Smoky Mountain Fly Fishing Report

Posted on October 9, 2021 by eshuler
Smoky Mountain Fly Fishing Report, Fly Fishing the Smokies, Gatlinburg Fly Fishing Guides, Bryon City Fly Fishing the Smokies, Bryson City Fly Shop, Gatlinburg Fly Shop,

Fly Fishing Report October 9, 2021

Finally the rain has moved out of the region and the Smoky Mountains start to dry out! Its been a soggy start to Fall so far. Overnight lows dropped into the mid 50’s in the backcountry, and low 60’s in Bryson City and Gatlinburg. Clearing skies gave way to the thinnest sliver of a moon which always makes for some good fishing. Trout didnt spend all night feeding on bugs hatching in the moonlight. Today’s highs are forecasted to hit mid 70’s. Should be a nice sunny Fall day, great for some fly fishing and college football.

Great Smoky Mountains National Park

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park streams will be the best bet today for clear fishable water. Stream levels are dropping fast and many of the mid to high elevation streams are wadeable. The lower stretches on the Little River and Oconaluftee will still be pretty high and tough to wade for the most experienced. Hazel Creek and Forney are dropping out quick and should be manageable especially by the afternoon. Abrams Creek in Cades Cove will be fishable today aswell, the lower section of Abrams above Chilhowee lake will be still be pretty high and fast. Deep Creek and Noland Creek are both fishable today with water levels continuing to drop over the weekend.

Tuckasegee River Fishing Report

The Tuckasegee River Delayed Harvest section was stocked on Friday in Dillsboro. Although water levels remain high on the upper stretch for wading, fishing from drift boats will be the best option for today. The Tuckasegee has a 24/7 generation schedule on both the East and West fork over the next three days. Water levels will start to clear up by the start of the week and fishing will improve immensely.

Cherokee Fy Fishing Report

The Oconaluftee River in Cherokee is still running over 1000cfs and will be tough to wade. Although once you get above the confluence of the Raven Fork and the Luftee things should get better and much easier to wade in places such as the Trophy Section and the upper reaches of the general public water.

Nantahala River Fly Fishing Report

The Nantahala River remains on a 24/7 generation schedule on the lower tailwater section. Wading here will be treacherous at best. The delayed harvest section on Wayah Road is clearing up nicely and water levels are coming down fast. This section has already seen folks fishing in on Friday with good success. Expect to see lots of anglers here today and on Sunday.

Fires Creek Fishing Report

Fires Creek is fishable today and should provide some great action. Water here drains fast and doesn’t seem to blow out nearly as bad as other streams in the region. We’re seeing good hatches of October Caddis and fish are responding well to terrestrials. The usual suspects of Ants, Beetles, Hoppers and Inch worms are still doing the trick. Toss some streamers into the deep runs and get your string pulled hard. The bite is on out there pretty good.

Cullasaja River Fishing Report

The Cullasaja River coming out of Highlands NC is down right scary still. Water levels raged this week and were absolutely terrifying. It was beautiful to watch and photograph because of the sheer volume of water being pushed over the many cascades and massive waterfalls. The Cullasaja will be best enjoyed with a nice drive and sight seeing tour rather that risking it all to try and fish.

As always be safe out there especially after big rains. The streams are all moving quicker than they normally would be. Test out slower moving shallow sections of water familiar to you before diving in fully.

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Smoky Mountain Fly Fishing Report

Posted on October 8, 2021 by eshuler
Smoky Mountains Fly Fishing Report, Fly Fishing the Smokies, October Fly Fishing, October Fly Fly Fishing Report, Gatlinburg Fly Fishing Guides, Gatlinburg Fly Shop, Bryon City Fly Fishing Guides, Bryson City Fly Shop, Cherokee Fly Fishing Report,

Fly Fishing Report October 8, 2021

Rain continues to dominate the theme across the Smoky Mountains. Friday’s forecast is a 60% chance until around 8:00pm Friday night. Highs are expected to reach the low 70’s across the mountains in lower elevations and mid 60’s in the back country. This slight cool down cycle will last a couple days and temps will steadily climb back into the high 70’s by Sunday and Monday. Most creeks inside the Great Smoky Mountains National Park are fishable currently. A few of the lower elevation creeks are running quick and full so use caution when around these. Of course these streams will be awesome once the rain stops. Its no secret, the best time to catch a big Brown trout in the park is after a heavy rain. Higher elevation creeks are running full but are clear and fishable.

