The scene a few days ago and one that will become common for the next few months here in the Smoky Mountains
It’s safe to say we’ve crossed the line from autumn to winter here in the Smoky Mountains. We’ve had to scrape frost from the windshield before taking our son to school in the morning. Our view of Thunderhead Mountain and the Smokies’ crest has been white too. We had a little snow up high last week plus there’s been some freezing fog creating rime ice along the high ridges.
Expect the fishing to really slow down now as the water temperature in the low elevations is around 40 degrees and certainly chillier as you get higher up. No need to arrive to the stream early unless you plan to hike in some distance first.
Fly fishing along the roads will often provide more sunshine and warmer temperatures in the winter months.
We enjoy hiking in to fish more than most anglers, but staying near the roads has its benefits in the winter. The valleys are quite so narrow along the roads so there tends to be more sunshine on the water which helps get things moving. Streams are often down in steep ravines the further you go into the mountains. As a result these areas are in the shade almost all day long. When the ground freezes here it may be spring until it thaws. This makes these streams virtual ice boxes.
Stream flows
We’re still seeing low flows throughout the Southern Appalachians. There have been some brief reprieves, but meaningful precipitation has been far from consistent this season. In fact, our water situation since July might be best described as a drought interrupted briefly by a flood.
We were fortunately spared by the worst of the high water in September, but it would be really nice to see flows wander up out of the bottom 25th percentile for more than a few days. Winter is often a time of wet weather and higher flows so hopefully this corrects itself soon.
Flies to consider
Nymphs are the tried and true way to catch trout in the Smokies in the cold weather. Be sure you’re fishing patterns that sink like Beadhead Pheasant Tails or Tellico Nymphs. Bigger stonefly nymph patterns can be good too, but flows are a bit on the low side for those to be the best choices right now. In fact, when the water is this low you should be careful not to fish flies that are too heavy. Snagging the bottom here and there is fine but if you’re snagging up pretty consistently you need to shorten up, lighten up, or both.
A wild rainbow caught on a nymph on a chilly afternoon
Our Winter Guide Schedule
Since fishing is relatively slow in the mornings we only do afternoon half day guided trips from now through the end of February. In fact, we think of most winter bookings as tentative until we’re close enough to the date for a reliable weather forecast. The possibility of water temperatures too cold for good fishing, inclement weather, or roads closed for ice makes winter somewhat unreliable. However, an extended period of mild weather can provided pretty good fishing. We’re keeping our fingers crossed!
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