Current streamflow- 86cfs
Water temps- upper 30s-low 40s
Hatches:
Tan midges
Little winter stoneflies
Hot flies:
Walt's worms
Rainbow warriors
Perdigons
Pat's rubber legs
Blowtorches
Chubby Chernobyls
Griffith's gnats
Water levels on the Tellico have held strong over the last week, and the fishing has been great. Trout are taking a variety of flies, and we have caught some great stocked fish as well as some nice wild bows and browns. The Delayed Harvest section of Tellico is fishing well throughout its length. Wild streams can fish well depending on water temps as these streams tend to be more difficult to fish when water temps drop down below the 40s.
On cold days, you'll have the best success once the sun warms the water, with the best times being from mid-morning to mid-afternoon. During the warmest part of the day, you may find fish rising to midges and willing to take a small dry fly. Otherwise, we recommend focusing on fishing with nymphs.
We have more rain in the forecast for Christmas Day and Tuesday, but temps and weather look great for the weekend.
The shop will be closed Sunday, Monday and Tuesday, back to normal hours on Wednesday until the end of the month.
STREAM REPORT 12.15.23
Current streamflow- 117cfs
Water temps- low to mid 40s
The Tellico River is in fine shape going into the weekend. With the added streamflow from last weekend's rain the fish are active and feeding on pretty much anything you put in front of them. Hunter Leslie and I spent a day on the river earlier this week and found fantastic numbers of fish, including some palominos and blew a shot or two on some massive brood stocks (always double check your knots, kids).
We caught fish on a variety of nymphs including Pat's rubber legs, walt's worms, blowtorches, buggers and rainbow warriors. Once the sun warmed the water midday, and midges began hatching in droves, trout took notice and we caught several nice fish on Griffith's gnats. There are good numbers of fish throughout the DH section, from North River up to the NC state line.
You might also have luck fishing the tributaries for wild trout and brook trout, but I wouldn't expect much action until the midday sun warms the water enough to encourage midge hatches and the trout begin feeding.
Saturday looks like a beautiful day. Sunday will bring rain, close to an inch is forecasted. That's great news for the coming week.
STREAM REPORT 12.01.23
Current streamflow- 52.8cfs
Water temps- mid 40s
Current hatches:
Cream midges
Winter black stoneflies
Hot flies:
Griffith's Gnat- 18-16
Parachute Adams- 16-14
Rainbow warrior- 20-16
Perdigons- 20-16
Hot bead pheasant tails- 18-16
Today is the first day that we'll see a change in conditions in quite some time on the Tellico. The upper river has received 1/2" of rain as of this morning, with another 1/2" of rain predicted over the weekend. If we get what is predicted, it should be enough to help bring streamflows up for the coming week. Last time we got a little shot of rain, just before Thanksgiving, it was like a light switch, and trout fed heavily for the next several days, giving us a break from the low water and tiny flies that we've gotten accustomed too.
If you get up river this weekend, I would still take plenty of smaller flies (rainbow warriors, perdigons, midges), but you'll want to have some larger, heavier patterns such as blowtorches, walt's worms, Pat's rubber legs and similar patterns in case streamflows rise and/or become off-color. The trout should be far less selective under those conditions.
The tributaries are fishing well for wild trout, although the low water has caused a lot of leaf build-up that has slowed flows even further and can get in the way of a good drift. Hopefully, this upcoming rain will flush a lot of those leaves out. Expect wild trout to also go on a feeding spree with the increased flows.
STREAM REPORT 11.03.23
STREAM REPORT 11.03
Current streamflow- 55cfs, .7ft
Water temps- mid to low 50s
Hatches:
Tan caddis
Tan midges
Black midges
Hot Flies:
Rainbow warriors
Zebra midges
Quill-bodied nymphs
Walt's worms
Egg flies
Klinkhammers
I Can See It midge
Elk hair caddis
Chubby Chernobyl
We've been guiding like crazy these past couple of weeks and we couldn't have asked for better days. Clients ranged from seasoned anglers to brand new beginners and there have been a lot of great quality fish caught by all.
The river has been stocked a couple of times now, so fly selection ranges from small midges and other more natural patterns for picky, educated holdover fish, to eggs and big foam dry flies for the ready-to-eat-anything more recently stocked fish. With the water being so low and clear right now, it won't take long for those fish to start eating natural food sources and quickly become selective.
Be ready to see many of the trout that you'll be targeting. Until we get more rain and flows come up, it will be a sight fishing game. A dry/dropper combo is the best tactic for the current conditions. There are a good number of fish rising to dry flies right now so I would choose a dry fly over an indicator rig.
Fishing on the wild trout waters is also great, with similar low water conditions. A midge or caddis dry fly will fins a lot of rising wild rising fish right now.
Stream Report 10.19.23
Current streamflow (Tellico)- 70cfs
Water temps- mid to low 50s
Hatches:
Tan midges
Black midges
Tan caddis
October caddis
Hot flies:
Klinkhammer- 18-12
Orange stimulator- 16-12
Griffith's gnat- 18-14
Frenchie- 18-12
Walt's worm- 18-12
Perdigons- 20-16
Zebra midges- 20-16
The fall colors are absolutely stunning in the Tellico area this week and that's true whether we're talking leaves or brookies.
Brook trout are days away from spawning in higher elevations streams so if you observe fish paired up on redds, please let them do their thing to ensure that brook trout populations remain strong for years to come.
