Each year 80 streams and small lakes located in mid to western Tennessee are stocked to provide a trout fishery. Due to the warm summer water or due to habitat that does not support trout preproduction, these streams have low abundance of wild trout, or no trout at all. The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA) stocks about 325,000 9-12 inch trout between February and October. While trout fishing is allowed year-round on most of these streams, many of these waters are too warm for trout by mid summer. For this reason we limit most of the trout stocking to the spring and the best fishing is from the first stocking week until the midsummer when water temperatures are above 70 degrees F. TWRA Winter Stocking Schedule.
This stocking program provides an excellent opportunity for teaching fly fishing to youths since these bodies of water that have a close proximity to towns and cities. Also, it provides an opportunity for anglers to do a little fishing during their lunch hours.
The TWRA also supports a delayed harvest stocking program. In this program, stocked streams are closed to harvest during specific periods. These streams are then opened to harvest later in the year. The objective of this program is to provide a catch-and-release fishery for trout during the winter months. Then later in the year, after these fish have become acclimated to their environment and have grown some, they may be harvested. A list of delayed harvest areas is available here.
Remember to increase your chances for success, please check out the perfect fly line of flies available at Troutprostore. These flies are by far the most realistic imitations of actual aquatic insects and other trout food.