The Fall Season Means more
Slate Drakes:
The spinners are the important
stage of the adult stage of
these mayflies.
Slate Drakes:
The spinners are the important
stage of the adult stage of
these mayflies.
Buck Whitetail Deer are a
common sight in the open
areas of the park during the Fall
months of the year.
common sight in the open
areas of the park during the Fall
months of the year.
Fall:
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| Fly Fishing the Great Smoky Mountains National Park |
Brook Trout spawn in the fall of
the year. It is during this time that
they take on their brightest colors.
The park is as beautiful as it can
be during this time of the year. The
number of visitors to the park will
increase tremendously and the
roads and trails in the park can
become a little crowded.
the year. It is during this time that
they take on their brightest colors.
The park is as beautiful as it can
be during this time of the year. The
number of visitors to the park will
increase tremendously and the
roads and trails in the park can
become a little crowded.
Fly fishing in the Great Smoky Mountains
National Park is great during all four seasons of
the year. There are difference in the methods,
strategies and techniques you should use
throughout the year depending on the
environmental conditions. The temperature and
oxygen content of the water can drastically affect
how often and much trout feed. It is important to
understand their underwater world.
National Park is great during all four seasons of
the year. There are difference in the methods,
strategies and techniques you should use
throughout the year depending on the
environmental conditions. The temperature and
oxygen content of the water can drastically affect
how often and much trout feed. It is important to
understand their underwater world.
Fall Season:
Fall (autumn) is our favorite time of the year. The leafs change colors and make the
forest beautiful. Later they will start falling. In most places that trout live fall gives
anglers a sense of rush or a sense that they need to get in all the fishing in they
can before winter time. In the Smokies, winter can still provide some good fly-fishing
so no one really gets that same feeling that they do in Michigan or Montana. This is
the big difference in fly fishing the Smokies and fly fishing most any other part of the
U.S. You can fish year round and the fall season is actually an improvement over
summer in some anglers minds.
Weather:
One thing noticeable is that the biting insects are gone. The weather has begun to
cool down some and there is normally less rainfall than there are during the
summer. Daytime temperatures can range from hot in the early fall - in the nineties,
to cold during the mid and late fall - as low as the teens and twenties. Snow will
usually fall in October in the high elevations.
Water Levels:
The water is usually low due to the lack of rainfall. That also means it will be moving
a little slower and clearer. Fall normally provides the lowest water levels of the year.
Under these conditions of low, clear water, your shadow can spook fish that are
several yards away. You must use longer leaders and lighter tippets than you may
have been used to.
Water Temperatures:
Water Temperatures will vary from warm to cold just like the air temps. Early fall can
have air temps in the nineties and mid to late fall can have freezing weather. This
means the water temperatures can vary from the high sixties and even low seventies
in the low elevations to the low forties, even high thirties in the late fall. Melting snow
can make the water cold in the lower elevation even when the air temperatures are
actually warm. A thermometer is a must on many autumn days. It will give you an
idea of how active the cold blooded trout are.
Leaves:
Leaves in water bothers some anglers. It bothers most of them more from a mental
standpoint that an actual fishing standpoint. The leaves are only thick and
aggravating for a very few days, usually just two or three days and usually never over
a week. There may be a few on the water for a few weeks but not enough to affect
most anglers cast. After the leaves are ready to fall, a very windy day is usually the
worst. Leaves can be aggravating during those times.
Leaves can actually help disguise the angler and distract the fish. They trout certainly
have no problem selecting your dry fly from the debris and floating leaves.
One quick tip here is to avoid stepping on leaves when you are wading. What
appears to be some leaves on the bottom of the stream may in fact be a pile of them
a few feet deep. You can step on them and go down fast in just the right or we
should say wrong, position.
Spawning Trout:
Brook trout spawn in the fall. They change colors like the leaves. It is amazing how
much they resemble the leaves when they change to their spawning colors.
Brown trout also spawn in the fall. They usually move upstream and can easily be
spotted during this migration. This is a good time to catch large browns because
they loose their normal caution and nocturnal habits of staying hidden during the
day. Their habit of only feeding during low light conditions and at nighttime doesn't
play the role it does the rest of the year.
The brown trout should not be caught during the actual spawning process. There is
a fine line between catching spawning trout and catching pre-spawning trout. You
should be able to determine if the fish are holding their position on a redd or
migrating upstream. The males are usually the most aggressive. They will attack a
streamer thinking it is an invading fish. You may also damage the redds during this
time by stepping on them when you are wading.
It is not against the park regulations and rules to fish for a trout while it is spawning.
