. Dress to blend with the forest. Fish the choppy water, pockets, plunge pools and deep runs.
Water temperatures will likely be warm in the very lowest elevations. Fish somewhat higher where the water is cooler. Look for water temperatures in the 60’s.
Lowland river fishing is fair to good for smallmouth bass. Some rivers are flowing low. Little River is one of them right now. Fish the shaded areas with nymphs, streamers, hair bugs, poppers or foam floating flies.
Generation schedules at all of the dams I checked this morning are workable, especially early or further downstream. I did not check them all. Click on the links below to the TVA website to see if you can work with their generation schedule on your favorite tailwater.
Today will be sunny, which is not a good “all day” condition for lake fishing with flies or poppers. Go early when the sun is off the water. As the sun rises, find shaded banks. On days like this, I go early and fish until late morning, then go home. Swimming nymphs, streamers, hair bugs, poppers and foam floating flies will work. The lakes will be crowded today.
Stillwater fly fishing is something you should try, especially here in the Tennessee Valley. We have nine impoundments nearby and more further away. You need some sort of watercraft, a boat, canoe or kayak are good. Personally, I prefer a boat with a trolling motor to move around almost silently and stay in the position where you want to be. A boat gives you the ability to stand and move around, which is more comfortable. A boat with outboard power is not essential, but it is helpful for traveling longer distances. I have seen many anglers, fishing on the lakes with only a trolling motor on their smaller boats.
You can use your heavier trout gear without buying anything special for lake fishing. I use a 6-weight outfit more than the heavier rods and reels, but those are still in the boat, just in case I want to cast heavy flies and poppers. When fishing for panfish, I use a 4-weight or 5 weight rod and reel.
For many of you, fishing on a lake would be something new to try. You may be surprised how much fun it is.
Have a great day and thank you for being here with us.
Happy Father’s Day guys.
Byron Begley
June 21, 2020
Respond to: byron@littleriveroutfitters.com |