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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: 5.1 feet below 1925. Temp: 48-51 degrees. Clarity: Clear. Bass: Eric Welch, of Welch’s Guide Service, reports, “Fishing has been good. The lake level is coming up, and on these sunny days, the baitfish are getting active, which means we’re starting to see some bass breaking on top, so you want to make sure you keep an Ima Stix and a Berkley Cane Walker on the front deck of the boat. We’ve still been catching fish on a jig-head minnow. I will watch their reaction, and if they don’t act like they want it, I will switch to a drop shot. As the weeks go on, I will target spawning banks and flats for spotted bass with a 3.5-inch tube and a Ned rig. They can not resist this coming through their bedding areas. Just take your time in these areas and work it over pretty well. Spotted bass…
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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
Allatoona: Level: 4.5 feet below 840. Temp: 58-61 degrees. Clarity: Stained. Bass: Tournament angler Matt Driver reports, “Allatoona is on fire this month. The month of April is when bass are in all phases of the spawn. Most of the largemouth will spawn this month. Some spotted bass began to spawn at the end of March. Red clay and pea-gravel banks have been the best areas to target for large spots. The majority of largemouth have moved shallow and are either close to spawning or staging nearby. The jerkbait, ChatterBait and squarebilled crankbait have been very productive. It’s hard to beat a shaky-head worm or Carolina-rigged lizard. There have been some phenomenal fish caught recently. This is the month you fish the way you like to fish. Pretty much all patterns will be successful. Make sure to take a kid fishing and enjoy the warm spring weather.” Linesides: Guide Robert…
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Despite Hurricane Michael sweeping across most of south and central Georgia, the 2018 Georgia Kayak Bass Fishing State Championship was held Oct. 13-14 on the Etowah River and Lake Allatoona. The two-day tournament hosted 40 anglers representing four clubs—Chattahoochee Kayak Anglers (West Point/Columbus), East Central Georgia Kayak Anglers (Augusta/East Georgia), Peach State Kayak Anglers (Atlanta/Statewide) and…
On Saturday, Sept. 29, Wildlife Action of Georgia hosted a fishing day for about 25 girls on Lake Allatoona. The American Heritage Girls, a national development organization for girls aged 5 to 18 that embraces Christian values and encourages family involvement, were taught how to bait their hooks, catch and clean fish by Mike Chastain,…
As summer hits us Georgians in full force this month, you can bet anywhere you decide to fish it’s going to be hot, and I mean hot. About the only thing in the northern portion of our state that you can expect to be hotter than the sweltering daytime highs is the striper fishing. As…
For many years, Lake Allatoona has been jokingly referred to as “The Dead Sea.” Some anglers will recount stories of frustrating days on the lake with little or no bites. Having never visited Allatoona, I wondered if the rumors surrounding the lake were true. I joined Jason Mullinax, a Cartersville native, who serves as a…
Bob Geresti didn’t expect his last-minute decision to go fishing one afternoon on Lake Allatoona to result in catching a rare breed of trout. A tiger trout—a cross between a brook and a brown trout—is a rare find in any Georgia lake, and until now one has never been documented from Lake Allatoona. The fish was…
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 |