Tuckasegee River

The Tuckasegee River is blown out today. Heavy rains to the south near the headwaters of the Tuck caused water levels to jump rapidly. Run off from farms and construction projects in Jackson County have the river muddy and completely unfishable currently. Hopefully by the end of the weekend river levels will have dropped considerably and water clarity will improve.

Cherokee Fly Fishing

The Oconaluftee and Raven Fork in Cherokee are both currently running high and murky. Fishing the lower section of the Oconaluftee will be a waste of time. Water levels near Birdtown are 1200cfs. Its possible the Raven Fork will fish by Saturday. Honestly your best bet this weekend for a large trout will be in Cherokee. The Trophy Section will see fish pushed towards the banks and working a streamer should reward those willing to get out.

Nantahala River Fly Fishing

The Nantahala river is running high and muddy currently. The lower river below the powerhouse is likely a bust until Sunday. The only hope for a Friday bite on the Nanty will be on the Delayed Harvest section on Wayah Road. Water is running high and muddy but we are starting to see things clear up a bit. Fishing junk food and flashy streamers should put you into them. Definitely expect to see a lot of company on the Delayed Harvest section this weekend. We are aware of three different fly fishing clubs here this weekend set to fish the Nanty. Just be friendly to each other and try to make a new friend out there. Some of the best folks you will meet are on a trout stream.

Bryson City Fly Shop

Today we received a new shipment of some killer waterproof packs from a new company called Yankee Fork. Based in Idaho, these guys have created some great lumbar parks, sling packs and backpacks that are completely waterproof. Construction is bomber and everything has been thoughtfully laid out for the fly fisherman. I’ll get some pictures posted up in the next few days. We also got a new shipment of Brodin landing nets, both carbon fiber and their classic wooden nets. Brodin quality is on point and I especially love the handles on their wooden nets.

Have a great weekend and we’ll see you on the water!

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Smoky Mountains Fly Fishing Report

Posted on October 7, 2021 by eshuler
Smoky Mountains Fly Fishing Report, Fly Fishing the Smokies, Gatlinburg Fly Fishing Guides, Bryson City Fly Fishing Guides,

Fly Fishing Report October 7, 2021

Today is going to be another rainy day in the Great Smoky Mountains. The forecast has 70% chance once again with temperatures reaching 72 for the high. Currently this morning is a comfortable 64 degrees here in Bryson City and the same for Gatlinburg. Streams all across the national park are running full. Most remain fishable and conditions are about perfect to toss streamers and catch some bigger Brown trout. Lower elevation streams such as the Little River and the Oconaluftee are good bets for catching some of the elusive pigs in the park. Higher elevation streams are fishable as stream levels have held good and the bite for Brookies is strong.

Hatches of October Caddis and a somelingering yellow sallies have been consistent. Brown Caddis in sizes #12- 14 and been bringing fish to the surface to feed as well. Rainey’s Crowdsurfer Stonefly dries are also killer patterns right now in brown, these make great bugs for dry dropper set ups. Blue Winged Olives are of course a great bet on these rainy overcast days. The best bugs by far right now are terrestrials with black ants topping the chart. RIO’s Glo Ant is our guides favorite choice at the fly shop. We just got another shipment this week and the bins have been restocked. Inch worms still surprisingly are putting big numbers of fish in the net too. Lots of hoppers are still found all across the park in grassy areas and along leaf litter around the creek banks. For those of you Euro Nymphing the park streams, Rio’s Pearl Jam and Duracell patterns and producing all day long along with Perdigons in brown. Frenchies of course are killing it to as always.

Tuckasegee River Fishing Report

North Carolina Delayed Harvest kicked off officially October 1st. The Tuckasegee River will be stocked in Dillsboro on October 8th and 12th, and in Bryson City on the 11th. Thousands of Rainbow, Brown and Brook trout will be stocked and under strictly enforced catch and release regulations until the first Saturday of June. Currently the Tuckasegee River in Bryson City is flowing at 2490cf and is pretty murky. The Tuckasegee River in Cullowhee near WCU is flowing 809cfs and much clearer. We expect river flows to remain about the same for the week and into the weekend with water clearing up as the rains subside. We expect Saturday and Sunday to be incredibly crowded in Dillsboro especially up near the island. Might want to bring your own rock from home so you will have one to stand on.