It is illegal to use certain methods of fishing for them such as trying to snag them. To
catch one while it is on its redd or protecting the redd is in our opinion an
unsportsmanlike thing to do. We hope you will avoid this type of fishing.
Hatches:
This is the final round of hatches for most aquatic insects. Food will grow scarce
after this.
Great Brown Autumn Sedges:
The Pycnopsyche genus of caddisflies are found throughout the Smokies. These
are large Tan, Yellowish Brown or Cinnamon colored caddisflies. There are several
species of them. They mostly emerge and deposit their eggs during the evenings
but can provide some activity at dawn or just before dark. These are large flies
ranging from a hook size 10 to 16.
Slate Drakes:
The Isony bicolor or Slate Drake brings on a second wave of hatches for the year.
Remember these mayflies hatch out of the water and the duns are not an important
stage of life to imitate. The nymphs and spinners are. These are a hook size 10 to
14.
Eastern Blue-winged Olives:
The Eastern BWOs are about gone. There could be a hatch of one of the species
early in the fall but it would be sparse and few insects would be on the water. If
available, they are a hook size 16 or 18.
The Little Eastern BWOs should also be about gone.
Blue-winged Olives:
Some baetis species but also several others like the Acentrella species will hatch in
sparse numbers and in certain areas of some streams. The baetis are usually on
their second go around or the second part of their bi-brooded year. These mayflies
are all in the Baetidae family but not all in the baetis genus. They vary in color like the
leaves. greens, olives, browns, auburn and yellow. They all do have gray wings,
however. Hooks sizes can range from an 18 to 22 depending on the species.
Little Blue-winged Olives:
There will also be hatches of Little Blue-winged olives. The spinners of these
mayflies molt in colors varying from the clear body of the Jenny spinners to the
familiar rusty spinner color.
These mayflies vary in hooks sizes from a 20 to a 26.
Little Yellow Quills - Heptagenia Group:
Bright yellow mayflies usually called Yellow Quills hatch in September and October.
These are especially plentiful in the high elevation streams or in the brook trout
waters. Many anglers think these mayflies are a Light Cahills but they are not the
Stenacron interpuntatum. They are one of the species of mayflies including in the
Heptagenia Group. They are clinger nymphs. Both the emergence and spinner fall
are important stages to imitate. These are hook sizes 16 to 18.
Light Cahills:
It is possible there may be a few Light Cahills, or Stenacron interpuntatum species
that hatch in the early part of the fall.
Cream Cahills:
It is also possible that you may encounter some hatches of the Cream Cahills in the
early fall.
The Needle Stonefly:
The little Needle Stonefly or the Leuctridae species, are very plentiful in the fall
months. Most anglers think they are seeing brown caddisfies. These are very small,
slim stoneflies that are imitated with a hook size 20. The nymphs and adults are
important stages to imitate.
Yellow Sallys:
Perlodidae family species, not the same as in the spring, will hatch in the early part
of the fall season. These are called Yellow Sallies by many anglers. They hatch
throughout the afternoon and deposit their eggs from dusk to late evening.
Midges:
Midges hatch year round but become more important in the fall, especially the late
fall because they may be the only thing hatching. They are not profuse hatches like
they are in tailwaters and spring creeks but they exist in plentiful amounts in isolated
locations to some extent in all of the steams..
Grasshoppers:
Grasshoppers will still be around until late fall or cold weather sets in. Imitations can
be productive especially during the early part of fall.
Ants:
Ants will also be around until freezing temperature come around. In the early part of
the fall they could be important.
Beetles:
Beetles can be found up until the ground freezes. Imitations of them may be effective
during the early part of the fall season.
Summary:
When others are hunting and watching football games, the trout are eating dry flies
in the Smokies.
Copyright 2007 James Marsh
Fall (autumn) is our favorite time of the year. The leafs change colors and make the
forest beautiful. Later they will start falling. In most places that trout live fall gives
anglers a sense of rush or a sense that they need to get in all the fishing in they
can before winter time. In the Smokies, winter can still provide some good fly-fishing
so no one really gets that same feeling that they do in Michigan or Montana. This is
the big difference in fly fishing the Smokies and fly fishing most any other part of the
U.S. You can fish year round and the fall season is actually an improvement over
summer in some anglers minds.
Weather:
One thing noticeable is that the biting insects are gone. The weather has begun to
cool down some and there is normally less rainfall than there are during the
summer. Daytime temperatures can range from hot in the early fall - in the nineties,
to cold during the mid and late fall - as low as the teens and twenties. Snow will
usually fall in October in the high elevations.
