LIMESTONE DRIFT CREEK, RIVER AND LAKE FISHING, TOLD STRAIGHT
FIELD CARD Access & Rules · No. 20
Creek · Great Smoky Mountains National Park · Swain County, NC

Hazel Creek

The park’s fishing rules in the park’s words, which licence to carry, the five campsites with their capacities and bear cables, and the two numbers to call before the boat leaves.

HAZEL CREEK AND THE FONTANA NORTH SHORE NPS campsite coordinates · Fontana Dam at its USGS gauge
Dam / tailraceFontana DamTVA · at the USGS gauge · river mile 61Campsite#86 ProctorHazel Creek Trail · cap 20Campsite#85 Sawdust PileHazel Creek Trail · cap 10Campsite#84 Sugar ForkHazel Creek Trail · cap 6Campsite#83 Bone ValleyHazel Creek Trail · cap 20Campsite#82 CalhounClosure listed 2020; not listed 2 Nov 2026; reopening unconfirmedCampsite#88 Possum HollowLakeshore Trail · cap 12Campsite#87 Jerry HollowLakeshore Trail · cap 6N01 miFONTANA LAKEHAZEL CREEKNo road reaches this water. Boat acrossFontana Lake, or the Lakeshore Trail on foot.At low pool the shuttle lands 0.5 mi away atOllie Cove instead of Hazel Creek (NPS).Hazel Creek Trail above campsite 83, and campsite82: bear closure listed in 2020 (NPS release) andon the closures page through 28 Sep 2026; not onthat page as of 2 Nov 2026 (dated 28 Oct);reopening unconfirmed. Rust = not shown as open.Creek and trail lines schematic, not surveyed;trail mileages are not on this map.Campsite coordinates: NPS backcountry-campsite GIS layer, data 14 Mar 2025.
The park’s rules, from GRSM’s Fishing page
RuleWhat the page says (summarized; quotes are exact)
WhenYear-round, “30 minutes before official sunrise to 30 minutes after official sunset.”
Tackle & baitOne hand-held rod. Artificial flies or lures, single hook only, up to two on a leader. No bait or liquid scent, no double/treble/gang hooks.
Size / limitBrook, rainbow, brown trout & smallmouth: 7-in minimum. 5 fish a day combined, plus 20 rock bass.
A stricter 1983 federal text differs from the page above — hours, brook trout, the rock-bass allowance. Nothing we read says which governs. Confirm: (865) 436-1297 / (865) 436-1294.
Licence, permit & calls before the boat leaves
Licence: NC or TN, 16+, no trout stamp. NC nonresident annual $56 / 10-day $29 (now in force, supersedes $54/$28). gooutdoorsnorthcarolina.com; not sold in the park. Permit: every night, Recreation.gov, $8/person/night + $6 fee. Parking over 15 min: $5/$15/$40. Calls: backcountry office (865) 436-1297; dispatch (865) 436-1294; Fontana Village Marina 800-849-2258 for the shuttle, not priced online. Eastern time.

Bears — the food rules are the safety rules

Stay 50 yards away. Hang all food, trash and scented items on the cables every night. The park closed the upper trail and campsite 82 for bears after a 2020 fatality and listed them closed through 28 Sep 2026; they were not on its closures page on 2 Nov 2026. Reopening unconfirmed.

LIMESTONE DRIFT
HAZEL CREEK Access, campsites and the lake
Getting there — no road reaches this water
Boat from Fontana Village Marina, 180 Welch Rd, Fontana Dam — angler shuttle price and season not published; call. Own boat: USFS Cable Cove, NC 28, ~3 mi from Fontana Dam — marked “Open” with boating access to Fontana Lake, no ramp itemized; campground closed. On foot: Lakeshore Trail from Fontana Dam or Lakeview Drive — long; mileages pending a native trail-map read. Hand carts allowed, lake to campsite 83.
Campsites — NPS GIS layer; closures page read 2 Nov 2026
SiteElevCapCablesStatus
#86 Proctor1,727 ft203Unverified
#85 Sawdust Pile2,014 ft102Unverified
#84 Sugar Fork2,203 ft61Unverified
#83 Bone Valley2,283 ft203Named open 28 Sep 2026; not named 2 Nov 2026
#82 Calhoun2,727 ft83Closure listed 2020 and to 28 Sep 2026; not listed 2 Nov 2026; reopening unconfirmed
Unverified = last recorded by NPS’s campsite layer (Mar 2025), not reconfirmed by the closures page, which named none of these sites on 2 Nov 2026 (on 28 Sep it named 82 closed, 83 open). Straight-line 86→85 1.6 mi · 85→84 1.2 · 84→83 0.6 · 83→82 2.5 (trail is longer). At low pool the shuttle lands 0.5 mi away at Ollie Cove instead of Hazel Creek (NPS).
Fontana Lake (TVA)
Top of gates 1,710 ft; seasonal swing “about 56 feet.” Headwater 1,685.3 ft at 10 AM EDT, 28 Sep 2026, falling toward winter pool — the lower the lake, the longer the walk from the landing. Read tva.com/environment/lake-levels/fontana before booking the boat.
Gauge
USGS 03514000, Hazel Creek at Proctor: a historical station, discharge recorded 1942–1952 only — no current data. Nothing live reads this creek; Fontana’s headwater above is the only number that moves your trip.
Not verified: the angler shuttle’s price and season, trail mileages, and whether the upper trail and campsite 82 have reopened.
Sources: NPS — Fishing, Current Cautions & Closures, Superintendent’s Compendium, Backcountry Camping, Fees, Fontana Area, Fish, GRSM Backcountry Campsites GIS; 36 CFR 7.14 and 2.3; TVA Fontana lake levels; USFS Cable Cove; USGS 03514000; NCWRC digest and the North Carolina Register (fees).
Conditions change. Verify closures, the lake level and the shuttle before you travel. Revised November 2026.
QR code: https://limestonedrift.com/waterways/hazel-creek/#ld-alertslimestonedrift.comAlerts and the water page
Water alerts. We email when official closures or campsite access on this creek actually change — not on a schedule. limestonedrift.com/alerts/?w=hazel-creek