By Chad Fouts
I wanted to write this article because, in Tennessee, the South Holston and some of our tailwaters overshadow our beauteous Brook Trout water in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
With over 100 miles of extremely fishable blue lines, you can say there is too much to cover in a lifetime. As an outfit only a 1/2 mile from the park entrance, we know that water like the back of our hand. Ramsey Cascades is our closest destination to start our hunt. While you can sometimes find a few at the trailhead, it is best to start your journey roughly 1 mile in, off the beaten trail. Our typical Brook trout can range from 4 inches upwards to a whopping 12 inches!
You may have heard of Lynn Camp Prong, which is some fantastic fishing, but you will find it hard to find a spot to fish. As it is extremely popular, so we suggest hitting Sam’s Creek, which is at the same trailhead-just take a right instead of a left. Then head up about a mile and you will see it flowing into Thunder Head prong.
Another great, but not so popular, stream is Big Creek up above Midnight Hole. Not many people fish it because of the number of people leading up to the big swimming hole. Past it though, can be some of the best Brookie fishing in the park.
There are hundreds of more miles of Blue Line water that we could cover but unfortunately, don’t have space. So if you would like to find out more, give us a call at the shop!
While fishing for trout in our area, it is always best to run the “dry-dropper” rig as we call it. That includes a dry fly with about 18 inches of tippet tied along the bend of its hook. Some good choices are a Purple Sparkle Adams or an Orange Stimulator with a small Pheasant Tail dropper. On that tippet, typically a 5x to the dry and 6x-7x to the nymph.
Chad Fouts is the Fly Shop Manager at The Smoky Mountain Angler in Gatlinburg, TN. He is a self-described fly fishing junky. If you have any questions about fishing in this area give him a call 865-436-8746.