Abrams Creek Smoky Mountains
Abrams Creek Limestone Geology and Fish Food
As do many of the best trout streams in America, Abrams Creek located high in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park supports a diverse population of aquatic insects and some of the largest rainbow trout in the park due to the fact that it flows through limestone geology.
Abrams Creek flows through through Cades Cove in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Geologically, Cades Cove is an isolated mountain valley known as a "limestone window” created by weathering and erosion over the course of millions of years.
Limestone windows are normally flatter than other mountainous valleys, and are typically coated with rich, fertile soil as is the case for Cades Cove.
The combination of limestone geology and rich soils adds buffering capacity and nutrients to the water of Abrams Creek enabling it to maintain a neutral pH (good for trout) and support a diverse population of macroinvertebrates including stonefly, mayfly and caddis nymphs.
Limestone Spring Creek Trout Fishing on Abrams Creek
So what does all this geology stuff mean? Simply put – excellent fly fishing for some pretty wild rainbow trout.
The best trout fishing is from the Abrams Falls Trailhead in Cades Cove downstream to the Abrams Creek Campground. Emerging from Cades Coves, Abrams Creek takes on a the characteristics of limestone spring creek for several miles before reverting to a freestone stream as it flows some 12 miles to Chilhowee Lake.
Abrams Creek Trail Map (click to enlarge)
The spring creek section of Abrams Creek is accessible from the Abrams Falls Trail en route to Abrams Falls, one of the most popular waterfalls in the park.
Before reaching Abrams Falls, Abrams Creek leaves the trail in several places forming horseshoe bends that are up to a mile long (see map). Fishing Abrams Creek in these areas requires a bit of bushwhacking and at least a half day if not a full day but is well worth the effort.
Abrams Creek Trip Planning
Additional information on planning a fly fishing trip to Abrams Creek is available on our Abrams Creek Fly Fishing Guide including an on-line interactive stream map. Visit our Great Smoky Mountains National Park Fly Fishing Guide for information on fishing other trout streams in the park.
Happy fishing!
Additional articles about fly fishing Abrams Creek:
Fly Fishing Great Smoky Mountains - Abrams Creek by James Marsh
A Short Fishing Trip to Abrams Creek by R&R Fly Fishing
References:
Photo by Scott Basford distributed under creative commons license
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