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Welcome to the Fishing Report from Townsend, Tennessee in the Great Smoky Mountains. At 4:43 am, the temperature is 53.2 degrees.

This is going to be another beautiful day, sunny with a high in the low 80’s. After a cool night in the low 60’s, tomorrow will be sunny and a little warmer, in the middle 80’s. No rain is expected this weekend and through Monday.

Little River is flowing at 173 cubic feet per second (cfs) or 1.89 feet on the gauge. Median flow for this date is 85 cfs. The water temperature is 62.2 degrees this morning.

Most if not all rivers and streams in the mountains are flowing higher than normal and at good fishing levels. Water temperatures are cool. These are ideal fishing conditions for early September.

Today you can fish in the low elevation larger rivers without worrying about warm water. Or you can fish the higher elevations. Trout are active. Fishing is very good. Dry flies and nymphs will work for you. Staying hidden from the trout and not spooking them is essential to your success. Also essential, is getting a good drift. Keep your dry flies and nymphs moving at the same speed as the current they are in, and you will catch more trout.

Lowland rivers are flowing at good September levels as they exit the mountains and meander to the primary rivers in the valleys. Smallmouth bass, rock bass and panfish can be caught on poppers, foam floaters, streamers or nymphs. You may want to go early or late if given a choice, when the sun is off the water. If the river or section of the river you are fishing has tree canopy present, concentrate on the shaded areas or deeper pools.

TVA and the Corps will provide breaks in the generation at some dams today, but not at others. If you plan to fish on a tailwater today, whether you are wading or boating, visit the TVA website to see what your options are. We are entering a time when the impoundments will be lowered for water storage capacity. You will need to be flexible and willing to try different rivers as they go through this process.

Fall fishing on the tailwaters can be awesome. Back when I did more tailwater fishing, December was often my best month of the year.

Lake fishing with flies should be good today if you go early or late when the sun is low. Fish the shaded banks as the sun rises higher. Winds will be light and out of the west. I would start with poppers or foam floating flies but have another fly rod set up with a streamer or swimming nymph for a quick switch.

Every year, on this date, I remember the unthinkable day in 2001, when America was attacked by terrorists. Almost three thousand people died that day. Today, we honor those people, their friends, families and the people who worked to save lives. We honor our military service men and women who died, were injured or served in the following war. September 11, 2001 was a day that changed all of our lives forever.

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

Byron Begley
September 11, 2021  

WALTER BABB MADE BAMBOO FLY RODS FOR SALE – CLICK HERE

Walter is selling a selection of over 50 bamboo fly rods. All but one was made by him. The other one was custom made for Walter by Walton Powell. Read the description of each rod on the list and contact him if you are interested in buying one or more than one. Even if you are not interested in a purchase, this web page is very interesting to read. Walter has made over 285 bamboo rods over the past 20-years. You will be working directly with Walter on a purchase and you can test cast the rods before you buy one at his home. Or, call him and he will ship a rod to you. His contact information is on the web page he and I created.

Respond to: byron@littleriveroutfitters.com