Raven Fork Watershed

Description:
The Raven Fork, inside the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, is a stream that is tough to get to and tough to fish if you do get to it. It’s rarely fished because of the access problems and the difficulty of fishing once you do get there. Part of the lower portion of this stream passes inside the park near its confluence with the Oconaluftee River. It’s a very good trout stream, especially for large brook trout, that’s worth the effort for those willing to undertake fishing such a remote and difficult stream to maneuver.

Stream Size:
The size of this stream ranges from small to medium when compared to other streams in the park. It’s a steep gradient stream that’s full of huge boulders and turbulent water.

Accessibility:
The best way to access the stream is via the Enloe Creek Trail. From the trail head located on Straight Fork Road, it requires a hike of about three miles mostly uphill. Once you get to the stream, you will find there’s no trail that closely follows the Raven Fork. Accessing the stream from the trail is difficult in most places.

You can also access the stream where it exits the park into the reservation. It passes through private property and there’s no place to park a vehicle unless you arranged to do so with the local property owners. This area is also extremely rough country. The stream passes through a gorge that’s extremely tough to negotiate.

Campsite #47 is a good place to stay if you prefer to camp near the stream and not make the otherwise long day hike.

Tributaries:
There are no substantial size tributary steams. The Right, Middle and Left Forks of the Raven Fork form the stream.

Species:
The stream has a population of rainbow trout and brook trout in its upper reaches.

Average Fish Size:
The brook trout are usually good size fish. This is a relatively large stream for brook trout and its size probably accounts for the larger size of some of the brook trout.

Popularity:
The stream is not heavily fished. In fact, it’s rarely fished by anyone other than in its lower section that reenters the park.

Difficulty:
As we have said, access to and getting up and down the stream is difficult. Casting is relatively easy once you are in the right position. The fish eagerly attack flies and catching them is usually not difficult.

Comments:
If you enjoy camping and fishing water that’s usually not fished much at all, then this stream would be a good choice for you.

Copyright 2011 James Marsh