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Lake Chatuge
Lake Chatuge is a TVA reservoir on the Hiwassee River that was created by the construction of Chatuge Dam, which was completed in 1942. The dam is located in western North Carolina, and the lake extends southeast into Georgia around the city of Hiawassee.
Lake Chatuge Resources
Chatuge: Level: 1.2 feet above 1925. Temp: 75-77 degrees. Clarity: Clear. Bass: Eric Welch, of Welch’s Guide Service, reports, “Fishing has been good. The topwater bite is picking up. On cloudy days, I like throwing a natural color, like bone or olive; on sunny days, I like pearl or chrome. My choice of baits are: Berkley 110 Cane Walker, Strike King Sexy Dawg Jr., Lucky Craft Gunfish and an Ima Stix. Areas that I’m going to be working these baits on are long points, main-lake flats and main-lake humps—areas that have access to deep water. Lake Chatuge fishes a lot like Lake Lanier, so you need to always keep a couple of topwater baits on the deck of your boat. There are a lot of offshore humps, brush and ditches where I will throw a shaky head, drop shot and Texas rig. Yes, if you’re using forward-facing sonar, the minnow baits…
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It seems counterintuitive to go north in the winter to catch bass, but Lake Chatuge largemouth and spots are moving from winter holes to prespawn structure and cover, and they offer great catching opportunities. February is a good month to land your personal best largemouth or spot on Chatuge. Chatuge is a 7,000-acre, 13-mile-long TVA…
Lake Chatuge spotted bass are moving from spring spawning areas toward their summer holes. Also in late May and throughout June, the herring are finishing up spawning. The presence of these baitfish can stimulate feeding frenzies. You can intercept the spotted bass as they move out and have great catches if you hit it right.…
A high-school senior from Ellijay drowned when he tumbled overboard while duck hunting on Lake Chatuge just across the Georgia-North Carolina border on Nov. 18. Authorities said 18-year-old Trenton Daniel Johnson, a student at Gilmer High School, was attempting to retrieve a downed duck when he toppled headfirst into the water. His hunting partner, Carson…
A black crappie that weighed 2 pounds on the dot has set a new record for Lake Chatuge. Howard Stimis, of Hiwassee, was fishing on Chatuge April 6 when the big slab bit a 2-inch Hot Grub made by Crappie County Bait & Tackle that Howard purchased at Hammond’s Fishing Center near Lake Lanier. “I…
Lake Chatuge spotted bass are feeding heavily in January, eating shad and herring. They follow the same wintertime patterns as Lanier spots, and you can catch them on ditches and rocks. There is also a good largemouth bite at Chatuge after a heavy rain stains the rivers and creeks. Chatuge is a good choice…
Lake Chatuge Record Fish
| Largemouth Bass | 16-lbs., 11-ozs. | David Presely | 03/27/1976 |
| Smallmouth | 7-lbs., 2-ozs. | Jack Hall | 03/28/1973 |
| Spotted Bass | 6-lbs., 13.8-ozs. | James Dean | 10/11/03 |
| Hybrid Bass | 25-lbs., 8-ozs. | David C. Hobby | 05/01/1995 |
| Walleye | 9-lbs., 4-ozs. | Carol Owenby | 04/07/1991 |
| Black Crappie | 2-lbs., 3-ozs. | Dillon Phillips | 03/31/24 |
| Rainbow Trout | 2-lbs., 8.5-ozs. | Walker Ross | 06/23/2012 |
| Yellow Perch | 1-lb., 2.24-ozs. | Mark McClure | 04/19/2021 |
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Lake Allatoona
Lake Allatoona is a 12,010-acre reservoir in the north Atlanta suburbs located primarily in Bartow and Cherokee counties. The major tributaries are the Etowah and Little rivers and Allatoona and Stamp creeks, although numerous other creeks flow into the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers impoundment. Allatoona is known as a good lake for catching numbers of spotted bass, and it's also known for good striped bass and hybrid bass. Allatoona is a very busy lake for recreational boaters during the summer, when many bass anglers opt to fish at night.
Allatoona Links
Temp: 74-80 degrees. Clarity: 5 feet. Bass: Tournament angler Matt Driver reports, “To me, it seems like the water temperature is a little slow to warm compared to most years in the past, likely due to rain and a few cold fronts. We’re now at the tail end of the shad spawn. The bass are on the move, and shad is the primary forage. Bass are holding on main-lake points, and later in the month, brush will be the key to finding better size. I’m using a three-fold approach: a jig, a jerkbait and a jig-head minnow with FFS. Where I find fish positioning on brush or rocks depends on which approach I’m taking. We’ve been seeing fish scattered on cloudy days and buried up in the brush on sunny days. A jerkbait and jig-head minnow are what I’m typically using on overcast days. As they bury up in the brush on…
Read MoreLake Allatoona Fishing Articles
Jonathan Ray considers Lake Lanier his home lake, but the Ball Ground resident likes to venture to Lake Allatoona several times each year. He plans to go to the Stamp Creek section of the lake a lot more in the future. All Jonathan did was what all bass fishermen dream of but what few accomplish.…
Spotted bass, largemouth and shad are all spawning this month on Allatoona, and anglers can catch bass by keying on the different spawning areas for each species. If you want to have fun and catch a bunch of fish, target spots. If quality fish are your goal, look for bedding largemouth. And when the shad…
An estimated 4,000 people drown to death each year in the United States. Of those deaths, more than 50% could have been prevented if those victims had been wearing a life jacket. That’s where Travis England steps in. England, a public affairs specialist at Lake Lanier and a former park ranger at Lake Allatoona, coordinated…
James “Moby” Carney, a popular country music radio DJ with strong ties to the Georgia outdoor community, died Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2023, at age 69. Moby had battled stage 4 stomach cancer. The GON Community got to know Moby not just from his morning show on Kicks 101.5 from 1991 to 2012, but also through…
The record for longnose gar on Lake Allatoona was smashed last week by angler Caleb McClure. The huge fish was just shy of 5 feet long and weighed 27.25 pounds. Caleb caught the gar while fishing with his friend Trent Hall. “We were fishing right next to Sweetwater Campground in an area that we knew…
Allatoona Lake Records
| Largemouth Bass | 16-lbs., 9-ozs. | Greg Rymer | 08/31/82 | ||
| Spotted Bass | 7-lbs., 11-ozs. | George Clark | 11/18/74 | ||
| Hybrid Bass | 13-lbs., 9.5-ozs. | Danny Alsobrook | 02/07/90 | ||
| Striped Bass | 42-lbs. | Clint Hight | 02/15/02 | ||
| Black Crappie | 3-lbs., 7.36-ozs. | Corey Harmon | 03/05/22 | ||
| White Bass | 3-lbs., 2-ozs. | Darrell Baxter | 05/15/94 | ||
| Flathead Catfish | 35-lbs., 10.88-ozs. | Sandy Sanders | 06/20/08 | ||
| Blue Catfish | 52-lbs., 1-oz. | Aaron Churchwell | 10/27/20 | ||
| Tiger Trout | 2-lbs., 12.8-ozs. | Bob Geresti | 02/01/18 | ||
| Yellow Perch | 1-lb., 1.44-ozs. | David Brewer | 12/02/23 | ||
| White Crappie | 3-lbs., 4.24-ozs. | Cody Hopkins | 02/10/22 | ||
| Longnose Gar | 27-lbs., 4-ozs. | Caleb McClure | 06/24/23 | ||
| Shellcracker | 2-lbs., 5-ozs. | Dan Huizinga | 04/20/24 | ||
| Redbreast | 10-ozs. | Dan Huizinga | 08/03/24 |