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Welcome to the Fishing Report from Townsend, Tennessee in the Great Smoky Mountains. At 4:59 am, the temperature outside is 69.6 degrees.
It will be hot today, around 90 degrees with thunderstorms developing this afternoon. Tomorrow and through the weekend we will see more of the same, hot, muggy and possibly wet.
Little River is flowing at 112 cubic feet per second (cfs) or 1.61 feet on the gauge. Median flow for this date is 131 cfs. The water temperature is 70.5 degrees at the low elevation gauge site in Townsend.
Most streams in the Smokies, including Tellico River in the Cherokee National Forest are flowing at or slightly above normal. Little River and the West Prong of the Little Pigeon River at Gatlinburg are flowing below median flow. The USGS gauge in Gatlinburg is fairly new so the flow history does not define median flow like it would over a longer period of time.
Water temperatures are very warm in the lower elevations. The water temperature in Little River at Townsend rose to 72 degrees yesterday. These temps are not healthy for the trout that are caught an released. Fish the higher elevations where the water is cooler. Look for temps in the mid-60’s or cooler.
Dry flies and nymphs will work. Choose a Yellow Sally Stonefly imitation or a terrestrial dry fly. A black foam beetle that can be seen well is a good choice. Green Weenies will work for your sub-surface fly. Don’t let the trout see you and you will catch more. Fish the broken water where they are hiding from predators.
Lowland River levels are low, which is normal this time of the year. Fishing for smallmouth bass and other warmwater species is fair to good, depending on where you are fishing. I would fish the deeper pools and runs where you can. Go early or late when the sun is off the water or fish the shaded areas.
Most tailwaters in the area will have flows you can work with today. Check the TVA website from the links below to see the scheduled dam releases on your favorite tailwater.
If you decide to fish a lake today, you should probably be heading that way right now. Launch at daybreak and fish until you can’t find shaded banks later in the morning. Poppers, hair bugs, foam floating flies, streamers and swimming nymphs should be in your fly boxes. I would start with the top water offerings. If they are not working, try streamers and swimming nymphs.
Paula saw that small bear again yesterday morning, walk by the back of our house. She saw what was probably the same bear a week or so ago. She said it didn’t look healthy. Maybe it is young and learning to make a living on its own, and possibly malnourished.
One of our neighbors has trail cameras set up around his home. He told me they photograph bears almost every night. Bears are out there, there are a lot of them, and they looking for food.
Most of us learned a long time ago to keep garbage inside, our grills clean and our vehicles locked. Some people have not learned. Some visitors actually feed the bears. They think the bears are cute. Like they say, “A fed bear is a dead bear”.
Have a great day and thank you for being here with us.
Byron Begley
July 9, 2020
NOTICE: FLY TYERS WEEKEND HAS BEEN CANCELLED THIS YEAR. WE ARE PLANNING THE EVENT FOR 2021.
Respond to: byron@littleriveroutfitters.com |