Another popular access point is the rest area on Interstate 40. If you are traveling west, it will be past Exit 268, and if traveling east, it’s right before the exit. The rest area has great parking and is less than less than two-tenths of a mile from the water. The only downfall of the rest area is that travelers and truckers primarily use it. It’s highly advisable to avoid leaving valuables in your vehicle, especially if you’re fishing early or late in the day. There are some other places you can access the river, but since you would have to at the very least make a short trek across private property, I will not elaborate here. If you choose to access the river in places that require you to walk through private property, please do the right thing and gain permission first.

THE FUTURE
Overall, the Caney Fork has improved leaps and bounds over the past decade and appears to be on track to continue this trend for years to come. The key to the continued improvement of this fishery is as dependent on the anglers as it is the agencies. Don’t kill more fish than you intend to eat. Turn in those you see taking more than the legal limit; it’s the duty of all the law-abiding anglers to assist in the enforcement of the laws. Finally, yet importantly, please take out not only your trash but also any other trash you happen upon while fishing this scenic river.

I was fortunate enough to fish with probably the top Caney Fork guide, Chris Nichan of Rod and Gun Guide Service, in preparation for this article. He talked about the evolution of the river from his days as a student at UT. It appears that he is pleased with the positive impact of the brown trout regulation, but is careful to say the river could be improved even more by establishing a minimum flow and possibly more stringent regulations in the future. He draws parallels between the Cumberland River in Kentucky, which is a true destination trout stream. There are regulations there on both rainbow and brown trout. To hear a man who guides this river almost daily most of the year make that statement gives me hope that the TWRA is headed in the right direction. They are working closely with both the TVA and the Corps of Engineers to improve this fishery.

SAFETY
Before one can safely fish the tailwater, one must understand what happens to the river when the TVA is generating power. The generator turbines draw large amounts of water from the lake floor and discharges that water directly into the river at a very fast rate. Depending on how many generators the dam is running, the river level can raise several feet very quickly. The flow will increase dramatically as well. The wading fishermen need to exit the river when the water level begins to rise.

Boaters should pay attention to flow as well. If you choose to fish from a boat, you need to be comfortable operating your boat in some very fast current. You must be wearing your flotation vest at all times when fishing this method. Do not let your watercraft become jammed against a log when landing a fish, because you will sink.