Nantahala River Fishing Report

Currently the Nantahala River is fishing well. The Delayed Harvest section along Wayah Road was just stocked and its about as full of fisherman as you would expect. Anglers from clubs as far away as Ohio have descended on the Nantahala to enjoy in the fun of opening DH season. The action is great and the bite is coming easy. Of course great access and plenty of good size fish is what makes this area highly popular. Its definitely one to “bring yer own rock” if you plan to fish there this weekend. The lower Nantahala is my favorite section to hit. Fishing is more technical and the water can be intimidating especially when water is being released. Hatches are plentiful and the fish eager and always willing to put up a great fight. These waters are home to some of the biggest Browns in the region. With the current rains and overcast days, you can expect to run some big articulated streamers along the deeper calm pockets and talk something big into making a mistake!

Bryson City Fly Shop

Our Fly Shop in downtown Bryson City has a great selection of flies and gear to help with any of your trips in the Smoky Mountains and surrounding region. This week we received another large shipment of Ross reels. We have the Animas and Colorado in both platinum and black in sizes from 2wt to 6wt. We also received another shipment of rods this week from Moonshine Rod company and RL Winston. Obviously Moonshine offers the most incredible deal in fly fishing with their Drifter series of rods. Beautifully crafted rods that come with an extra tip section and lifetime warranty all for a sub $200 price. You just cant beat a Moonshine. They fish great and are very forgiving casting wise allowing anglers of all skills levels to enjoy these fine rods. RL Winston sent us over a full line of Pure series rods and several of the chart topping new Air 2 rods.

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Great Smoky Mountains Fishing Report

Posted on March 11, 2020 by eshuler
Great Smoky Mountains Fishing Report, Fly Fishing the Smokies, Tuckasegee River Fishign Report

Light rain fell sporadically overnight across the Smoky Mountain region. Stream levels remain largely unchanged as todays forecast calls for about a 40% chance of scattered light showers. Honestly thats even enough for the locals to want a rain jacket.

Great Smoky Mountains Fishing

The Smokies will fish good today. Lower elevation streams is where you want to focus. Little River and Green Briar in Tennessee will be the hot tickets. In North Carolina the best fishing will of course be Deep Creek, Oconaluftee River, and Forney Creek. no need to tart too early this morning, heavy fog will keep them trout tucked in bed until around 9:00am when hatches start happening and tings get to moving. Mid morning to mid afternoon should see BWO’s, Blue Quills, and Black Caddis moving about. If the sun comes out enough expect to see some movement from brown Stoneflies.

Tuckasegee River Fishing Report

This time of year of course the Deleayed Harvest sections on the Tuckasegee River are the hot topic. Water levels remain great with generation slowing last night with a big drop in water levels at Cullowhee this morning running at 258cfs from over 700cfs last night. The lower Tuckasegee in Bryson City is running 2550cfs and is expected to drop later in the day by 500cfs. Water clarity is excellent and the Fishign has been very strong. We’re seeing good hatches of BWO’s, black Caddis, march Browns, Blue Quills and Brown Stoneflies from mid morning until late afternoon. Wading should be easy peasy today on the upper section. Expect to see several people out there if you go. The lower section will not have near the pressure as water levels are perfect for floating but may be a challenge for many to wade.

Cherokee Trophy Section Report

The Cherokee Tropy Section is of course located on the Raven Fork and consists of the Oconaluftee river and the Raven Fork both. Currently the only stream gage on the Luftee is near the mouth, but gives a great perspective as to how things are unfolding upstream. Water levels are running at 827cfs which is very nice. Wading the Trophy Section today will be very easy. Expect the water clarity to be gin clear and the fish spooky. The overcast skies this morning will play into your advantage as the ig fish love an overcast sky. As the skies clear and hatches get underway, be increasingly deliberate with your presentation and stream approaches. These fish will have their gaurd up and wont tolerate much in the way of sloppy casts and splashy wading. Hatches of Black Caddis, and BWO’s combined with sporadic March Browns will keep them interested and you may spot some risers.

