Welcome to the Fishing Report from Townsend, Tennessee in the Great Smoky Mountains. At 4:47 am, the temperature is 58 degrees.

It is going to feel like Fall this morning but that won’t last long. Today will be sunny with a high temperature in the middle 80’s. Tomorrow will be warmer. It will be sunny with a high in the upper 80’s. We will see high temperatures in the 90’s Monday and through the end of next week. Summer is not over yet.

Little River is flowing at 287 cubic feet per second (cfs) or 2.26 feet on the gauge. Median flow for this date is 108 cfs. The water temperature is 63.7 degrees this morning.

Streams in the Smokies continue to recede from the high water we saw early this week. Some streams are flowing closer to normal but still slightly higher. Others are still flowing quite a bit higher than normal. Tellico River is a good example.  

Most streams are flowing at good fishing levels. Water temperatures have been fairly cool during the past few days. That will change in the near future as we will need to begin fishing in the higher elevations where the water is cooler.

Trout are taking dry flies and nymphs. A dry and dropper rig is a good choice. My dry fly picks would be a Yellow Stimulator, Yellow Sally Stonefly imitation or a foam beetle. For a dropper, my choice is either a Green Weenie or a Bead Head Pheasant Tail.

Some of the lowland rivers are flowing at great fishing levels for those fishing for smallmouth bass, rock bass and panfish. Little River and Little Pigeon River are two good examples. Plan on using streamers, crayfish patterns, foam floating flies or poppers.

This will be a bright sunny day so I would go lake fishing early, at daybreak. Hit the banks with weighted streamers or swimming nymphs. I you are fishing on a cooler lake, foam floating flies or poppers are other good choices. As the sun rises high try to find shaded water to fish. I would be done by late morning.

TVA and the Corps will be generating all day at a few dams, with short to long breaks planned at others. You should not have a problem finding a good generation schedule on several of the many tailwaters in the area. Check the list from the links below to plan your tailwater fishing day.

The long term weather forecast is encouraging. It is going to be hot next week. If the forecast I am reading is correct, the week beginning August 27th will be much cooler with highs in the upper 70’s. That gives us something to look forward to.

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

Byron Begley
August 19, 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