Welcome to the Fishing Report from Townsend, Tennessee in the Great Smoky Mountains. At 4:47 am, the temperature is 67 degrees.

Today will be partly cloudy with a high temperature around 87 degrees and no rain predicted. It will be mostly sunny tomorrow with a high in the middle to upper 80’s. Cooler air will move in Thursday with a chance for thunderstorms.

Little River is flowing at 136 cubic feet per second (cfs) or 1.78 feet on the gauge. Median flow for this date is 98 cfs. The water temperature is 68.4 degrees this morning at the low elevation USGS gauge site near Townsend. Yesterday, the water temperature rose to 70 degrees and peaked at 4:45 pm.

Streams in the mountains are flowing higher than normal with some flowing right at normal for this date. Normal is low in early September. Water temperatures are warm in the low elevations for now. That will change in a few days. Fish in the middle to higher elevations today where the water is cooler. Look for water temperatures in the middle 60’s or cooler.

Trout are actively feeding and they are taking dry flies or nymphs.

Fishing for smallmouth bass, rock bass and panfish is good in the lowland rivers, which are flowing higher than normal in most cases. Fish in the deeper pools and runs. Streamers, crayfish imitations, foam floating flies and poppers are good fly choices.

Lake fishing will improve soon. There will be less boaters on the water now. As the surface temperatures cool, we will see gamefish moving into shallower water. That won’t happen quickly but it will happen. Today may be overcast at times, which is an ideal lake fishing condition. I would still go early and plan on fishing until the sun rises high. If it is indeed overcast, your fly fishing day will be extended. Weighted streamers or swimming nymphs will likely work best. Try foam floating flies and poppers too.

TVA and the Corps will be generating for long periods today and some dams. There are breaks in the generation planned at other dams. You can work with some of these schedules whether you are boating or wading. Refer to the TVA website from the links below to plan your tailwater fishing day.

According to the long term weather forecast, we are going to enjoy some Fall-like temperatures in a few days. We will likely see highs in the 70’s and lows in the 50’s next week. I know we are all looking forward to that.

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

Byron Begley
September 5, 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