Once there, you have the option of several backcountry campsites, and one of these, the Lower Ekaneetlee site (No. 89 on park maps and two miles upstream from the mouth of Eagle Creek) gives you a ready choice of fishing either Eagle Creek or its Ekaneetlee Creek feeder. Somewhat larger than Twentymile Creek, this stream and its feeders offer many miles of fine fishing for a mixture of browns and rainbows, and it receives far less pressure than nearby Hazel Creek.

FORNEY CREEK
Although I hesitate a bit to say so in print, it is my personal opinion that when all things are considered, Forney Creek, which like Eagle Creek empties into Fontana Lake, offers the finest fishing on the North Carolina side of the park. It is sufficiently remote to offer just the right amount of challenge when it comes to accessibility, big enough to produce nice-sized trout and ample elbow room for casting, and characterized by the sort of mixture of pools and pocket water you envision when thinking about streams in the Smokies.

For the hiker, the easiest and shortest route to Forney Creek is from the trailhead at the tunnel that ends the "Road to Nowhere" that runs out of Bryson City to Noland Creek. Just beyond the bridge that crosses Noland Creek, you go through a tunnel and the road ends. The Lakeshore Trail begins here and four miles of travel on it will lead you to Forney Creek.

From there, you can follow the Forney Creek trail upstream or down. There are several backcountry campsites here including Lower Forney (No. 74), Bear Creek (No. 73), Upper Forney, also known as the old CCC site (No. 71), and Jonas Creek (No. 70).

You can also travel to Forney Creek by boat, launching at any of several sites: from a recently constructed one at the end of old State Road 88 near where the Tuckaseegee River enters the lake, from Almond Boat Dock, from the launch off Round Hill Road, or from the ramp at the end of Forest Road 2550 (the Tsali camping area). The latter is the easiest to locate, lying off Highway 28, but the Round Hill one is the closest.

From a fishing perspective, Forney Creek is a pure delight. For many years, it was a predominantly rainbow stream, but in the last decade or so, brown trout have, in the local vernacular, "took holt" in a major way. Some of the larger pools in the lower reaches hold huge browns (you are more likely to see them than to hook them), but you'll still find plenty of 'bows in pocket water and where the current flow is more rapid.

A medium to medium-large stream by Smokies standards, Forney Creek offers 10 miles or so of fishable water, with its larger feeders adding a couple more miles.

LOWER CATALOOCHEE CREEK
Before the introduction of elk in the Cataloochee Valley, this part of the park was a fairly well-kept secret. Local folks knew that it provided a Cades Cove-like setting without all of the human traffic and hurly-burly. The elk have changed all that, although the impact on fishing is in a lowering of aesthetic appeal rather than any alteration of quality.