tennessee river smallmouth fishing

“Some of the smaller rivers get runs of smallmouths at certain times of the year, but smallmouths are in the Pigeon River proper at any time of the year. When the river has low visibility, water temps are cool or the fishing is slow, I typically resort to this category. Also, I would allow a pause of about a minute to a minute and a half. The French Broad River and Holston River come together just east of town to form the Tennessee River. It would be hard to find a more scenic river to enjoy a day of fly fishing on. It is not uncommon to have high catch rates as well hook into a few lunker bass. Fishing Guide Service in Chattanooga Tennessee specializing in trophy catfish crappie rockfish striper and bluegill. Tennessee is fortunate to have thousands of miles of streams (17,000 miles statewide) that offer anglers excellent fishing for smallmouth bass, spotted bass, rock bass, channel catfish and an array of pan fish. Tennessee River smallmouth fishing at it’s best. Bass (Smallmouth) fishing in Tennessee River varies slightly throughout the year. Successful smallmouth anglers have found that the most popular colors for soft baits include green, pumpkin, root beer, and salt ‘n’ pepper. A good way to target them is to work structure such as rocks, logs, or deep runs. Donald Hedge is the premier pickwick lake fishing guide. Evan Gregor's new fishing column: Fall is the time for smallmouth Fishing columnist Evan Gregor snared a smallmouth this summer from Voyageur Landing … The French Broad River and Holston River come together just east of town to form the Tennessee River. TYPICAL CATCH: Depending on the time of year, Smallmouth Bass are plentiful and can reach five plus pounds. Fly Fishing the Little Tennessee River Guided fly fishing trips on the Little Tennessee River. They never give up and will fight tooth and nail until they are lifted over the side of the boat. If you have other smallmouth pics or videos to share, bring em over to our Facebook page! Dale Hollow is no secret to any serious bass fisherman. River Fishing. I urge anglers whenever they use live bait to set the hook as quickly as possible. Small Spotted Bass usually keep you company while Largemouth lurk through the wood. If you live in Tennessee or Virginia, put smallmouth fishing on your bucket list. If you catch a bass this time of the year, release it as quickly as possible. Smallies will strike baits on the surface during certain times of the year. Live shiners are a fantastic bait to use during this time of year. These fish can be found in rocky or gravelly areas of the river with moving water. Matt won best bass last year in the Tennessee Angler Recognition Program. Fishing with a variety of soft baits like grubs, tubes, and Senkos work well during Spring, Summer, and Fall. If you can get the lure right by the bed, these bass will aggressively attack it. Smallies will take a variety of artificial baits whether it be on light tackle or the fly rod. TOTAL RIVER MILES: 284 miles long. 1901 County Road 10, Florence, Alabama 35633-2959. Phone: (256)760-8090 E-mail: info@smallmouth.com God Bless! Both the Little Tennessee River and Tuckaseggee River offer anglers excellent smallmouth bass fishing. Smallmouth bass go on a feeding binge during the fall. Their strong drag burning runs coupled with their explosive leaps out of the water making them one of the toughest freshwater fish that swims. As a professional freshwater fishing guide, my goal is to give you the best opportunity to catch smallmouth bass (smallies) in the beautiful tailrace and freestone rivers of East Tennessee. Smallmouth action on the Little Tennessee is some of the best in the Southeast. Covering 27,700 acres, the lake is the premier smallmouth fishery in the state of Tennessee. They also take many kinds of live bait too. Awesome job. Source. Easy to moderate access. Fishing with a variety of soft baits like grubs, tubes, and Senkos work well during Spring, Summer, and Fall. Precautionary advisory for channel catfish in the lower portion from Douglas Reservoir to the mouth of Bent Creek at river mile 14.9. Tennessee and Cumberland River Systems Below the dams, the oxygenated waters contain striper, crappie, sauger, trophy catfish, and largemouth and smallmouth bass. Deep Lake. Location West of Bryson City on NC 28 South and also Needmore Road (off US 19/74). Smallmouth Bass will hit a variety of lures and can be caught during all four seasons here in East Tennessee. One of my favorite things to do is to tease up a big smallmouth with popping bug on the surface with a fly rod. I have 22 years experience on each of these reservoirs as part of a lifetime of fishing the Tennessee River. Crayfish