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Some of the best angling in the country can be found in the Great Smoky Mountains.
The wide variety of fresh mountain stream game fish makes your fishing excursion as memorable as your favorite fishing hole back home.
You don't have to be a veteran angler to enjoy fishing in the Smokies. Bring your cane pole and a line, and relax by the banks or out on
your rock of choice and watch to clouds roll by. It's fun for the entire family.
There are approximately 53 species of the fishes that occupy the waters of the park. These 53 species consist of primarily forage fishes (minnows, darters,
sculpins.) But game fishes such as the rainbow trout, brown trout, smallmouth bass, and rock bass are also present.
The brook trout is the only species of trout native to the Smokies. It was originally present in most streams above 2,000 feet in elevation. Today
brook trout only occupy 25-30% of their original range. Fishing in pure brook trout habitat waters is not permitted. The possession of Brook Trout in the park is strictly prohibited.
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General License Information (Lake and Stream)
Licenses go on sale on March 1, at the beginning of prime fishing, and will be valid until the last day of February.
All licenses, except Sportsman's license, are available from most county clerks, sporting goods stores, hardware stores, boat docks and other interested merchants and from TWRA offices.
Anglers 13 years and older (16 and older in NC) need a valid Tennessee or North Carolina fishing license to fish in the Park. The Park does not sell licenses.
Check with local chambers of commerce for purchase information. No trout stamp is needed. Fishing is permitted year-round in open waters, from 30 minutes before sunrise to 30 minutes after sunset. Stop by a park
visitor center to get a full copy of the regulations.
Daily possession limits:
- Any combination of rainbow trout, brown trout, smallmouth bass totaling 5
- 20 rockbass
- It is illegal to possess brook trout
- A person must stop fishing once reaching the limit
Size limits
- Rainbow and brown trout: 7in. minimum
- Smallmouth bass: 7in. minimum
- Rockbass: no minimum
- All brook trout and any fish below the minimum must be immediately returned to the water
Lures, bait, and equipment
- Only one handheld rod may be used
- Single hook only
- Bait must be fully artificial
- Liquid scents are prohibited
- All equipment is subject to inspection by authorized Park staff
A few words about brook trout and other fish
Brook trout are the only trout native to the Smokies. Heavy logging during the early 1900s eliminated
the fish from half its range. Brown trout and rainbow trout, stocked in the mid 1900s, out competed the brook trout, further limiting its range. Restoring the brook trout to its native range is a primary objective.
The goal of the brook trout restoration program is to foster a self-sustaining natural population able to support angling pressure. Streams populated only by brook trout are closed to help this be a future reality.
In total 40 species of fish including darters, dace, suckers, bass, shiners, and trout populate the Smokies' streams. Salamanders, crayfish, aquatic insects, and algae are other important components of local aquatic
ecosystems.
Some Information provided by http://www.nps.gov/grsm/
Prices are APPROXIMATE ONLY!
You can call the local welcome centers for current pricing.
Annual Trout (type 22) $12.00
Annual Fishing and Hunting Combo (type 01) $21.00
(Both required to Fish for Trout) Total: 33.00
NON-RESIDENT LICENSES
Annual All Fish (type 81) $51.00
10 Day All Fish (type 80) $30.50
3 Day All Fish (type 78) $20.50
1 Day Trout (type 97) $10.50
Gatlinburg Trout
Daily (type99) $2.50 (This charge in addition to the above stated fees.)
No fishing license needed if:
- You are under 13 years of age (resident or non-resident)
- You are a landowner or a tenant or a dependent child fishing on land that you own or tend to.
- You are on military leave, carrying a copy of your leave orders. A pass does not meet this requirement
- You are a resident who was 65 years of age before March 1, 1991. (To qualify for this exemption, you must carry proof of your age to show to a wildlife officer, if requested.)
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