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Lake Hartwell
Lake Hartwell is a 56,000-acre Corps of Engineers reservoir bordering Georgia and South Carolina on the Savannah, Tugaloo and Seneca rivers. Lake Hartwell is one of the southeast's largest and most popular recreation lakes, and it offers good fishing, particularly for bass and stripers. Three recent Bassmaster Classic tournaments have been held at Hartwell. The lake is created by Hartwell Dam located on the Savannah River 7 miles below the point where the Tugaloo and Seneca rivers join to form the Savannah. Interstate 85 crosses Lake Hartwell at the Georgia-South Carolina line.
Lake Hartwell Resources
Hartwell: Level: 0.6 feet above 660. Temp: 68-73 degrees. Clarity: The main lake is clear, some creeks are stained. Bass: Cole Wilson, with Spot Chaser Guide Service, reports, “Fish are in all phases across the lake. It’s a time of year when you can pick your favorite thing to do and go do it. Look for the fish to continue spawning and pushing up to bed, as well as the herring and shad spawns across the lake. Target the herring and shad spawns by fishing shallow, flat clay or sandy points. Lots of times you can see these fish schooling and feeding up early in the morning. A weightless fluke and swimbait, such as a Keitech, are my favorites to target these fish. There is also a brushpile bite starting to happen. This pattern isn’t as effective yet, but it is a good pattern to keep in the back of…
Read MoreLake Hartwell Fishing Articles
Randy Howell did not know how his day would start, but he definitely knew where it would start. Capitalizing on a key practice discovery, the Progressive Bassmaster Elite Series pro from Guntersville, Ala., made the most of his early plan and laid the foundation for a five-bass limit of 21-lbs., 11-ozs. that leads Day 1…
Some might sit and stare, others might run and gun. That’s late April fishing on Lake Hartwell, and it’s what Tyler Campbell expects for the 2025 Whataburger Bassmaster Elite Series tournament. Competition days will be April 24-27 with daily takeoffs from Green Pond Landing at 7 a.m. ET and weigh-ins each day back at Green Pond…
Boater Jason Burroughs of Hodges, South Carolina, caught a five-bass limit weighing 20-lbs., 9-ozs. on Saturday to win the Phoenix Bass Fishing League (BFL) Presented by T-H Marine on Lake Hartwell Presented by Suzuki Marine. The tournament, hosted by Visit Anderson, was the third event of the season for the BFL Savannah River Division. Burroughs…
Peyton Dunn, of Fitzgerald, won the ABA-AFT Division 25 tournament on Lake Hartwell on March 16. He weighed in 21.16 pounds. What was really exceptional about his bag of fish was that it was anchored by an 11.03-lb. largemouth. “To my knowledge, it’s the biggest bass weighed in on tournament scales for Hartwell,” said Peyton.…
A 6-lb., 4-oz. spotted bass was just what Texas angler Chad Mrazek needed on the final day of the MLF Invitational at Lake Hartwell. The big spot propelled Chad to a third-place finish in the tournament, and it set a new GON official record for spotted bass on Lake Hartwell. Chad’s record spot hit a…
Lake Hartwell Record Fish
| Largemouth Bass | 12-lbs., 6.5-ozs. | Jack Breshears | 03/08/76 |
| Spotted Bass | 6-lbs., 4-ozs. | Chad Mrazek | 03/16/25 |
| Redeye Bass | 3-lbs., 7-ozs. | Steve Williams | 04/17/04 |
| Striped Bass | 59-lbs., 8-ozs. | Terry McConnell | 02/03/02 |
| Hybrid Bass | 20-lbs., 1-oz. | Buster Green | ----- |
| White Bass | 4-lbs., 5-ozs. | H.T. Davis | 02/06/67 |
| White Crappie | 4-lb., 4-ozs. | Charles McCullough | 04/27/68 |
| Black Crappie | 3-lbs., 1.76-ozs. | Jimmy Burns | 03/02/22 |
| Walleye | 9-lbs. | T.O. Sherriff | 1974 |
| Blue Catfish | 30-lbs., 8-ozs. | Melvin Wall | 06/26/03 |
| Flathead Catfish | 66-lbs. | Darrin Sealey | 04/04/10 |
| Shellcracker | 1-lb., 4.16-ozs. | DJ Hill | 05/13/23 |
| Chain Pickerel | 2-lbs., 5-ozs. | Jay Franklin | 03/16/23 |