Water Levels:
The water is usually low due to the lack of rainfall. That also means it will be moving
a little slower and clearer. Fall normally provides the lowest water levels of the year.
Under these conditions of low, clear water, your shadow can spook fish that are
several yards away. You must use longer leaders and lighter tippets than you may
have been used to.
Water Temperatures:
Water Temperatures will vary from warm to cold just like the air temps. Early fall can
have air temps in the nineties and mid to late fall can have freezing weather. This
means the water temperatures can vary from the high sixties and even low seventies
in the low elevations to the low forties, even high thirties in the late fall. Melting snow
can make the water cold in the lower elevation even when the air temperatures are
actually warm. A thermometer is a must on many autumn days. It will give you an
idea of how active the cold blooded trout are.
Leaves:
Leaves in water bothers some anglers. It bothers most of them more from a mental
standpoint that an actual fishing standpoint. The leaves are only thick and
aggravating for a very few days, usually just two or three days and usually never over
a week. There may be a few on the water for a few weeks but not enough to affect
most anglers cast. After the leaves are ready to fall, a very windy day is usually the
worst. Leaves can be aggravating during those times.
Leaves can actually help disguise the angler and distract the fish. They trout certainly
have no problem selecting your dry fly from the debris and floating leaves.
One quick tip here is to avoid stepping on leaves when you are wading. What
appears to be some leaves on the bottom of the stream may in fact be a pile of them
a few feet deep. You can step on them and go down fast in just the right or we
should say wrong, position.
Spawning Trout:
Brook trout spawn in the fall. They change colors like the leaves. It is amazing how
much they resemble the leaves when they change to their spawning colors.
Brown trout also spawn in the fall. They usually move upstream and can easily be
spotted during this migration. This is a good time to catch large browns because
they loose their normal caution and nocturnal habits of staying hidden during the
day. Their habit of only feeding during low light conditions and at nighttime doesn't
play the role it does the rest of the year.
The brown trout should not be caught during the actual spawning process. There is
a fine line between catching spawning trout and catching pre-spawning trout. You
should be able to determine if the fish are holding their position on a redd or
migrating upstream. The males are usually the most aggressive. They will attack a
streamer thinking it is an invading fish. You may also damage the redds during this
time by stepping on them when you are wading.
It is not against the park regulations and rules to fish for a trout while it is spawning.
It is illegal to use certain methods of fishing for them such as trying to snag them. To
catch one while it is on its redd or protecting the redd is in our opinion an
unsportsmanlike thing to do. We hope you will avoid this type of fishing.
Hatches:
This is the final round of hatches for most aquatic insects. Food will grow scarce
after this.
Great Brown Autumn Sedges:
The Pycnopsyche genus of caddisflies are found throughout the Smokies. These
are large Tan, Yellowish Brown or Cinnamon colored caddisflies. There are several
species of them. They mostly emerge and deposit their eggs during the evenings
but can provide some activity at dawn or just before dark. These are large flies
ranging from a hook size 10 to 16.
Slate Drakes:
The Isony bicolor or Slate Drake brings on a second wave of hatches for the year.
Remember these mayflies hatch out of the water and the duns are not an important
stage of life to imitate. The nymphs and spinners are. These are a hook size 10 to
14.
Eastern Blue-winged Olives:
The Eastern BWOs are about gone. There could be a hatch of one of the species
early in the fall but it would be sparse and few insects would be on the water. If
available, they are a hook size 16 or 18.
The Little Eastern BWOs should also be about gone.
Blue-winged Olives:
Some baetis species but also several others like the Acentrella species will hatch in
sparse numbers and in certain areas of some streams. The baetis are usually on
their second go around or the second part of their bi-brooded year. These mayflies
are all in the Baetidae family but not all in the baetis genus. They vary in color like the
leaves. greens, olives, browns, auburn and yellow. They all do have gray wings,
however. Hooks sizes can range from an 18 to 22 depending on the species.
Little Blue-winged Olives:
There will also be hatches of Little Blue-winged olives. The spinners of these
mayflies molt in colors varying from the clear body of the Jenny spinners to the
familiar rusty spinner color.
These mayflies vary in hooks sizes from a 20 to a 26.
Little Yellow Quills - Heptagenia Group:
Bright yellow mayflies usually called Yellow Quills hatch in September and October.
