Welcome to the Fishing Report from Townsend, Tennessee in the Great Smoky Mountains. At 4:32 am, the temperature is 63 degrees.

It will be sunny today with a high temperature around 80 degrees, dropping to about 61 degrees tonight. We can expect sunny days tomorrow through the weekend with no rain predicted.

Thunderstorms that contained heavy rain moved through the foothills and mountains Monday night. Up to 7 inches of rain fell in some areas. The Tellico River drainage and the town of Tellico Plains endured extreme flooding. Tellico River peaked at 15.3 feet yesterday. Moderate flood stage is 9 feet at the Tellico Plains gauge.

Little River rose to 6.3 feet yesterday at the Townsend gauge. Flood stage at the gauge site is 7 feet.

Little River is currently flowing at 1,110 cubic feet per second (cfs) or 3.42 feet on the gauge. Median flow for this date is 138 cfs. The water temperature is 64.2 degrees.

Most streams in the Smokies have receded but they are still flowing high. Some streams and rivers are not safe to wade and fish. You may find some smaller streams that are fishable today. If you go, be careful wading. Nymphs and streamers will likely work best for you.

Most lowland rivers are flowing high. Fishing for smallmouth bass, rock bass and panfish will improve as the waters recede further.

Lake fishing will be best early or late when the sun is low. My first choice would be to go early and fish through the morning hours. Hit the banks or cover with weighted streamers, swimming nymphs, foam floating flies or poppers. When the sun is high, try to find shaded areas to fish.

There is a chance some lakes may be stained or partially stained from runoff due to recent heavy rain.

Fishing on a tailwater may be a great option right now. There are generation schedules at some dams you can work with. Check the TVA website from the links below to see what tailwater fishing opportunities you have today.

We are slow at the shop. Traffic is light in Townsend. There is a reason for that. It is August. August is always slow. Kids are back in school which affects some families. Guide Mike Bone and I were talking yesterday. He blames the heat we have to deal with in August. Fishing can be great, but we are tired of the heat when August rolls around. We are looking forward to cooler weather in September and that is not far off.

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

Byron Begley
August 16, 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