Advertisement
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: 1.9 feet below 1925. Temp: 65-67 degrees. Clarity: Clear. Bass: Guide Eric Welch, of Welch’s Guide Service, reports, “Fishing has been good. TVA has been bringing the lake up, and it’s almost at full pool for the bass to finish spawning. The bite has been on fire. I’ve been catching fish on about every rocky bank that looks to be a spawning area. This makes for some great fishing because you don’t hardly have to use any gas or run all over the lake. The baits I’ve been using in these areas have been a 3.5-inch tube and a shaky head. Fish are in just about any finger pocket on the main body or on any point and bankline that has small rocks or sand. I’ve been catching my largemouth in the backs of pockets and around areas that a creek runs into. We are coming off the end…
Read MoreLake Chatuge Fishing Articles
Cameraman Eric Thornton had just focused the camera on me and Rick Wright as we stood in the front of Rick’s boat on Lake Chatuge to film an opening for the GON-TV segment on jigging spoons for bass. We both held fishing rods, and our spoons dangled 40 feet beneath the boat as I began:…
That Lake Chatuge could produce very large hybrid bass, a hatchery-created cross between striped bass and white bass, became apparent about five or six years ago. Local anglers began hooking some big hybrids, mostly at night during April and May while casting crankbaits for spotted bass and smallmouths. As word spread about hybrid bass weighing…
- « Previous
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
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 |
Advertisement
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
Allatoona: Level: 1.2 feet above 840. Temp: 66-72 degrees. Clarity: Clear to a light stain. Bass: Tournament angler Matt Driver reports, “Fishing for the month of May is great. This month bass are postspawn and keying on shad and the shad spawn. The shad spawn occurs at night and usually ends shortly after daybreak. Threadfin typically spawn on hard surfaces, like rock and rip-rap. Blueback herring will spawn on red clay banks. During these times, fishing a jerkbait and walking-style topwater bait is the way to go. Fish are super aggressive and feeding up. Once the shad spawn bite is over, I’m switching to a swim jig and covering water. Fish are on the move. This time of year fish are relocating to summertime patterns. A lot of fish will be suspended in between those areas. You will notice a lot of fish suspended and feeding on bait in the…
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 |