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Welcome to the Fishing Report from Townsend, Tennessee in the Great Smoky Mountains. At 5:36 am, the temperature outside is 69.4 degrees.

Today will be slightly cooler. We have a 60% to 80% chance for thunderstorms today, at all locations in and around Great Smoky Mountains National Park. I heard rain a few minutes ago. A small but strong thunderstorm is hovering just outside Townsend on the Sevier County line.  

NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PREDICTED HIGHS AND LOWS TODAY

Rain fell at some locations in the Smokies yesterday and last night, raising water levels slightly in Little River, Little Pigeon River and Cataloochee Creek. The rise in flows were not spectacular by any stretch. All streams in the park that have USGS Gauge sites are flowing slightly above median flow.

Little River is flowing at 105  cubic feet per second (cfs) or 1.62 feet on the flow gauge. Median flow for this date is 86 cfs. The water temperature is 69.4 degrees this morning.

The streams are very warm in the low elevations. Move upstream to the mid or high elevations, where the water is cooler, to fish.

Be stealthy so as not to be seen by the trout. Dress to blend in with the forest.

The streams are flowing low, which is normal this time of the year. Trout will be hiding in broken water, where riffles enter pools, in pockets or near cover. Fish the choppy water.

Dry flies or nymphs will work. Choose a foam beetle, a yellow dry fly hat resembles a Yellow Sally stonefly, Parachute Adams or a Yellow Stimulator. Nymph choices should include a Green Weenie or a Bead Head Pheasant Tail. Many other reasonable flies will work. I would start by dropping a Green Weenie off a foam beetle pattern.

I hear thunder now. Some rain would be nice.

Try the tailwaters for trout or smallmouth bass.

It may be cloudy at times today. Fly fishing the lakes could be a good idea.

We can tell, by the lack of foot traffic in our store, many anglers are not fishing right now. That is usually the case in August. Cooler days and nights will be the norm soon, later in September. August is just about over.

I found a good article on the Fly Fisherman Magazine website, written by Blane Chocklett, a Virginia fly fishing guide and fly designer. He is known for developing the Gummy Minnow and the Game Changer. In this article, he describes his quest to design flies that imitate baitfish, to catch large predator game fish, including musky and large brown trout. You can read it by CLICKING HERE.

I don’t know Blane personally, but I have talked to him on the phone a few times. There is no doubt he is an innovator. I have tied some Game Changer flies, and caught smallmouth bass on them. These baitfish patterns are articulated, and the swimming action is about as good as it gets, for a fly. I didn’t use them often, mainly because mine were so large, I needed a 9-weight fly rod to cast them easily. I know they work. Maybe it is time to try again, with smaller versions.

These flies are not hard to tie but the do take time. I enjoyed tying them.

We know, one third of our customers buy fly tying materials. It has been that way for many years. The majority of our customers buy their flies. I know, fly tying is not for everyone. To me, fly tying is a way to expand my passion for our sport. There is nothing like, catching a fish on the fly you tied yourself. That adds a new dimension to your day on the water. It’s hard to explain, but that is the way it is, to me and many other fly anglers.

My passion for fly tying spills over to our fly tying department. I can’t wait until tomorrow, to order and replenish the materials and hooks we sold during the past 7 days. Today, I am taking a floor frame, I designed and built, to our sign makers in Alcoa. The sign is designed to remind people we have a fly tying department upstairs. I put the last coat of polyurethane on the floor frame last night. We should have it inside the front door in a week.

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

Byron Begley
August 29, 2018

Respond to: byron@littleriveroutfitters.com