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Welcome to the Fishing Report from Townsend, Tennessee in the Great Smoky Mountains. At 4:47 am, the temperature is 47.1 degrees.
It will be sunny and dry today and this weekend, with a high temperature in the 60’s and lows in the 40’s each day. This will be a beautiful Fall weekend in the Smokies. Temperatures will fall into the 30’s at the highest elevations each night.
Little River is flowing at 421 cubic feet per second (cfs) or 2.52 feet on the gauge. Median flow for this date is 79 cfs. The water temperature is 55.8 degrees.
Little Pigeon River is flowing at 737 cfs, 2.48 feet, compared to median flow of 139 cfs.
Oconaluftee River is flowing at 635 cfs, 2.03 feet, which compares to median flow of 208 cfs for this date.
Tellico River is flowing at 335 cfs, 1.75 feet, compared to median flow of 71 cfs.
Cataloochee Creek is flowing at 133 cfs, 2.72 feet, compared to median flow of 41 cfs.
Streams in the Smokies are flowing higher than normal. Normal in early October is very low. Flows are on the high side of good on Little River. Some streams are swift so care should be taken when wading. These streams will continue to recede over the next few days.
Water temperatures are well within the trout’s preferred range in the low to mid elevations. Trout will be actively feeding. Dry flies and nymphs will work. Fishing will be good this weekend.
Lowland rivers are flowing higher than normal. Wading may be limited in some rivers today. What we have are Spring-like flows and water temperatures. Fishing for smallmouth bass and other lowland river species will be fair to good, depending on the water temperatures. If the temps fall tonight like I think they will, you may want to fish later in the day when the water is warmer. Nymphs and streamers will probably work best, though you might do well using top water flies too.
There are some tailwater wade and boat fishing options today. We have a mixed bag of generation schedules at the area dams. Some are workable for wading while others are not. Visit the TVA website from the links below to see what your options are.
Lake fishing is probably going to be fair this weekend. It will be sunny today and tomorrow so go early or late. Winds are going to be light and variable today and through the weekend. I would try top water flies first. If that is not working, switch to streamers or swimming nymphs. This will be an excellent weekend to be boating for sure. It will be chilly in the mornings. I doubt if you will see many water skiers.
Our house is built in the forest. Every evening, while it is still light outside, we sit in front of a 6’ wide glass door. We see a wildlife walking by often. Last week, a bear walked up to the door and almost touched it with his nose.
Last evening was especially interesting. A bobcat stalked by about 30 feet away. These cats are always hunting something. We watched as it disappeared from view. Bobcats blend well with the forest.
A couple of minutes later, we saw it returning with a squirrel in it’s mouth. It walked right by us again from the different direction. Another squirrel was in a tree and it was visibly upset.
About two years ago, I watched a bobcat kill a squirrel ten feet from my home office window. The cat saw me staring from my window, it looked up and appeared to “snarl” at me as it held the squirrel to the ground with its paws. We saw one chase a squirrel up a tree once, only to return to the ground empty handed. I photographed a bobcat from my office that appeared to be napping in a spot that was sunny, on the snow covered ground. I could see it’s sides moving in and out as it breathed.
We see a lot of bear and turkey behind and close to our house. Sometimes we see deer. Bobcat sightings are rare. That is always a special event.
I will be off from work tomorrow and Sunday. Daniel will be writing the fishing report those days.
Have a great day and thank you for being here with us.
Byron Begley
October 2, 2020
Respond to: byron@littleriveroutfitters.com |