is one of the main components of their diet, so anything that resembles the color of the crayfish (usually brown) on that particular body of water would be the color of choice. Michigan. Your email address will not be published. Precautionary advisory the entire length within Tennessee for black bass (largemouth, smallmouth and spotted). Anglers will find more variety in the areas where the rivers enter the lake. The Cumberland River is rarely viewed as a fishing hot spot; however, it offers endless opportunities for angling. Access from the lower end can be found at Fort Lou doun/Tellico Canal Ramp adjoining those two bodies of water. Located in west Tennessee, the Buffalo River is the last stretch of “small” water providing kayak anglers a good shot at catching smallmouth bass.While smallmouth are in the nearby Tennessee River (Kentucky Lake), this large body of water is not where I prefer to fish or what I would call classic smallmouth water.For me, small streams are my choice destinations for either wade fishing or kayak fishing. Rob Kanter with a smallmouth bass on the Salt Fork River. The fish are still slowed as they have come out of their winter lull. If this doesn’t produce, experiment with your retrieve and length of pauses until you find what the fish want. Also, Rapala husky jerks and X-Raps have caught me some fish. A large volume of relatively clean water creates great fishing as the Tennessee River dips south from the State of Tennessee into Alabama. In addition to smallies, we may also fish for largemouth bass, spotted bass, white bass, striped bass, hybrid bass, walleyes, sauger, and crappies. Smallmouth Bass will hit a variety of lures and can be caught during all four seasons here in East Tennessee. Little Tennessee River. Keep it up! The occasional Striper sends shock waves through your rod. For over 30 years Donald has fished Pickwick Lake and the Tennessee River below the dam targeting trophy smallmouth, largemouth, striped bass, catfish, and white bass. An array of styles and colors of crank baits, buzz baits, and spinnerbaits will receive attention from aggressively feeding smallies. Learn how your comment data is processed. This is the perfect time to fish as they fatten up to prepare for winter. When it comes to having the best brown bass fishing in a variety of habitats, Tennessee's waters, from highland reservoirs to flowing rivers, may just be the best in the country. Teaching Fishing Fun. Smallmouth bass thrive in the lowland rivers of Tennessee. The Tennessee River is a 652 mile river and flows through Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi and Kentucky. I was fishing with a weighted fly that I just let drift in front of the canoe. If you have a picture of your Holston River smallmouth bass adventures, upload it here and be sure to LIKE this page on Facebook! It’s also a great bait for the Spring and Summer months as well. Smith caught the biggest smallmouth of the day, about a 2 1/2-pounder, on a black Whopper Plopper that he chugged over the top of a submerged log. There is no closed season. Successful smallmouth anglers have found that the most popular colors for soft baits include green, pumpkin, root beer, and salt ‘n’ pepper. Knoxville web design and hosting by Slamdot. You can’t go wrong with jig n pigs, natural color tubes, hair jigs, and creature baits. What gives Michigan its edge … Matt won best bass last year in the Tennessee Angler Recognition Program. License Requirements NC fishing license . It’s arguably the best lake in the country for trophy smallmouth. TOTAL RIVER MILES GUIDED: Lower Duck River watershed. Smallmouth's love the cool waters, the structure and flow that these streams provide. Most know about the great largemouth fishing in the south, but most believe you have to go up north to experience great smallmouth fishing. As it hit the end of the riffle my line tightened and I set the hook. This is a great time of year to hit the creeks and cool off. River Fishing. Michigan is the top location for smallmouth bass fishing. Everything Smallmouth - Smallmouth Fishing Tips, Articles and Videos Everyday. That’s why we aren’t allowed to keep fish until mid-June here. You can and should fish for and catch smallmouths year 'round. We target smallmouth bass on our wade and walk fishing trips between the months of April and October on the Tuckasegee River and Little Tennessee River. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. This will avoid gut hooking the fish. This technique works well on some of the large TVA lakes in January and February. There are many other great smallmouth bass streams in Tennessee. Dredging flies for smallmouth are considered streamers, a larger category of fly that is actively retrieved below the surface and imitates any food source other than small aquatic insects. “The river is becoming well known for producing the vast majority of stream smallmouths over 20 inches for the Tennessee Angler Recognition Program,” said Frank Fiss, TWRA fisheries biologist. Book us for a day and we will change your mind! The good smallmouth fishing in February is best on the lower half of the lake. Bass Fishing Tennessee: Dale Hollow Reservoir. Extensive fishing information from one of the Cook County Forest Preserve’s finest lakes. The winter months can also provide quality smallmouth fishing too. Fish them slowly. Hope this helps and tight lines! [VIdeo] River and Stream Hopping For Smallmouth Bass, [Video] Searching For Smallies: The River Eddy. If you have other smallmouth pics or videos to share, bring em over to our Facebook page! They suspend when the retrieve is stopped and stay in the strike zone longer for lethargic fish. Clinch River Fly Fishing. Anything that imitates crayfish is good and if you can find heavy cover, I would suggest a weedless texas-rigged worm, as bass like to find cover for bedding to protect their eggs. S mallmouth bass provide one of the best stream fishing experiences and North Carolina's Appalachian Mountains and foothills provide one of the best Smallmouth fisheries. If you want to mix things up a bit, you’ll find fantastic smallmouth fishing on Knoxville’s three rivers. Check out my web site, then come fish world-famous Pickwick and Wilson Lakes with me, Steve Hacker. High season is March to May. Steve. This southern swing of the Tennessee River into Alabama brings game fish and various animals not found in other Alabama watersheds. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Tennessee River Bass Guides. The longer its out of the water, the longer bluegills have to raid the nest. Now in the spawn itself, the water has usually warmed up by then, so your retrieves can be quicker and more aggressive. River trout fishing in Franklin North Carolina Smallmouth bass in the river are feeding aggressively, fattening themselves for the winter. These Tennessee River smallies were caught on a #2 aberdeen hook with a minnow, no sinker on 8 lb test. There is nothing more exciting than fighting a slab-sided smallmouth bass in the current. Tennessee River (Chattanooga) Hamilton - Tennessee. Spotted bass, white bass, walleye, catfish, panfish, and even musky are available. If you want to mix things up a bit, you’ll find fantastic smallmouth fishing on Knoxville’s three rivers. Large freestone river . 16 catches; 285 followers; 6 spots; This focuses on the Tennessee River while it is nearest to Chattanooga. Both rivers empty into Fontana Lake. All content Copyright © 2020, River Smallie Adventures. * Around here I am referring to Little River, Little Pigeon River and Abrams Creek. Click here If you like this page, share it with your friends on Facebook and Twitter. This year we've developed a smallmouth bass outlook that will keep you busy all year. One of the most popular methods is to use the Float ‘N’ Fly technique. Low season is January to February and June to December. Their reputation is built on stamina, acrobatic fights, and aggressive top water strikes. From the dam on up the Tennessee River just before you see the Knoxville skyline is where Strader said to put your smallmouth fishing emphasis. Summarizing our day and a half of fishing on the river, Smith’s prediction was right on that the … Our friend Matt was kind enough to allow us to post these awesome Tennessee River smallies. Rick Larimore. The most targeted fish species in the Harpeth River is the smallmouth bass (M. dolomieu). Smallmouth Bass truly are a fish for all seasons in East Tennessee and can be caught with a variety of baits, methods, and techniques. One of the finest tailwaters in the US, the Clinch River flows from the base … ... We came into the first deep pool by way of a narrow, fast riffle only 20 minutes after getting on the water. These three just happen to be close by. ... Several years ago area bass anglers lobbied the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency to manage our section of the Tennessee River for trophy smallmouth bass. Smallmouth are ambush predators and love to sit behind rocks or other cover when hunting. Busse Lake. With these, I would use a jerk, jerk, pause retrieve with very light jerks and twitches of your rod. Smallmouth bass are widely regarded as one the hardest fighting game fish in freshwater. Species Brown Trout, Rainbow Trout, Smallmouth Bass, Largemouth Bass, Kentucky Spotted Bass, Walleye, Muskie, Catfish, Carp. 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