Great Smoky Mountains Fishing Report
The Great Smoky Mountains and surrounding region are seeing better fishing than we have seen in two decades. Good overall stream tempratures and plenty of refreshing late evening rains have made for perfect summer fishing conditions.
Smoky Mountain Fly Fishing
The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is always a top choice for catching wild trout during the Summer. Excellent dry fly fishing and plenty of aggressively feeding trout will keep fisherman happy from sun up to sun down. We are seeing good hatches of Yellow Sallies, Brown Stones, and tons of Caddis on most park streams. Terrestrials such as Bettles, Ants, Hoppers and Inchworms are also great bets for plenty of action all day long. Getting to mid and high elevation streams is best this time of year. The colder the water, the better the bite. Hiking into Backcountry streams is one of our favorite things to do. There’s just something about fishing where most people dare to venture, and casting flies to trout that have never seen a fly before.
Smokies Brown Trout
The Great Smoky Mountains are a temperate rainforest, receiving more than 80 inches of rainfall each year. Every Summer we see numerous pop up storms and down pours that are over quicker than they started. While these rains provide needed water to the mountains, they also offer cooler air and water temperatures if only for a brief few moments. Often times these rains are heavy and will stain the water for a few hours until the streams clear back up. Big Brown trout lurk in several park streams in lower elevations and feed mostly nocturnal during the hottest months. However, when the heavy rains raise stream levels and waters stain, these big fish will come out to feed heavily on unsuspecting prey. Fishing during these times often produce some fine specimens that will rival any Brown trout caught in the park during the cooler months. For catching these fish in stained or high water, you should fish close to the banks in slack water pockets and work your flies slowly.
Brook Haven Fly Fishing
Our new private water at Brook Haven is fishing well this summer. Typically southern private waters all close mid June through August, however that’s not the case with Brook Haven! We are blessed with high elevation cold mountain water that is heavily oxygenated provides perfect habitat for trout. Brook Haven is open all summer long with morning half trips being offered. Anglers are catching Brook trout, Tiger trout, Rainbows, and some Browns.
Weather
This week tempratures will hover around the high 70’s in the back country and low 80’s in the valleys. Chances of rain shaping up for the later part of the week which will no doubt keep water tempratures cooler and the fish biting well. A 50-60% chance of rain for the weekend isn’t enough to be of concern.
We’ll see you on the water!