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Great Smoky Mountains Fishing Report

Posted on March 11, 2020 by eshuler
Great Smoky Mountains Fishing Report, Fly Fishing the Smokies, Smoky Mountain Fly Fishing Guides,

Great Smoky Mountains Fly Fishing Report

The Great Smoky Mountains were absolutely beautiful the past two days. Temps hit the high 60’s in Bryson City and touched 70 near Gatlinburg. Even the back country in the Smoky Mountains reached the mid 60’s. The weather has been incredible and the fishing was superb across the region. This morning we woke up to light rain in Bryson City and cloudy skies in Gatlinburg. Its very warm with temps between 55-60 depending on which side of the mountains you are on. Perfect weather for fishing!

Dry fly fishing has been the big news of the week! Numerous streams in the Smokies saw several varieties of aquatic insects hatching which brought trout to the surface. Most hatches started mid morning and continued til after 6pm tonight. We saw Blue Quills, Blue Winged Olives, Black Caddis, and Brown Stones all moving about today inside the park. Dry dropper rigs were of course the best bet, and by mid afternoon, fishing just a dry proved to be the most fun. Lower elevation streams such as the Little River and the Oconaluftee River fished excellent. Water temps were a tad warmer and the flows were about perfect. Of course water clarity is gin clear as is the norm for the Smokies. Today’s light rain and mist have streams unchanged and looking great!

Tuckasegee River Fishing Report

The lower section of Tuckasegee River is running the lowest it has in a long time today at 2300cfs. Those are some great condtions for fishing out here. Water clarity is perfect right now and if the rian doesnt get very heavy the clarity should remain good. Caddis are your best bet along with March Browns and healthy dose of streamers mixed in for those meat eating predators. Game Changers have been the hot ticket for streamers. If you haven’t fished one yet, you are completely missing out! Sinking tips with short stout leaders are highly recommmend as these ig fish will break you off in a hurry. the warm winter this year have hatches starting earlier than normal. March browns started hatching last week and have brought many trout to the surface to feed on these larger bugs.

Raven Fork Fishing Report

The Raven Fork in Cherokee has fished strong so far this week. These big fish tend to be spooky so having some light rain like today is a big help. Hatches of blue quills and Black Caddis are keeping trout happy and feeding on dries sporadically around mid day. Mostly its a nymphing game, getting down deep on light tippet that wins the day. Streamers have also been a good bet. Work them slowly on sinking lines ad fish tight to structure and you can hook into an absolute toad!

Weather forecast this week is calling for intermittent chances of rain. Rain chances are low each day, except for Friday which is showing 60% chance. At this point we aren’t very worried about conditions becoming unfishable or rivers blowing out. The forecast seems to keep bouncing around each day with nothing being consistent. That tells us its pretty much a typical March where anything can happen. The best et is to dress accordingly and bring a rain jacket. The fish are bitting, and we’re hitting the water regardless of what the weatherman says. We tend to believe it when we see it!

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March Fly Fishing

Posted on March 7, 2020 by eshuler

March Fly Fishing Report, Great Smoky Mountains Fishing Report, Fly Fishing the Smokies, Fly Fishing Guides Gatlinburg TN, Fly Fishing Guides Bryson City NC,

March Fly Fishing

March fly fishing in the Great Smoky Mountains region is the hottest ticket in the country! The weather in March is very pleasant with daytime highs getting into the upper 60’s, plenty of sunshine and great fishing. Water levels are perfectly suited for wading and drift boat fishing both. The Smoky Mountain region has miles of great trout streams that come alive this time of year!

Fly Fishing Float Trips, Float Trips, Fly Fishing the Tuckasegee River,

Tuckasegee River Fishing Guides

Imagine 24,000 trout per mile just waiting for your flies. The action is incredible, and just gets better from here! You owe it to yourself to fish the famous Tuckasegee River on either a Wade Trip or Float Trip and chase after thousands of trout. Nothing in the eastern US compares to the Tuckasegee River in the Spring. This world class fishery holds Rainbow, Brown, and Brook trout, many of them exceeding 20 inches! March and April both see more fish caught by our guests than any other time of the year!

