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Welcome to the Fishing Report from Townsend, Tennessee in the Great Smoky Mountains. At 4:47 am, the temperature is 60.1 degrees.

Today will be sunny and feel like Summer again, with a high temperature in the middle 80’s, falling to around 60 degrees tonight. It will be sunny tomorrow with a high in the low 80’s and near 60 degrees at night. Saturday will be more of the same with a chance for showers. Sunday will be cooler, in the upper 70’s, with a greater chance for rain. Expect rain Sunday night and Monday.

Little River is flowing at 132 cubic feet per second (cfs) or 1.73 feet on the gauge. Median flow for this date is 83 cfs.

Though streams in the mountains continue to recede, most are flowing at or higher than median flow for this date. One exception is Cataloochee Creek, which is flowing slightly below normal.

Dry flies or nymphs will work. Some anglers are using yellow bodied dry flies with success. Others are using terrestrial dries and doing well. Good nymph choices include Squirmy Worms, Green Weenies and bead head nymphs.

Trout are actively looking for food which can be scarce in the Fall months. More important than fly choice is stealth and presentation. Stay hidden from the trout by blending in with the forest. By all means, concentrate on getting a good drift. If your fly is moving at the same speed as the current it is in, your catch rate will be much higher. If your fly looks like food, and it is presented well, trout will respond.

Lowland rivers are still flowing at about normal or slightly higher than normal. Smallmouth bass, rock bass and panfish are active due to the fairly warm water temperatures. Fish the deep pools and runs with poppers, foam floaters, nymphs, streamers or crayfish patterns and you should do well. I would go early or late.

TVA and the Corps will be generating all day at every dam I checked this morning. Go through the list and you may find a wade fishable tailwater.

Go lake fishing early or late and I think you will do much better. Bright sun drives fish deeper. Cast to the banks with foam floating flies, poppers, streamers or swimming nymphs.

I was talking to a customer yesterday who was planning to fish all weekend at a delayed harvest river somewhere in East Tennessee or North Carolina. I could tell from our conversation, he knew how to be successful fishing these stocked trout streams. I looked at the cup of flies he intended to buy, and saw several mop flies. Mop flies are the rage right now.

A guide friend of mine told me about another river guide, that pretty much uses mop flies exclusively, in a river where most guides are using midges under an indicator for their clients to catch trout.

I talked to another customer in the fly tying department early this year, who was looking for mop fly chenille. I had to tell him, “We don’t sell it”. After he left disappointed, I went back to my office and entered 7 or 8 mop fly chenille colors, with three packs each, to be included in our next order from Wapsi.

The next order arrived and the chenille was displayed for customers to purchase. Then, I photographed some samples, and added them to our online store. Now, mop fly chenille shows up on the orders every week. Fly tyers are buying this material every week.

CLICK HERE to read an article on the Fly Fisherman Magazine website to learn more about Mop Flies. I have never used one. I guess I have been missing out.

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

Byron Begley
September 30, 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