Watauga River at Elizabethton
What to throw right now
Per-species breakdown & tactics
Pick a fish, then Fly, Spin, or Colors. Your last pick is remembered.
Best window: last light
4-5 wt rod, floating line, 5X tippet. Cast quartering upstream + dead-drift. The current does the work; your job is to read where fish hold (seams, pocket water, riffle-pool tail-outs) and put the fly in the lane. #14 yellow Stimulator covers surface looks; #14 Pheasant Tail covers sub-surface, fish both, dry-dropper style.
Flies: Yellow Stimulator #14, Pheasant Tail Nymph #14
Match the hatch by stage. Emerger first, dun second, spinner at last light.
In a few hours
Ultralight 6'-6'6" rod, 4 lb mono. 1/32 oz inline spinner or 1/16 oz jig cast quartering upstream + retrieved just fast enough to keep contact. Walk the bank between casts to cover water; one cast per likely lie is usually enough.
Lures: Small bead-head nymph (#14-18 Pheasant Tail / Zebra Midge) under a pencil bobber, 1/16 oz jig, small spinner
Small bead-head nymph under a pencil bobber, or olive spinner through seams.
In a few hours
- Natural / shad Disappears correctly in clear water. Invisible for the wrong reason once stain cuts visibility.
- Watermelon red The clear-water bass standard. Red flake reads as craw without spooking pressured fish.
Best colors right now: yellow, natural
Good colors for clear water (fall): olive, sulphur yellow, natural pheasant tail
Trout key on size and drift first, color second. In clear water naturals win. In stain, go dark or bright so the fly reads against the murk.
Full color matrix for clear water
- + water temp in target range+18
- + flow band+9
- + barometric trend+7
- + cloud cover+6
- + preferred time of day+6
- + in season+5
- + wind speed+4
- + cloud preference+3
- + dissolved oxygen+3
Best window: first light
3-4 wt short rod (7'6"-8'6"), 9 ft 5X tippet to a #14 yellow Stimulator or #16 black ant. Cast across-current 8-15 ft above the target water; mend immediately so the fly drifts dead. Tail-outs and riffle-pool transitions hold the best fish; rock bass especially love the soft slot below the riffle. Last light is the high-percentage window; trout-style hatch matching matters less than just having a buggy silhouette in the seam.
Flies: Yellow Stimulator #14, Black Ant #16, Small Beetle #14
Olive wooly bugger or black game changer. Dark silhouette first, drop to rust nymph if refusals.
In a few hours
Ultralight 5'-6' rod, 4 lb mono. Cast a 1/32 oz inline spinner (silver or black) up + across, retrieve just fast enough to spin the blade. Land it at the head of the riffle and let the current swing it through. Beetle Spin works the same way for sunfish; smaller is better. For rock bass specifically: a 1/16 oz brown jig with a small craw trailer ticked along bottom outproduces moving lures.
Lures: Red Squirmy worm #12 OR olive damsel nymph #12 under a tiny pencil bobber, 1/32 oz inline spinner, small Beetle Spin
Black and blue jig or chartreuse spinnerbait tight to cover. Stained fish hold on wood and rock edges.
In a few hours
- Natural / shad Disappears correctly in clear water. Invisible for the wrong reason once stain cuts visibility.
- Watermelon red The clear-water bass standard. Red flake reads as craw without spooking pressured fish.
Best colors right now: yellow, black, natural
Good colors for clear water (fall): watermelon red, natural shad, green pumpkin
Bass see red and green well and chase high-contrast silhouettes in stain. Black and blue reads as a shad or bluegill profile when detail drops out.
Full color matrix for clear water
- + water temp in target range+18
- + flow band+9
- + barometric trend+7
- + cloud cover+6
- + wind speed+4
- + cloud preference+3
- + dissolved oxygen+3
- + in season+3
Best window: morning
6 wt rod, floating line, 9 ft 3X tippet for streamers / 4X-5X for dries. Standard rig: weighted #4 olive/white Clouser or #6 rust crayfish, cast quartering upstream into the head of a current seam, mend hard upstream, then strip-strip-strip as the fly tumbles past you. Pro move: tight-line nymph a #8 rust crayfish (Pat's Rubber Legs) through pocket water with no indicator, feeling for the tick. Strikes on a swung fly come on the dangle; let the fly hang in the seam for 3-5 seconds before recasting.
Flies: Clouser Minnow #4 (olive/white), Wooly Bugger #6, Crayfish #6 (rust)
Olive wooly bugger or black game changer. Dark silhouette first, drop to rust nymph if refusals.
In a few hours
Medium 6'6" rod, 8 lb braid + 6 lb fluoro leader. 3/8 oz football jig + rust craw trailer hopped along bottom seams; the strike comes between hops on slack line. Wade upstream of pocket water + fan-cast each likely lie. For trophy fish at sunset: floating Rapala #5 in silver twitched dead-slow across the tail-out of a pool with long pauses, bigger fish smash on the second twitch after a 5-second pause.
Lures: 1/16 oz brown jig + 2" smoke craw trailer (bottom-tick presentation), 3/8 oz crawfish jig hopped along bottom seams, 4" soft swimbait (smoke) dead-drifted, Floating Rapala #5 (silver) twitched at sunset
Black and blue jig or chartreuse spinnerbait tight to cover. Stained fish hold on wood and rock edges.
In a few hours
- Natural / shad Disappears correctly in clear water. Invisible for the wrong reason once stain cuts visibility.