Cashiers Highlands Fly Fishing Guides, Gatlinburg Pigeon Forge Fly Fishing Guides,

Tuckasegee River Wade Trips

The Tuckasegee River is perfectly suited for Wade Trips with wide open casting room and few trees to get tangled up in. The Tuckasegee’s water flows offer plenty of great places to wade for hiding trout. This river is great for this new to fly fishing or families with children as there are so many trout here success rates run very high. The possibility of catching all three species of trout in a single day is possible!

Cherokee Trophy Section, Cherokee Fly Fishing,

Cherokee Fly Fishing

The Cherokee Fly Fishing Only Trophy Section is fishing hot this month! Beautiful pristine water with great wading, easy access and Monster trout! The Raven Fork fishes amazing in March. Afternoon hatches of Quill Gordon’s and Blue Duns keep these big fish looking up and dry fly fishing is possible. When’s the last time you saw rising trout over 20 inches? The Raven Fork in Cherokee has it!

March Fly Fishing, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Fly Fishing, Fly Fishing the Smokies, Little River, Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge

Great Smoky Mountains National Park Fly Fishing

March fly fishing action inside the Great Smoky Mountains National Park starts reving up. The cold grasp of winter is letting go and the trout start to become more active. Good Spring hatches of Quill Gordon’s, Blue Duns, Caddis and Blue Winged Olives keep trout happy and some dry fly fishing starts presenting itself. Afternoons are can be excellent especially on warm days. Lower elevation streams are great bet this time of year for Rainbow and Brown trout!

For Reservations call (828)-488-7665 or Book Online!

Categories: Drift Boat Fly Fishing, Fly Fishing Gatlinburg, Fly Fishing Guides, Fly Fishing Guides in Bryson City, Fly Fishing Guides in Cashiers NC, Fly Fishing Guides in Cherokee NC, Fly Fishing Guides in Cherokee North Carolina, Fly Fishing Guides in Franklin NC, Fly Fishing Guides in Highlands NC, Fly Fishing Guides in the Smoky Mountains, Fly Fishing the Smokies, Gatlingburg TN Fly Fishing Guides, Great Smoky Mountains Fishing Report, Great Smoky Mountains Fly Fishing Guides, Guided Fly Fishing in Gatlinburg TN, Smoky Mountain Fly Fishing, Smoky Mountain Fly Fishing Guides, Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on March Fly Fishing

Smoky Mountain Fly Fishing Report

Posted on March 1, 2020 by eshuler
Smoky Mountain Fly Fishing Report, Fly Fishing the Smokies,

Fly Fishing Report February 29th

A fresh blanket of snow covered the Smokies today. Beautiful to see, however short lived as most areas saw melted snow by noon. Deep in the park at higher elevations the snow is still hanging tight to the trees and covering the ground with several new inches. All of this will be gone by mid day on Monday when temps warm and rain moves in. Currently in the park tonight its 22 degrees as I drove back over from Gatlinburg to Bryson City. 441 is open, just watch for scattered patches of ice. The park service has done a fantastic job this time around of keeping the roads in good shape and keeping the road through the Smokies open.

Smokies Fishing Report

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park streams fished well today. Despite being cold with a bone chilling breeze at times, trout stayed on the feed from early this morning until late afternoon as the sun started to drop. Nymph fishing was the game today with Stoneflies and black caddis being at the top of the menu. Looking for areas of the stream that had good light on the water was key. Fish were stacked in the pockets and softer water. Where you found one, you could usually muster up a couple more.

Tuckasegee River Fishing Report

The Tuckasegee River was in fine shape today for float trips. Water clarity was great and flows were running just 3000cfs at Bryson City. Hatches of Blue Quills started coming off after lunch and continued for hours. Risers were all over the place along the edges especially where the wind lines stacked up tons of bugs in the eddies. Large pods of risers worked over the stacks of spent blue quills feverishly. They were still spooky and required a long leader of 6x tippet to coax a take. Banging streamers off the banks on sink tips brought a good many fish to the net as well. Not a bad way to end out February.

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Smoky Mountain Fly Fishing Report

Posted on February 23, 2020 by eshuler
Smoky Mountain Fly Fishing Report, Fly Fishing the Smokies, Gatlinburg Fly Fishing Guides, Bryson City Fly Fishing Guides

Fly Fishing Report February 23, 2020

The Great Smoky Mountains received a light snow in the back country on Thursday and into early Friday morning. It was short lived but beautiful to see hanging on the trees. Saturday ended absolutely gorgeous and making everyone ready for Spring. Temps reached the high 50’s to low 60’s depending on where you were at. Streams continue to run full but manageable for wading. Hatches were fantastic today. We had clear blue skies which saw the winter stones and black caddis hatching in full force on most all streams.

Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Water levels continue to drop throughout the park after tons of rain earlier in the month. Warmer than normal air temps have kept things spring like throughout the winter so far. Trout are looking up on sunny days and can be caught on dries mid morning thru early afternoon. Of course with all the water this month, tossing streamers has produced some great fish. Two words here, Game Changer. That’s right the multi articulated bait-fish patterns are highly effective on Smoky Mountain trout in high water and low visibility situations. Fished with slow short strips on sink tip lines will get the big boys interested in a hurry.

Tuckasegee River Fishing Report

The Tuckasegee River continues to see lower water levels each day. Bryson City was running at 3400cfs on Saturday with excellent clarity. Cullowhee was at a just a tad over 1000cfs all day making wading the Dillsboro stretch tough. The water is in great shape for float trips though. Running large streamers down the banks will reward you with some big catches, big articulated flies such as Game Changers and Drunk and Disorderly are putting some big fish in the net. We’re also seeing incredibly strong hatches of black caddis on the Tuck by mid morning.

Nantahala Fly Fishing Report

The Nantahala River near Bryson City is fishing great of course. Busy on the weekends but not so much during the week this time of year, the Nantahala is always a good bet for both wild fish and stocked trout both. The Delayed Harvest section above the power house has been fishing strong this past week. Good hatches of Blue Winged Olives have kept trout interested in feeding up top. Of course swinging a barrage of bright colored junk food patterns on the bottom have dredged up a good many big Brook trout. The lower Nantahala along hwy 19 is one of our favorite places along the Nantahala. Long known for its many big Brown trout that lurk down deep, or hang tight to logs along the banks, this stretch of river doesn’t disappoint. The lower river is less crowded this time of year and is fishing great. Good hatches of winter stones and black caddis mixed with some blue quills, and blue winged olives have been coming off each day. Lots of larger stoneflies are also very active and are picking up tons of fish. However the biggest draw by far is running big streamers along log jams will reward you greatly with some epic fish. Fish heavy tippet and be prepared to loose a few flies. Game Changers and Dali Lllamas have been the meat of choice.

Rain is in the forecast early week with possible snow on Thursday. Clearing skies and temps dropping slightly into the weekend.

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Smoky Mountain Fishing Report

Posted on February 21, 2020 by eshuler
Smoky Mountain Fly Fishing, Fly Fishing the Smokies,

Fly Fishing Report February 20th

February’s fly fishing report has been all over the place. It has been a crazy month in terms of weather. So far in February Smoky Mountain region have seen heavy rains, flash floods and snow….all in the same week! Fortunately the mountains here recover quick from whatever mother nature throws their way. Stream levels are full and fishing good. Temps have been above normal which has triggered a fantastic winter bite! Great hatches of black Caddis, Winter Stone, Blue Winged Olives have kept trout busy feeding and up on the surface on the prettiest of days.

Great Smoky Mountains Fly Fishing

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park fishing has been fantastic most of the month. Keeping an eye on the forecast and maximizing your opportunities to get out in between the showers have kept anglers consistently catching fish in the park. Even when water levels are high a good many trout can be caught by fishing long the sides of the banks and back eddies. Often times some of the largest wild Smokies trout will be caught in high water conditions when visibility is low. On beautiful bright sunny days we have been catching trout on dry flies. Black caddis, Winter Stoneflies, and a steady contingency of Blue Winged Olives have kept trout looking up to feed. If you prefer to nymph fish, bouncing stoneflies and caddis pupae across the bottom have produced lots of fish when nothing is hatching. The Smoky Mountains have fished best from mid morning until the late afternoon. Currently the Tennessee side of the Smokies near Gatlinburg has lower water levels than does the North Carolina side near Bryson City and Cherokee.

Tuckasegee River Fishing Report

The Tuckasegee River has been really high for most of the month making wading difficult the last two weeks. We have been able to fish the river from drift boats and it has fished strong despite the water being up. Clarity has been good and the hatches have been consistent. Black caddis and winter stoneflies have made up the majority of the hatches we are encountering. On sunny days we have had some Blue Quills pop out on occasion and some early Brown Stone nymphs have been crawling across the bottom.

