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Tellico River Fishing Report

Updated Fri, Sep 4, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

The Cherokee National Forest’s trout artery: Tellico pairs roadside stockers with backcountry wild water and a March hatchery parade.

2/5
Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.
Flow
79 cfs
Air / High
98 / 98 F
Wind
ESE 2 mph

Sources: USGS gauge 03518500, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.

Satellite view
Friday
4
September 2026

Today's Fishing Report

Generated this morning from live readings: gauge, weather model, sun and moon. A fresh report is published here every morning.

2/5Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.

Tellico River rewards those who follow the bait as the water cools. The river is running 79 cfs, dropping and clearing. Today brings clear skies, wind ESE around 2 mph, rising pressure near 1014 hPa and a high of 98. Water sits around 54 F for the season (estimated). With the last quarter, the solunar majors run 5:39 AM-7:39 AM and 5:39 PM-7:39 PM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

Rainbow troutGood

Blue-winged olives and midges on soft seams; streamers on overcast days move the better fish.

Brown troutGood

Pre-spawn aggression: this is streamer season for the fish of the year.

Tomorrow: Similar at 101 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Sep 5, 6:30 AMHow this report is made →

Water and weather

Live readings from Tellico River at Tellico Plains.

Flow, last 30 days

USGS gauge 03518500.

17435052579 cfs08/0508/1508/2509/04

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp98 F
High / Low98 / 74 F
WindESE 2-5 mph
Pressure1014.1 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain3% cloud, 3%
Sunrise / Sunset07:11 / 20:00
MoonLast Quarter, 50%
Water temp (seasonal)~54 F est.

Bite planner

Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today. Tap a bar to see why.

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunset

Next 7 days

Tap a day for the detailed outlook.

Fri Sep 4 · Overcast, 98/74 F, wind 5 mph, rain 3%

Fair or better. Calm and stable: plan around the solunar majors at dawn and dusk.

Species guide

The species that matter on Tellico River: seasons, structure and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.

Rainbow trout illustration

Rainbow trout

Best: Apr-Jun, Sep-Oct

The workhorse of western rivers: riffles, seams and dry-fly eats. Blue-winged olives and midges on soft seams; streamers on overcast days move the better fish.

Brown trout illustration

Brown trout

Best: Sep-Nov

Wary, predatory and nocturnal by preference. The big ones eat streamers. Pre-spawn aggression: this is streamer season for the fish of the year.

When to come: the Tellico River calendar

Activity by species and month, and how the water warms through the year. Tap any cell.

Species activity by month

1 = slow, 5 = peak. Current month highlighted.

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Rainbow trout
Brown trout
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 54 F (estimated, not a reading).

30405060JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~54 F now

Angler reports

Real reports from real anglers, reviewed before publishing. The water log below tracks each day automatically.

No angler reports yet this weekBe the first: your report helps every angler who checks Tellico River today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Sep 3

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Rainbow trout led the card at good. High of 98 F, wind to 10 mph.

Wed, Sep 2

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Rainbow trout led the card at good. High of 98 F, wind to 6 mph.

Tue, Sep 1

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Rainbow trout led the card at good. High of 95 F, wind to 4 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
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Before you go

License

Tennessee requires a valid fishing license for adults. Buy online from the state agency; one-day options exist for visitors.

Regulations

Tennessee license plus the Tellico-Citico daily permit on the stocked reaches; wild-water sections upstream fish under general trout rules. Check current TWRA specifics.

Access

Tellico River Road (FS 210) pullouts from Tellico Plains to beyond Bald River Falls; campground accesses at Spivey Cove.

About this water

A stocked-and-wild trout river through Cherokee National Forest gorge country, Monroe County, Tennessee, at Tellico Plains.

Fishing Tellico River: the full guide

Mountain river, two personalities

The Tellico pours out of the Unicoi Mountains through 20 miles of Cherokee National Forest gorge before reaching the valley at Tellico Plains: southeast Tennessee’s trout centerpiece. The lower river runs big and stocked (weekly through the season, heavily): a bait-and-spin family fishery along the Tellico River Road: while the upper river and its tributaries (North River, Bald River) go wild: rainbows and browns in plunge pools under old-growth shade, with brook trout in the headwaters.

The permit water rhythm

The famous stretch runs under a daily permit with its own calendar: heavy stockings make weekends busy from the March opener through summer: holiday crowds are part of the culture. Salmon eggs, corn and small spinners fill stringers near the pullouts; fly anglers do better walking between them: attractor dries with droppers in the pocket water. Thursday-Friday stocking days telegraph the weekend bite.

Going wild

Above the permit water and up the tributaries, the river earns its forest: the Bald River Falls junction upstream fishes like the Smokies without the park crowds: sixteen-foot leaders unnecessary, stealth mandatory. Wild rainbows dominate, browns hold the deeper gorge pools, and the brookie headwaters reward the longest walks. Summer thunderstorms spike the gauge fast: morning trips beat both heat and pop-up floods.

Forest-road logistics

Tellico River Road (FS 210) parallels everything: pullouts every quarter mile, campgrounds at Spivey Cove and Davis Branch, and the Bald River Falls photo stop mid-river. Tellico Plains supplies fuel, food and the Cherohala Skyway junction. The permit is sold at local stores and online: carry it visibly: checks are routine.

Common questions

Do I really need the extra permit?

On the designated permit water, yes: it funds the heavy stocking program. The wild upper river and tributaries need only the standard license/trout stamp.

Where do the wild fish start?

Roughly above the North River junction and up every tributary: past Bald River Falls the stocking trucks thin and the fish brighten.

When is it least crowded?

Weekdays, and the October-February off-season on the wild water: the gorge in fall color is the trip.

Is fishing good at Tellico River right now?

Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.

Nearby waters

Watts Bar Lake25 miClinch River29 miHiwassee River31 miNantahala River42 miChickamauga Lake46 miLake Nottely48 mi
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