Fishing

Variety is the best word to describe the plethora of outdoor activities available to the visitor to the Ocoee Region. Perhaps it is best known for its whitewater rafting and kayaking on the Ocoee River, one of the most popular white water rivers in the country. This is just the calling card for an area that offers almost anything to the outdoor recreation enthusiast.

Hiking in the Big Frog Wilderness and Cohutta Wilderness allow the nature lover everything from a day hike to many days of backpacking. Outside the wilderness, mountain biking is becoming increasingly popular around the USFS Whitewater Center and on Chilhowee Mountain as more trails are being built all the time. Starr Mountain drops sharply into the Hiwassee River forming precipitous bluffs excellent for the rock climber and rappelling enthusiast. In the summer, when the Ocoee blossoms for tourists, ultralite rides give an aerial view, or north of Benton, the Chilhowee Gliderport provides guided glider flights. Tubing on the lower Ocoee River or Hiwassee is a great way to cool off.
For trout fishing the Hiwassee River, only fifteen minutes north, is hard to beat and it's an excellent place to learn canoeing and kayaking.

The Hiwassee River

The tail waters of the TVA's Appalachia Powerhouse create one of Tennessee's finest trout fisheries. Clean, cold water from Appalachia Lake, just across the North Carolina border, flows through an 8-1/2 mile long tunnel to the powerhouse in Polk County, Tennessee. There, the water produces 75,000 kilowatts of electrical power and creates a 20 mile long trout fishery.

Tellico Wildlife Management Area

The Tellico Wildlife Management Area (TWMA) offers some of Tennessee's finest freestone trout water. You may choose intensively managed (stocked) streams, wild streams, or brook trout streams. The U.S. Forest Service owns most of the area so access is never a problem and the area is especially beautiful. The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA) is responsible for the regulations and their enforcement, as well as for the stocking program.

Clinch River

One of the best tailwater fisheries in TN is located just a short drive from Knoxville. The Clinch river flows ice cold all year and has a excellent population of scuds, midges, and a sulphur hatch that is one of the best in the east.

Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Some of the most well known rivers in the Park include Little River, Abrams Creek, Little Pigeon, Oconaluftee, and Deep Creek. There are many lesser known streams that are of equal quality with much less pressure that require hiking or a boat ride. You could spend a lifetime discovering these great fly fishing jewels.

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