Great Smoky Mountains Fly Fishing Report - Fly Fishing Smoky Mountains

Great Smoky Mountains Fly Fishing Report: May 11, 2024

All the stream in the park are blown out, meaning far above a safe level to wade. Today’s high will be seventy degrees with clear skies. Tomorrow’s high will be seventy-three degrees with a ten percent chance of rain showers. Good hatches continue to take place. We received several good reports from Perfect Fly customers fishing this past week prior to the high water levels.

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Smoky Mountain Stream Conditions:
The streams with links that have nearby USGS Station Real-time stream data: Click the links to see updates:

Little River: Rate 950 cfs at 3.24 ft
(Good wading up to 239 cfs and with extra caution up to 300 cfs)

West Prong Little Pigeon River (Gatlinburg): Rate 252 cfs at 4.14 ft

O conaluftee River: Rate 1020 cfs at 2.59 ft, (Good wading up to 550 cfs and with extra
caution up to 850 cfs)

C ataloochee Creek: Rate 224 cfs at 3.02 ft. (Good wading up to 200 cfs with extra caution up to 250 cfs.

Hazel Creek and the other larger NC streams flowing into Fontana Lake:
The streams are all blown out due to heavy rain.

Weather Forecast: (click the boxes below for more detailed weather information)

https://forecast7.com/en/35d71n83d51/gatlinburg/?unit=us

https://forecast7.com/en/35d48n83d32/cherokee/?unit=us

Trout Flies Currently Needed or needed very soon;
Streamers:
Brown Sculpin: 6
White Belly Sculpin: 6
Articulated Sculpin: 4

Blue-winged olives: 16 nymphs, emergers, duns and spinners

Blue Quills: 18, nymphs, emergers, duns and spinners

Quill Gordons: 12/14 nymphs, emerging duns, duns and spinners

Little Brown Stoneflies: 12, nymphs and adults

Little Black Caddis: 16 pupa and adults

American March Browns; 10/12, nymphs, emergers, duns and spinners

Green Sedge Caddis, size 16/14, larva, pupa and adults (Abrams Creek)

Hendricksons/Red Quills: 12/14, nymphs, emergers, duns and spinners

Recommended Fishing Strategy:
Keep in mind, the strategies I am recommending is for the maximum odds of catching numbers of fish. Many prefer or favor a dry fly and by all means there isn’t anything wrong with that. It’s just a fact that if nothing is hatching at the time, it reduces your odds of success. You can still probably hook some trout, just not as many as if you fish subsurface. Of course, this is also based on using good techniques and the right flies. Some guys don’t know how to fish below the surface.

Strategy:
Not all of the insects you see above will be hatching in the same location. It is usually only one or two. It varies with the elevation. Some are just starting in the low elevations and some about finished in the higher elevations. If you fished the day or two before and know where something is hatching, fish the nymph or larva stage of it. If you haven’t fished the day or two before, until I spotted something hatching, I would fish the BWO nymph. If you spot something hatching (coming off the water), change to the appropriate emerger, dun or adult imitations of the insect.

Tips for Beginners:
Don’t let anyone intimidate you by contending that fly fishing is more difficult to learn and master than other types of fishing. It isn’t.

Thank you for visiting our website

James Marsh

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Previous Great Smoky Mountains Fly Fishing Reports

Options For Selecting Flies:

Email us (sales@perfectflystore.com) with the dates you will be fishing the park and we will send you a list of our fly suggestions. Please allow up to 24 hours for a response.
Call us at 800-594-4726 and we will help you decide which flies you need.
Call or email us (sales@perfectflystore.com) with a budget for flies and we will select them and get them to you in time for your trip.

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