Tellico streams received a decent amount of rain earlier this week. While not enough to bring flows up substantially, it did bump flows up to just above normal levels for this time of year. Water is still low and clear, and small flies, light tippet, and a stealthy approach are all required to find success, but the trout are hungry.
We have seen great days of dry fly action thanks to the low flows. In our experience, fall midge hatches seem to be most prominent when water is low like our current conditions, and it's easier for trout to key in on them in low water as well. This means that small dry flies will often receive more attention than heavy nymphs dragging the bottom, at least while low water conditions exist.
The Tellico DH is continuing to produce some great browns and rainbows and sight fishing 18-20" trout is a real possibility right now.
Give us a call, stop by the shop or send us a message for the latest conditions.
Stream Report 10.11.23
Current streamflow- 67.5cfs
Water temps- mid to high 50s
Hatches:
Tan caddis
Cream-colored midges
Sulphur (rare)
Hot flies:
Perdigons 18-16
Walt's worms- 18-14
Zebra midges- 20-16
Hickey's bwo emerger- 18
Griffith's gnat- 16-14
Parachute Adams- 16-12
Elk hair caddis- 16-12
It's that time of year again. Delayed Harvest is in full swing, and so the hunt is on for big stocked bows and browns. There are some very nice trout in the river currently, but you'll have to use some skinny water tactics to find success.
As a reminder, the Tellico River is catch and release only, artificial only from the North River confluence upstream to the NC state line until March 1st. There are no day closures for stocking, and the Citico/Daily Permit is not required during this time.
The Tellico is currently just under the median streamflow, and water is low and clear. During high water, you can often get away with large flies such as eggs, Pat's and squirmies, but with the water being so low, the trout have more time to scrutinize your flies and have also quickly keyed in on the available natural insects such as smal baetis and midge nymphs, so smaller flies nymphs and dries are a must. On recent trips, we have had best luck with small perdigons, midge and bwo patterns, and walt's worms.
A small dry such as a Griffith's gnat or small parachute with a midge dropper will help you fool fish in calmer pools where trout are concentrated and can often be seen rising.
We have also been finding some very nice wild bows and the occasional wild brown on the Tellico and tribs. Similar tactics will also produce wild fish on the tribs.
We have a slight chance of rain all this week and into the weekend, but overall, things look pretty dry. We're looking forward to higher water, but good days can still be had if you're willing to adapt to the current conditions.
Stream Report 9.28.23
Current streamflow- 76cfs
Water temps- upper 50s
Hatches:
Tan caddis 16-14
Midges 20-18
Hot flies:
X-caddis
Griffith's gnat
Parachute midge
Rainbow warrior
Pat's rubber legs
Tungsten eggs
The upper Tellico River was stocked earlier this week, and Delayed Harvest is off to a great start. The quality of fish is outstanding this year, with the average fish being about 14" and around 1lb. There are plenty of trout in the 18-20" range as well, and it's like an Easter egg hunt to find the big ones. Keep your eyes open and you can sight fish a lot of the bigger browns and rainbows with the low, clear streamflows.
Next week's forecast looks dry with decent daytime temps and cool overnight lows. This means streamflows will continue to drop, making fooling fish a bit more difficult, but on the brightside, it means fish will mostly stay close to the areas they were stocked as opposed to scattering and often leaving the DH area as is often the case during high flows. This brings an advantage to the angler in locating fish, but you will likely need a variety of flies to fool fish that are often much more wary in low water. Start with the usual stocker favorites: eggs, squirmies and Pat's. If you get a lot of refusals, downsize to frenchies, perdigons and midge patterns. A dry and dropper is a great combo for low water as it gives you the ability to keep your distance and easily match the speed of your drift with the slow, glassy currents that low water brings.
Give us a call, shoot us a message or stop by the shop for the latest conditions.
Stream Report 9.28.23
Current Streamflow- 86cfs
Water temps- high 50s-low 60s
Hatches:
Midges 18-20
Tan caddis 16-14
Ants 16-14
Beetles 14-12
It has been cool and dry in the Tellico area this past week. River levels have dropped substantially and are currently at normal streamflow for this time of year. Being late summer/early fall, that means low and clear. It's a great time to fish a dry and dropper and target pocketwater. Tellico, Bald, North, and other tribs have all been fishing very well, but you'll need to use stealth to keep from spooking fish in low water. Move slowly, use available cover to your advantage to stay concealed, make as few false casts as possible, and make your first cast count.
Next week is the start of Delayed Harvest, in years past, during low streamflows, the hatchery has delayed stocking for a week or so or until conditions improve. Next week's forecast looks dry, so if streamflows continue to drop, they may delay or limit stocking until better conditions prevail. If this is the case, we'll do our best to update you as soon as we know.
Road Update: Cherohala Skyway is open for travel. However, the first approx. 8 miles of River Rd is still closed and will remain closed until the Bald River Bridge project is completed, which is scheduled for Fall of 2024. Upper River Rd from North River confluence upstream to the North Carolina line remains open and is accessible via North River Rd from the Skyway, or Wildcat Rd after you first turn on to River Rd. Either route will take about 1hr of travel time each way from town to the upper River, so plan for a little extra travel time.
Stocking will continue as normal through fall and winter, and this Delayed Harvest harvest is shaping up to be a great one for anyone willing to make the drive.