Cherokee Fly Fishing Report

The Cherokee Trophy Section on the Raven Fork is fishing strong this winter. The water is flowing full to high making wading a little trickier than normal. However for those willing to put the effort in, they are being rewarded with some fantastic rainbow and brown trout. We’ve seen may personal best fish caught this month. Hatches are starting around mid morning and last until the sun starts to drop beyond the distant ridge lines. Black caddis, winter stoneflies are blue winged olives make up the majority of what we are seeing. Stream temperatures have been on the chilly side as the water here comes straight out of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. You definitely want to dress in warm layers when fishing here. Our guides are reporting clients catching fish on big streamers all day and in the afternoons dry fly action is picking up.

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November Fly Fishing Report, Great Smoky Mountains

Posted on November 24, 2019 by eshuler
Fly Fishing the Smokies, November Fly Fishing Report Great Smoky Mountains, Gatlinburg Fly Fishing Guides, Bryson City Fly Fishing Guides

November is one our favorite times to fly fish in the Smoky Mountains region. Big fish start making their appearances in many of the larger creeks and rivers in the mountains. Late Fall and Winter has long been known as being the best time to catch a big Brown trout.

Great Smoky Mountains National Park

The fishing inside the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is doing well. Morning subsurface action gives way to some dry fly action in the afternoons. Caddis and BWO’s are mainstays for the moment as we anxiously await Little Winter Stones to start making their appearances in a few weeks. We are seeing many good sized Browns very active in the lower reaches on larger creeks. Brook trout spawning continues in the high elevations and should finish up in the next week or two. Be very aware not to walk on spawning reds. These areas resemble fresh swept gravelly places in the stream bed typically out of heavier current flows. These areas are full of eggs that can be easily crushed if stepped on. Be careful where you step and avoid these areas at all cost. What you step on today could seriously impact generations for several years to come. Also we don’t want to get into the whole ethics debate of fishing over spawning fish, but seriously don’t be a jackass and fish them. Leave em’ alone, let em’ spawn. There’s plenty of other fish that aren’t actively spawning you can cast at.

Tuckasegee River

The Tuckasegee River is absolutely on fire this time of year! The Delayed Harvest sections on the Tuck are some of the best fishing in the south from November until May. Stocked heavily with Rainbow, Brown and Brook trout this river offers incredible action and versatility. You can fish dry flies, nymphs and streamers all day long and find consistent hatches almost every day throughout the season. Our guides are putting clients on both big fish and good numbers of fish each day. Wade trips and Float Trips are both producing great results. The Tuckasegee River is a tail-water and has numerous freestone tributaries feeding its rich bio-diverse waters. Fact is the Tuck is home to more than 72 species of fish and countless species of invertebrates.

Cherokee Trophy Section

The Cherokee Trophy Section is a beautiful and unique fishery. This time of year fishing is fabulous for large trout and combined the added bonus of seeing the elk while casting a fly make Cherokee hard to pass up. The Raven Fork and Oconaluftee River are bordered on one side by the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the Blue Ridge Parkway along the opposite bank. The scenery is just as good as the fishing! Our guides are putting clients on some true fish of a lifetime. Large Rainbows and Browns that will take your reel into the backing and leave you speechless is the order of the day. These big fish will test you every step of the way and provide a challenge for even the most skilled.

Hatches and Flies

Consistent hatches of Blue Winged Olives, Midges, Caddis, Sedge and Stones are still mainstays in the park and across the region. Terrestrials such as flying ants and beetles are also hot tickets. This time of year you cannot overlook the importance of egg patterns. With several species of fish spawning, an egg can be the best morsel of fat and protein a fish may see all day. Streamers continue to produce with great results. Game Changers are absolutely smoking it on the Tuckasegee River and Cherokee Trophy section with smaller offerings such as black woolly’s and natural Zonkers bringing the big boys to net inside the park.

Stop by our fully stocked Fly Shop in Bryson City for a great fly selection and accurate up to the minute stream beta on every stream in the region. We have several quality product lines of gear with the latest offerings from R.L Winston, Moonshine Rods, Ross Reels, Redington, Rio, Renzetti, and many other.

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