These are especially plentiful in the high elevation streams or in the brook trout
waters. Many anglers think these mayflies are a Light Cahills but they are not the
Stenacron interpuntatum. They are one of the species of mayflies including in the
Heptagenia Group. They are clinger nymphs. Both the emergence and spinner fall
are important stages to imitate. These are hook sizes 16 to 18.
Light Cahills:
It is possible there may be a few Light Cahills, or Stenacron interpuntatum species
that hatch in the early part of the fall.
Cream Cahills:
It is also possible that you may encounter some hatches of the Cream Cahills in the
early fall.
The Needle Stonefly:
The little Needle Stonefly or the Leuctridae species, are very plentiful in the fall
months. Most anglers think they are seeing brown caddisfies. These are very small,
slim stoneflies that are imitated with a hook size 20. The nymphs and adults are
important stages to imitate.
Yellow Sallys:
Perlodidae family species, not the same as in the spring, will hatch in the early part
of the fall season. These are called Yellow Sallies by many anglers. They hatch
throughout the afternoon and deposit their eggs from dusk to late evening.
Midges:
Midges hatch year round but become more important in the fall, especially the late
fall because they may be the only thing hatching. They are not profuse hatches like
they are in tailwaters and spring creeks but they exist in plentiful amounts in isolated
locations to some extent in all of the steams..
Grasshoppers:
Grasshoppers will still be around until late fall or cold weather sets in. Imitations can
be productive especially during the early part of fall.
Ants:
Ants will also be around until freezing temperature come around. In the early part of
the fall they could be important.
Beetles:
Beetles can be found up until the ground freezes. Imitations of them may be effective
during the early part of the fall season.
Summary:
When others are hunting and watching football games, the trout are eating dry flies
in the Smokies.
Copyright 2007 James Marsh
Rainbow trout move back out
of the highly oxygenated warm
summer water to go anywhere
they please .
of the highly oxygenated warm
summer water to go anywhere
they please .
Some flowers do bloom in the
fall months. You will see a lot of
wild flowers you have probably
not seen before whenever you
fish the park.
fall months. You will see a lot of
wild flowers you have probably
not seen before whenever you
fish the park.
Fly-fishing usually picks up in
the fall months of the year. It is a
beautiful time to be fishing and
the weather is normally nice.
the fall months of the year. It is a
beautiful time to be fishing and
the weather is normally nice.
The boulders can provide the
perfect hiding place.
perfect hiding place.
Staying hidden becomes
even more important.
even more important.
Water levels can get rather
low because of the lack of
rainflall.
low because of the lack of
rainflall.
Site Map (Click on Links)
Abrams Creek Fishing Methods Marine Food Species
Anthony Creek Forney Creek Mayflies Spring
Big Creek Freestone Streams Midges Stoneflies
Beginners Recommended Gear Misc N.C. Streams Straight Creek
Caddisflies Hatches Misc Tenn. Streams Streams
Casting Hazel Creek Middle Prong Little Pigeon River Summer Season
Cataloochee Creek Headwater Stream Middle Prong Little River Terrestrials
Cosby Creek Caddisfly Imitations Noland Creek Twenty Mile Creek
Deep Creek Mayfly Imitations Oconaluftee River Wild Trout
Midge Imitations Other Aquatic Insects Winter Season
Eagel Creek Home PH West Prong Little Pigeon River
East Prong Little River Stonefly Imitations Presentation West Prong Little River
Fall Season Streamers Raven Fork Spring Hatch Chart
About Us Terrestrial Imitations Reading Hatch Charts Summer Hatch Chart
Recommended Flies Links Seasons Winter Hatch Chart
Fall Hatch Chart
Abrams Creek Fishing Methods Marine Food Species
Anthony Creek Forney Creek Mayflies Spring
Big Creek Freestone Streams Midges Stoneflies
Beginners Recommended Gear Misc N.C. Streams Straight Creek
Caddisflies Hatches Misc Tenn. Streams Streams
Casting Hazel Creek Middle Prong Little Pigeon River Summer Season
Cataloochee Creek Headwater Stream Middle Prong Little River Terrestrials
Cosby Creek Caddisfly Imitations Noland Creek Twenty Mile Creek
Deep Creek Mayfly Imitations Oconaluftee River Wild Trout
Midge Imitations Other Aquatic Insects Winter Season
Eagel Creek Home PH West Prong Little Pigeon River
East Prong Little River Stonefly Imitations Presentation West Prong Little River
Fall Season Streamers Raven Fork Spring Hatch Chart
About Us Terrestrial Imitations Reading Hatch Charts Summer Hatch Chart
Recommended Flies Links Seasons Winter Hatch Chart
Fall Hatch Chart