Welcome to the Fishing Report from Townsend, Tennessee in the Great Smoky Mountains. At 4:49 am, the temperature is 62 degrees.

It is raining again this morning. Rain fell most of the day yesterday, with totals in Townsend amounting to between .71 inches and .94 inches.

Rain and thunderstorms will continue today and tonight. Rainfall over the next 24 hours may amount to a half of an inch to three quarters of an inch, with more possible in thunderstorms. The high temperature today will be in the low 70’s.

Showers are likely tomorrow and overnight. The high temperature tomorrow will be in the upper 70’s.

Little River is flowing at 170 cubic feet per second (cfs) or 1.96 feet on the gauge. Median flow for this date is 133 cfs. The water temperature is 63.9 degrees this morning.

Most if not all streams in the Smokies are flowing higher than normal. Some streams are fishable. Little River is one of them. That could change today. Check the USGS gauges before you go.

If you go fishing in the mountains today, weighted nymphs or nymph rigs are good tactical choices. If the stream you are fishing is not flowing too high or stained, you should do well. Watch for quickly rising water. If you see that happening, get out of the stream or river.

Fishing for stocked trout may be fair to good today. Some rivers may be flowing high at times. Right now, some rivers are rising while others are receding. Weighted nymphs and streamers are good fly choices.

Some lowland rivers are flowing high. Fishing for smallmouth bass and warmwater species is probably good, unless the river you are fishing is flowing too high. Some rivers may also be stained. Streamers and crayfish patterns will likely work best.

This is going to be another overcast day, which is always a good condition for lake fishing. Some lakes or areas in lakes may be stained. We have had as much as 5 inches of rain in parts of East Tennessee this week. As a result, TVA will generating with multiple generators at Watts Bar and Fort Loudoun dams on the Tennessee River today. If you go, cast to the banks or cover with streamers or swimming nymphs. You might try foam floating flies or poppers and they may work for you.

There are generation schedules you can work with on many of the area tailwaters. Check the TVA website from the links below to see what your options are.

We are all happy about this rain and there is more to come. Using the Knoxville Airport as a reference, there has been 4.20 inches of rain in June through yesterday. Normal is 2.82 inches during the period.

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

Byron Begley
June 22, 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