Carolina (GSMNP)
Fly and Gear ordering and delivery: We can get flies to you within two to three business days from the time you place your order via Priority Mail. If you provide a budget for flies, we will select them to match the budget and get them to you on time for your trip. Please see the bottom of this column for ordering options.
We also have custom Perfect Fly selections in 3 different price ranges for this stream that come with or without fly boxes. They make excellent gifts. Click Here To Order or Call us at 800 594 4726 or email us at sales@perfectflystore.com.
Type of Stream
Freestone
Species
Rainbow Trout (wild)
Brown Trout (wild)
Brook Trout (native)
Size
Medium to Large (relative to other
park streams)
Location
Great Smoky Mountains National
Park
Nearest Towns
Maggie Valley
Season
Year-round
Access:
Easy to Moderate
Special Regulations
None
Non-Resident License
State of North Carolina or
Tennessee Wildlife Resources
Agency
Weather
National Weather Service Link
Additional Information:
Fly Fishing Smoky Mountains
Seasons:
The season is open year-round and trout can be taken
year-round.
Spring:
Spring is certainly the best time for dry fly fishing
because that’s when most of the hatches take place.
Summer:
The hot summer rarely gets the water too warm for
good fishing, thanks to its excellent tree cover and
elevation. Brook trout fishing in its small tributaries is
excellent during the summer..
Fall:
Fall is certainly the most beautiful time to fish
Cataloochee Creek. It’s also big brown trout time.
Winter:
It is very possible to catch fish throughout most of the
winter and fishing is sometimes very good.
Recommended Tackle & Gear
Fly Line:
4, 5 or 6 weight
Leaders:
Dry fly: 9 to 12 ft., 5 or 6X Nymphing:
71/2 ft., 3 or 4X, Streamers 0-2X
Tippets:
Dry fly: 5 or 6X, Nymphing: 3 or 4X,
Streamer 0-2X
Best Fly Rods:
Perfect Fly Supreme Four, Superb Five
or Ultimate Six
Fly Reels:
For 4/5/6 fly line
Fly Floatants and Misc Items:
Floatants, KISS Strike Indicators
Tools & Accessories:
Nippers, forceps, retractors, etc.
Fly and Gear ordering and delivery:
Email us at (sales@perfectflystore.com) with the dates you will be fishing and we will send you a list of our fly recommendations. We can get flies and gear to you within two to three business days from the time you place your order via Priority Mail. If you provide a budget for flies, we will select them to match the budget and get them to you on time for your trip. Your can also call us at 800-594-4726 and we will help you decide what flies and gear to use. All orders are shipped free in the U.S. If under a $100 order requiring Priority mail is a charge of only $8.10. Orders over a $100 are shipped free via Priority Mail.
Copyright 2013 James Marsh
Fly Fishing Cataloochee Creek North
Carolina (GSMNP)
Cataloochee Creek is located in one of the most unique areas of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. It lies in the northern part not really close to anything. Maggie Valley is the closest area of any population. Traveling there takes some time and requires traveling
over gravel roads in some areas. It lies in a secluded valley that was once home to several families of mountain folks.
It is now the main area that Elk have been introduced in the park. There are some large meadows in an area (something not common in the park) where they can often be spotted. It is also close to an area of water where it is possible to catch a grand slam consisting of a rainbow, brook and brown trout. The park maintains a nice campground where anglers can stay without having to travel in and out of the valley on a daily basis
to fish there.
Most of the creek and its main tributaries consist of typical fast moving, pocket water but there are sections of the main creek that has smooth, moderate flowing water. That makes it more a little more difficult to catch trout but it also provides a different habitat for some of the crawler mayflies that are not nearly as plentiful in the other fast water streams.
Fly Fishing Guide to Cataloochee Creek
Fly fishing Cataloochee Creek first requires a decision on the kind of trout you want to try to catch.
The smaller, fast water streams in the upper section of the valley and lower mountains
from which they drain provide the easiest places to catch trout. Small rainbows are
especially plentiful there along with the brook trout in many areas. Cataloochee Creek
has several tributary streams including Palmer Creek, one of the larger ones. Browns,
rainbows and brook trout exist in its lower section. It has a small tributary steam with
brook trout named Pretty Hollow Creek, a very appropriate name. Another one if its
tributaries is Lost Bottoms Creek. It has some rainbows in its lower section and plenty
of brook trout upstream a short ways.
Caldwell Fork is a small tributary stream that flows into Cataloochee Creek near the
campground. It has a population of brown, rainbow and brook trout. Den Branch,
McKee Branch, and Double Gap Branch are all very small tributary streams of Caldwell
Fork. Rough Fork is another major tributary stream to Cataloochee Creek. Part of this
stream runs through beautiful meadows and part of it through hardwood forest.
Most of its trout are rainbows. Little Cataloochee Creek is another tributary stream. It is
a medium to small size stream with both brown, rainbow and brook trout. The stream
has several tributary streams that form it’s main portion. Coggins Branch, Conrad
Branch, and Andy Branch join the Little Cataloochee Creek. These streams have
mostly small rainbow trout. Correll Branch and Woody Branch, both tributary streams,
have brook trout. I hope you get the idea that there are plenty of places to fish.
Many anglers choose to fish the fast water runs and riffles with generic and attractor
dry flies or nymphs and they will catch some trout particularly in the fast water. We
prefer to fish specific imitations of what’s the most available food at the time or what is
hatching. The best procedure in our opinion is to study the hatch section of this site
and the Smoky Mountain National Park hatch chart linked on the introductory page
and select the flies to use based on that.
When the dry fly doesn’t seem to produce, trout can normally be caught by “high
stickin” nymphs. This is a method that requires getting close to the area you intend to
fish in the faster, deeper runs and making very short “flips” of the fly. You want to
dredge the bottom with plenty of weight. It is also a good way to catch some of the
large brown trout that like to hike out in crevices underneath the boulders.
Some of the best brown trout are found in the slower moving water of the long pools
and moderately flowing riffles. Some of the larger rainbows seem to be in the lower
section of the stream near the area it exists the park but there are also some nice
brown trout there too. Just about anywhere you fish the stream or any of its tributaries
you can expect to catch some trout. It is one of our favorite areas of the park.