Fishing Reports

French Broad River

French Broad River

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French Broad River

French Broad River Fishing Report

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French Broad Flows Still High

Written by Allen Gillespie
 on 21 May 2013

tn toadTVA is still pushing a ton of water through the French Broad River below Douglas Dam making it unfishable at present. The good news is that the generation schedule has been throttled back significantly and the lake level is only a foot or so above TVA's expected elevation range.  This bodes well for float-able/fish-able flows by the weekend or early next week. At present, the small mouth are still a little confused with respects to what they're supposed to be doing with all the water and cold weather we've been having here in East Tennessee this spring. The free stone rivers associated with the French Broad drainage are holding significant numbers of trophy small mouth in a variety of stages from pre-spawn to spawning to post-spawn. Expect them all to move into a post-spawn mode in then next two weeks and drop back down into the main river.  When that happens, hold on.

River Information

If smallmouth fishing is your game, then look no further than The French Broad River and its tributaries. This 213 mile river meanders out of North Carolina into Tennessee, skirting through the region of The Cherokee National Forest before impounding into Douglas Lake. This river was a huge factor in the settling of lands west of the mountains of western North Carolina. During the frontier days a steady flotilla of flatboats came down stream as people began to settle what was then the wild west of Tennessee.

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Archived French Broad River Fishing Reports:

French Broad River below Douglas is Now Happening

Written by Allen Gillespie
 on 16 April 2013
Good accounts of decent small mouth action on the French Broad River below Douglas Dam are trickling in with increasing regularity. The mid- to lower-river has been warm enough to push the fish up into their shallow water haunts in the past week. If Mother Nature and TVA will cooperate the bite should improve steadily in the next week or two.

French Broad River Pre-spawn is On

Written by Allen Gillespie
 on 12 April 2013
When and if you can find a favorable flow on the French Broad it is beginning to show some signs of life. The pre-spawn bite is not super strong yet as the water temperatures is just now getting above the 50 degree mark but there is enough action there to warrant a look. This should steadily improve as TVA cuts back the flow and the water temperatures continues to warm.

French Broad Frigid

Written by Allen Gillespie
 on 03 December 2012
What a difference a week makes. The lower French Broad has slowed to a crawl following some significant catches the week before. Water temperatures, despite the warm days, have plummeted and the bass bite has turned off.  Lower flows and unseasonably warm temperatures may turn this around but from here on out it a low and slow presentation may be required to get any action at all.

French Broad Bass are still getting it on the lower river.

Written by Allen Gillespie
 on 27 November 2012
The smallmouth on the French Broad are still hungry but have fallen back into their late-fall/early winter habitats. Now that TVA has dropped the lake levels on Ft. Loudon the lower portion of the French Broad is treacherous from the John Sevier Highway up. You'll find the bass laying low in the deep troughs between the horizontal shoals. Fishing is better with a little bit of a flow but on low water the fish are busting some bait on the surface.

French Broad Bass Bite Improving

Written by Allen Gillespie
 on 22 October 2012
After what seemed like an eternity the bass bite on the French Broad is steadily improving. I'm not sure if Douglas turning was the problem but the fish finally seem to have adjusted to their new conditions and the bite is back on. Water temperatures are still warm and given this week's weather report it looks like all systems are a go through the weekend. Get out while the getting is good!

Fickle Bass on the Broad Continues

Written by Allen Gillespie
 on 01 October 2012
The big bass are still in the shallows set up in their usually lies but they are still refusing to feed aggressively. Hot water, low oxygen, early Fall fronts may all be to blame but rest assured as soon as we get a real dip in the temperatures the big boys (and girls) will put it into overdrive and get their feed on. If you are out and about now chasing them think small, delicate, and nymphy. Dead drifting crawdads, helgramites, and tequeelies under a popper are probably going to be your best bet.

French Broad is Firing Again

Written by Allen Gillespie
 on 19 September 2012

Douglas dam has the taps off for the next couple of days. Provided that the Little Pigeon has flushed itself from the recent rains, the fishing should be off the charts with the cool nights and warm water. The big fish are schooling up and looking for a feed. With the water low, however, your going to need a long leader and a stealthy approach. Try downsizing your flies and tippet.

French Broad Bass are Fickle.

Written by Allen Gillespie
 on 11 September 2012
I fished the lower reaches of the French Broad on a couple of occasions last week and saw numerous large small mouth in close proximity to one another all holding on structure. Unfortunately the current generation schedule puts the lower river cloeesest to town on a very low flow throughout the day light hours so while seeing the bass is easy catching them is entirely another thing. Finding the right flow at the moment will lead to significant catches...

French Broad slightly fickle.

Written by Allen Gillespie
 on 04 September 2012
Managed a couple of outings on the French Broad over the holiday weekend with mixed results. While the fish seemed willing the weather was less than cooperative and caused some problems. The fish that were most willing showed themselves in the shallows and weren't bashful about chasing a streamer down from a long distance. Things should continue to improve for small mouth over the next two months or so.

French Broad bass fat on bait fish.

Written by Allen Gillespie
 on 24 June 2012

I managed twenty or so nice small mouth bass early Sunday morning on the lower French Broad just above town.  Every fish I caught regurgitated their lunch (no stomach pumps needed) and showed that the fish are gorging themselves on a healthy supply of bait fish.  Bait balls are visible in the shallows and the bass are taking advantage.  Fly anglers will find themselves in advantage when compared to their gear brethren if they choose to throw small (size 4 to 6) clouser minnows and work them slow in the shallows and behind structure.  By in large the generations schedules look favorable but you will definitely want to try and find the low flow during the early or late part of the day in order to catch the fish in their best moods.