It’s still February and the latest weather forecast shows plenty of wintry weather in store this week so it’s a good thing I made the most of the bearable weather and good flows available. Last week we made a trip over to the Holston. Over the weekend I also floated the Hiwassee and checked on […]
Cold but the best conditions we’ve seen in a while
We hitched up the drift boat yesterday and headed to the Holston River. The original weather forecast was for 42 and sunshine when we originally made arrangements, but every subsequent forecast would degrade ever so slightly and by the time we arrived on the water it was overcast with a slight breeze. I don’t know […]
Making the Best of the Situation
It’s been a tough winter. No secret there. Rivers and streams in the Smokies remained under ice even as warm temperatures and sunshine arrived over the weekend. We considered a trip to either Clinch or Holston but the combination of our schedule and expectations of crowds on the water kept us away. I’ve been burning […]
Ice on Little River
Here are some familiar spots on Little River covered with ice. It’s a view most people never see.
Tailwater Fishermen Rejoice!
It’s been a long time with only a few windows to get on the big rivers in East Tennessee, but this weekend things are going to change. TVA’s predicted flows for area trout rivers show that there will be wadeable flows on most rivers. The Clinch, Holston, South Holston, and Watauga will have the most […]
Fly of the Month Download – Copper John
Here we go with another Fly of the Month download. This month we take at look at the Copper John, a fly that’s effective in most trout waters across North America including the Smoky Mountains and several southern tailwaters. You’ll learn a little bit about the history of the fly and the best ways to […]
Update On Lynn Camp Prong Brook Trout Restoration
Last week Great Smoky Mountains National Park fisheries biologist Matt Kulp spoke to the Little River Chapter of Trout Unlimited. The main focus of his presentation was the progress on the Lynn Camp Prong brook trout restoration in the Tremont section of the park near Townsend, Tennessee. The project has been a tremendous challenge and […]
Warmer Weather On the Horizon
I’m sitting at my desk in Townsend waiting for more freezing weather and snow to arrive. Yesterday was relatively mild but the streams in the Smokies were essentially frozen over. Even now I can still see snow on Thunderhead Mountain and other high peaks. Still, yesterday was sunny and about 50 degrees and we weren’t […]
Cabin Fever Spreads Like Wildfire
One thing we can tell after getting out over the past weekend is that there is a highly virulent strain of cabin fever spreading out there. We thought it was only us. Last Saturday we had the unlikely combination of a good TVA flow on the river, Nana lined up to keep the kids, and […]
Conditions Better But Not Perfect By Any Means
We feel like we’re being pretty patient with the weather. After all it is January so it’s not like we’re supposed to have warm weather perfect for fishing. We don’t know about you, but we could sure use a good day of fishing about now! Water levels have finally dropped down into the fishable range […]