- Watermelon red The clear-water bass standard. Red flake reads as craw without spooking pressured fish.
Best colors right now: rust, olive, shad
Good colors for clear water (fall): watermelon red, natural shad, green pumpkin
Bass see red and green well and chase high-contrast silhouettes in stain. Black and blue reads as a shad or bluegill profile when detail drops out.
Full color matrix for clear water
- + water temp in target range+18
- + flow band+9
- + barometric trend+7
- + cloud cover+6
- + in season+5
- + wind speed+4
- + cloud preference+3
- + dissolved oxygen+3
Next 24 hours · weather forecast
Scroll for hourly temperature, wind, and precipitation.
Latest readings
Live telemetry| Air temp (°F) | 63.0°F |
|---|---|
| Cloud cover (%) | 91% |
| Dew point (°C) | 4.4°C |
| Relative humidity (%) | 43% |
| Chance of precipitation (%) | 0% |
| Barometric pressure (mb) | 1,027.6 mb |
| Rain past 6h (in) | 0.00 in |
| Wind direction | E (90°) |
| Wind (mph) | 5.0 mph |
Reading freshness
Source update lag| Barometric pressure (mb) | 6 min ago openmeteo |
|---|---|
| Wind (mph) | 6 min ago nws |
| Cloud cover (%) | 6 min ago nws |
| Air temp (°F) | 6 min ago nws |
| Rain past 24h (in) | 3864.1 h ago openmeteo stale |
| Rain past 6h (in) | 5.1 h ago nws |
Hatch matcher · this month
Active aquatic insect emergences & suggested imitations.
Year-round on TVA tailwaters (Clinch, Holston, Watauga, S Holston)
Weeks 36-46 (Sep-early Nov); cool overcast afternoons. Shop consensus.
Next few hours · best species
Prime windows for active feeding over the next 12 hours (EDT).
7-day forecast
Composite spot scores over the coming week.
10-day weather & pressure outlook
NWS forecast where it reaches, Open-Meteo beyond it. Days run midnight to midnight, spot time.
| Day | High | Low | Wind | Cloud | Rain % | Pressure | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sat Oct 31 | 76°F | 45°F | 6 mph E | 62% | 4% | 1,027.7 mb | nws |
| Sun Nov 1 | 68°F | 52°F | 7 mph E | 96% | 13% | 1,029.5 mb | nws |
| Mon Nov 2 | 72°F | 50°F | 5 mph ESE | 71% | 13% | 1,026.9 mb | nws |
| Tue Nov 3 | 76°F | 49°F | 6 mph SE | 33% | 1% | 1,022.4 mb | nws |
| Wed Nov 4 | 73°F | 53°F | 7 mph SE | 62% | 51% | 1,016.3 mb | nws |
| Thu Nov 5 | 73°F | 57°F | 3 mph ESE | 95% | 65% | 1,012.2 mb | nws |
| Fri Nov 6 | 72°F | 53°F | Calm | 91% | 53% | 1,006.1 mb | nws |
| Sat Nov 7 | 66°F | 50°F | Calm | 58% | 28% | 1,009.5 mb | nws |
| Sun Nov 8 | 61°F | 47°F | 4 mph S | 55% | 13% | 1,009.8 mb | openmeteo |
| Mon Nov 9 | 50°F | 46°F | 8 mph W | 80% | 30% | 1,009.5 mb | openmeteo |
Trends · 7 days
Hover chart points for telemetry details. Gold dot represents latest reading.
Barometric pressure (mb)
Water temperature (°F)
Fishing regulations (TWRA)
Statewide creel and length limits. Confirm the current rule on TWRA before you keep a fish.
These are statewide defaults only. Many waters have their own creel, size, or season rules that override this list. Check the water you are fishing on TWRA before you go.
TWRA fishing regulations · Water-specific exceptions
Statewide defaults (19 rules)
| Species | Rule |
|---|---|
| Alligator Gar | No harvest allowed. Must be returned to water immediately. |
| Black Bass (includes Largemouth, Smallmouth, Spotted Alabama And Coosa) | No more than 5 black bass per day in any combination may be taken. | None |
| Catfish | Only one (1) catfish over 34 inches may be harvested per day. No harvest limit on catfish less than 34 inches. |
| Crappie | 15 | 10 inches |
| Lake Trout | Only 2 of your 7 total trout may be lake trout. | None |
| Muskellunge | 1 | 36 inches |
| Paddlefish | Paddlefish may be harvested from April 24 through May 31. Daily creel limit is 2 fish per day with no size limit. Culling is prohibited. Exceptions on Center Hill, Cherokee, and Watts Bar reservoirs. |
| Redear Sunfish (shellcracker) | 20 | None |
| Redear Sunfish Or Shellcracker | 20 | None |
| Region 1 Crappie Exception: Unless Otherwise Noted For Specific Waters. | 30 | None |
| Rock Bass Or Redeye And Shadow Bass | 20 | None |
| Sauger Or Sauger/walleye Hybrids | 10 | 15 inches |
| Shovelnose Sturgeon | No harvest allowed. Must be returned to the water immediately. |
| Skipjack Herring | 100 | None |
| Striped Bass Or Hybrid Striped Bass (any Combination) | 2 | 15 inches |
| Trout (all Trout Species Combined) | 7 | None |
| Walleye | 5 | 16 inches |
| White Bass | 15 | None |
| Yellow Bass, Bluegill, Warmouth, Bream, Bullheads, Pickerel, Northern Pike, Yellow Perch, And Nongame Species | no limit | None |