Smoky Mountain Fishing Report
The Great Smoky Mountains are fishing exceptional this week. Heavy rains early in the week swelled streams and muddied the water on Tuesday. Water levels have dropped fast as expected, and streams are looking good once again. The great thing about the mountains are they drain water rapidly. So when you get a heavy rain event, it’s typically only a day or so before things return to fishable levels.
Weather forecast for the remainder of the week looks good. Clear and sunny for the most part with scattered showers possible on Sunday. Don’t let the chance of rain keep you indoors, pack your rain jackets and be ready to adapt to quickly changing conditions. When rain swollen streams start to fall, fish the banks and pockets where many fish will take safe haven. The biggest predator Brown trout in the Smokies will seek these places out to ambush smaller prey. Rain also cools things off a bit and cools water temps which really brings on the bite!
Yellow Sallies continue to be the hot ticket fly for nearly all streams inside the park. These are some of my favorite hatches of the year as they provide consistent action for several months. The dries are easy to spot even for the most untrained eyes underneath the darkest overhangs.
We’re starting to see more and more hoppers along streams Abrams Creek in Cades Cove, Little River along the roadsides, and the Oconaluftee river in Cherokee. Its a common misconception about fishing with hoppers in the Smokies. Most anglers are under the impression that these large flies are mostly reserved for the Rocky Mountain west, however they have their place in the Smokies too. Keep a few handy in your fly boxes as you’ll need them here too.
Hot Flies
Yellow Stimulator #10-16, Conner’s Yellow Palmer #12-16, Royal Wulff #12-16, Tennessee Wulff #12-16, Adams Parachute #12-18, Female Adams #12-18, Adams Variant #12-16, Thunderhead #12-18, Secret Weapon #12-16, Green Drakes #8-10, Daves Hopper in Olive and Yellow #8-14, Little Yellow Sallies #14-16, Light Hendrickson #12-16, Dark Hendrickson #12-16, Sulpher dries #12-14, March Browns #10-14, Tan Elk Hair Caddis #12-16, Olive Elk Hair Caddis #12-16, Cinnamon Elk Hair Caddis in #12-16, Blue Winged Olives in #18-22, Golden Stonefly nymphs #8-12, Brown Stonefly nymphs #6-10, Yellow Sallie nymphs #12-16, Pheasant Tail Nymphs #12-18, Hares Ear nymphs #12-16, Rainbow Warriors in #14-20, Caddis Pupae #14-18, and cream midges in #22-26, Black Midges #22-26. For Streamer patterns, black and olive Woolly Buggers in sizes #6-8, Brown and Olive Sculpin in #6-8, white, black, and olive Zonkers #6-10, Game Changers in #4-8, yellow Zoo Cougars #4-8, and yellow Kiwi Muddlers #6-10.
Bryson City Fly Shop
We just recieved a new shipment of the wildly popular Moonshine Rods in the Bryson City shop. These rods are beautifully appointed and offer one of the best deals in the industry. The all come with an extra tip and a hard shell carrying case along with a lifetime warranty and the best customer service in the business! You just cant beat the deal on these rods. Of course the biggest question is how do they fish? The answer is easy, they fish amazingly well. I personally am in love with the fiberglass Revival series rods. Its no secret I’m a huge Brook trout junkie and love fishing dry flies on tiny streams in the Smokies. In most cases I seek out creeks that run through laurel hells and tight places where most folks wouldn’t fish. These rods are quickly becoming some of my favorites!
Hope you have a wonderful remainder of the week and a get a chance to wet a line
We’ll see you on the water!
Eugene