Welcome to the Fishing Report from Townsend, Tennessee in the Great Smoky Mountains. At 4:43 am, the temperature is 23 degrees.

It will be sunny and somewhat warmer later today with a high temperature in the low to middle 50’s. The low temperature tonight will be around 31 degrees. Tomorrow will be sunny with a high in the low 60’s and a low in the middle 30’s overnight. Saturday and Sunday will be sunny with a high in the upper 60’s.

Little River is flowing at 42.4 cubic feet per second (cfs) or 1.29 feet on the gauge. Median flow for this date is 123 cfs. The water temperature is 44.1 degrees and falling.

Streams in the Smokies are flowing very low. The streams are cold this morning at all elevations. Fishing will be slow until the water warms to around 50 degrees. You may want to wait a while before going fishing today, in hopes that the streams will be warm enough for better trout activity later. We will see the streams warm tomorrow and through the weekend.

Most trout are holding in the broken choppy water in pockets, plunge pools, runs and eddies. Nymphs will probably work best today.

Fishing for smallmouth bass in the lowland rivers will likely be slow today. The rivers are flowing low and cold. If you go, wait until later. Try streamers and crayfish patterns.

Fishing for stocked trout in the low elevation rivers may be fair later today. The rivers are low and the trout are concentrated in the deeper pools and runs. Nymphs and midge patterns will likely work best. Travis is stocking some big rainbows in Gatlinburg, according to their Facebook page. “Approximately ¼ of the fish stocked were in the 18-24 inch range”.

I would go lake fishing later this afternoon if I went at all. At least it will be warmer this afternoon. Cast streamers or swimming nymphs to the banks and cover. Retrieve both slow and deep.

There are breaks in the generation planned at several dams today. It seems most will occur this afternoon which may be hard to work with. If you are planning to fish on a tailwater today, check the TVA website from the links below to see what your options are.

Well we got a taste of Winter this morning. This won’t last long. It is going to be warm this weekend and even warmer early next week when we will see highs in the 70’s with lows in the 50’s.

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

Byron Begley
November 2, 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