There’s no doubt that it feels like fall in the Smokies. Overnight lows last night dipped into the 40’s in Townsend which means they were well down into the 30’s in the higher elevations. Water temperature on Little River in Townsend has even fallen down into the 50’s. Waders might even be necessary for the […]
A Wet August Sets Up the Smokies for Prime Fall Fishing
We’ve seen the typical heat and humidity that come with August in the Smokies, but with well above average rainfall. Most of this has come in the form of afternoon thunderstorms so it’s not like we’ve seen days upon days of dreary weather. While August hasn’t officially come to an end and there’s more rain […]
Daily Thunderstorms Keeping Stream Flows and Temperatures Optimal for Summer Fly Fishing
We’ve had an exceptionally busy summer guide season this year. After the park re-opened in May visitation has been very high and our guide calendar has been booked solid. Flows got a little skinny as July progressed but it seems we have moved passed that. The mountains have seen daily thunderstorms for a couple of […]
Summer Fly Fishing Is In Full Swing in the Smokies and East Tennessee
We’ve been wet wading for a week and water conditions have been perfect (finally!!) in the Smokies. Charity and I have both been guiding quite a bit as folks with cabin fever (not Covid-19) have been getting away to the mountains. We’ve been fishing a lot of dry and dropper set ups, but most days […]
The Latest Update From the Smokies About the Park Status
It’s pretty ironic that we live within mere minutes of some of our favorite trout streams, but because of the national park closure we have to drive about 90 minutes to go fishing. Things are pretty quiet and we’re firm believers that’s a good thing! It doesn’t look like the pandemic got much of a […]
Drawings and Watercolors from Ian
We’ve been housebound during the pandemic. We’re getting outside quite a bit, but the kids online school schedule of Zoom classes makes it difficult to take off all day long. As a result we’re doing some gardening, home maintenance, and Ian has been doing a tremendous amount of art. Ian has always done a bit […]
Keeping ourselves busy during the Covid-19 crisis
This is usually our busiest time of the year for guiding, but we’re completely shut down. The national park is closed and Tennessee has mandated the closure of all non-essential businesses. We’re keeping busy with other projects. The kids have online school and are handling that exceptionally well. We’ve been staining our decks, a project […]
Fly Fishing, Wildlife and Outdoor Art
Very few people know this, but Ian dabbles in art. He draws quite a bit and works in watercolor as well. This has always just been strictly for himself with no intention of selling anything. In fact, he keeps a pad in his backpack almost all the time. When he’s alone on the stream or […]
Do Floods Wash Away the Trout? Answers for fly fishers during a wet year
We’ve had an exceptionally wet season already here in East Tennessee and the the Smoky Mountain region. By the end of February Knoxville had a rain surplus of over 10″ that continues to hang in there. Rivers and streams ran high for weeks and we saw some historic flooding in many areas. Fortunately the creeks […]
A Wet Start to 2020
We’re experiencing exceptionally mild weather here in East Tennessee as we kick off 2020, but that isn’t necessarily adding up to great fly fishing opportunities so far. As is so often the case here in the Smoky Mountain region, mild temperatures in the winter also come with abundant rainfall. At the moment stream flows in […]