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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: 7.2 feet below 1925. Temp: 53-55 degrees. Clarity: Clear. Bass: Eric Welch, of Welch’s Guide Service, reports, “Fishing is good. The lake is at winter pool, and the water temps are just right. The spotted bass on Chatuge love a Z-man Ned rig in the winter. On sunny days, these bass will pull up on long points and also red clay banks. I continued to fish a drop shot in the winter. I just downsize to a 4.5-inch worm and change my colors to red crawler and ayu. When using my forward-facing sonar, I will look for fish off points and ditches and will target them with an A-rig and jerkbait. If you have a sunny day and a little wind, try a crankbait, like a Bandit 200 or a Deep Wee R, in a crawfish or shad pattern around the clay banklines. When the lake is down…
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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…
Fishermen can honor our veterans and those on active duty while enjoying a day fishing on Lake Chatuge for big money and prizes. The Lake Chatuge ‘Reelin’ It In For Vets’ fishing tournament will be held Nov. 2. The team event entry fee is $200 per team, which includes tournament entry, Big Fish pot and…
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: 10.8 feet below 840. Temp: 50 degrees. Clarity: Slight stain. Bass: Tournament angler Matt Driver reports, “Fishing in January can be tough. If we have a return of cold weather in January, we could see the water temperature dropping into the low 40s, and we will see a shad kill. The bite will definitely be affected if that happens. A shad kill is not necessarily a bad thing. It just helps regulate the amount of baitfish that we have in the lake. The best bite for the month of January is definitely an open-water, forward facing sonar (FFS) bite using jig-head minnows and jerkbaits. This is the best way to locate large, free-roaming spotted bass this time of year. We are catching occasional largemouth doing this, as well. If you don’t fish FFS, there is a good jig bite on bluff walls for most of the day. You…
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September is often our meanest month for fishing a big reservoir. Although the days are getting shorter and fall is coming, the lakes just don’t seem to want to start changing, so fishing remain tough. But you can have fun and find some fast schooling activity while catching spotted bass on Lake Allatoona this month.…
After having no luck catching bait the morning of Feb. 2 and having to use bait that had been on ice for two days, Jake Herman, of Acworth, finally got that one special bite and reeled in a 43-lb., 9.6-oz. Lake Allatoona blue catfish. Jake’s blue catfish broke the existing Allatoona record by more than 7 1/2 pounds.…
Boating accidents can be deadly, evidenced by the latest horrific crash on Lake Allatoona on Thursday, Feb. 2. Two boats and three unidentified boaters, reported to all be older-aged men, were in “fishing boats,” according to authorities. All three were thrown from the boats. One angler was confirmed dead, and one was rescued and taken to a…
When it comes to Allatoona striper fishing in June, Russell Dobbs, of Dallas, has acquired a good knowledge on how to catch them in the summertime heat. Russell has landed his fair share of June stripers in his 20 years of fishing Allatoona. When Russell first started learning how to catch stripers, it was all…
David Ray, of Rydal, has been fishing Allatoona for 50 years and has never landed a fish like the one he caught on April 25. The morning began like any other. Every time David goes fishing, he catches his own bait to fish with. Typically, he goes for threadfins. “Early Monday morning, I landed a 3- to…
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 |