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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: 3.3 feet below 660. Temp: Mid 50s. Clarity: Clear. Bass: Cole Wilson, with Spot Chaser Guide Service, reports, “Fish are fully into their wintertime homes, and the ditch bite is hot on the main lakes and in the creeks. Many baits will work in the ditches, such as a 1/2-oz. jigging spoon, a blade bait or a Damiki jig. Keep an eye out for any big balls of bait you might find, as well as any channel swings in the creeks. It is best to focus on ditches anywhere from 25 feet all the way out to 65 feet. Bait is usually key but is not a must. Stay on the move since not every ditch will be holding fish or bait. Another pattern to look for is the roadbeds. Roadbeds are bass highways. Especially in the winter, fish will use roadbeds to travel to their pre-spawn areas.…
Read MoreLake Hartwell Fishing Articles
A Lake Hartwell striped bass fishing tournament ended in tragedy Saturday morning, Jan. 11, when a competitor’s boat with four anglers onboard sank. A 25-year-old woman from Aiken, S.C. did not survive. The Anderson County (S.C.) Corner’s office identified the young woman as Kimberely Gomillion. According to statements from officials, Gomillion was fishing the tournament…
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Savannah District’s Forest, Fish, and Wildlife Section at the J. Strom Thurmond Lakeand the Hartwell Dam and Lake will accept real Christmas trees for recycling as fish habitat again this season. Thurmond Lake will accept real trees from Dec. 20, 2024, through Jan. 17, 2025, and Hartwell Lake will…
If you’ve ever come out of the canal in Mexico Beach, Fla. and run 3 miles south into the Gulf of Mexico along the buoy line and experienced fish busting on top as far as you could see, that’s what it reminded me of—even if I was hundreds of miles from the salt. The scene…
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Savannah District, Hartwell Lake Project Office will open three of its larger recreation areas for hunting during the regular hunting season for 2024-2025 in Georgia, in addition to the seven areas within Fant’s Grove Wildlife Management Area in South Carolina. In Georgia, 410 acres at Hartwell Dam Quarry Area,…
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Savannah District, Hartwell Dam and Lake Project Office is seeking volunteers for the fall “Splash Away the Trash” event on Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024, in support of National Public Lands Day. Families, friends, scout groups, civic organizations, church groups, schools, sport clubs and businesses can volunteer to help keep…
Lake Hartwell Record Fish
| Largemouth Bass | 12-lbs., 6.5-ozs. | Jack Breshears | 03/08/76 |
| Spotted Bass | 5-lbs., 6.08-ozs. | Raulie Bleech | 03/18/07 |
| 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 |