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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
The lake-record for flathead catfish on Lake Hartwell was set at a mark that’s going to be tough to top. On April 10, 2010, Darrin Sealey caught a flathead that pulled certified scales to 66 pounds. The Georgia state record for flathead is a tie between two Altamaha River cats that weighed 83 pounds. (Most…
Lake Hartwell, on the Georgia/South Carolina border, has long been known as an excellent bass fishery. Both largemouth and spotted bass are present in good numbers, and anglers can land strings of quality fish if they know the territory and habits of the bass. But, right now is arguably the best time of year to…
Many anglers will save their nickels and dimes all year for the chance to sight fish for tailing redfish or bonefish on flats in saltwater. It’s a complete rush to find fish feeding in water so shallow their backs are exposed. What’s more, both of these species are challenging to catch, can grow to some…
The holidays make for a busy time this month, and deer and small-game seasons are in full swing. That means the lakes are not crowded, plus the bass are biting. Lake Hartwell is a great choice this month. Bass are on several patterns, and you can catch three different kinds of bass in one area.…
If you look up the term “fishing addict” in the dictionary, you may notice a picture of Preston Harden in the margin. Preston loves to fish whether it is casting gold spoons for tailing redfish in the Louisiana bayous or flinging flies for trout in north Georgia or even hurling plugs for spotted bass on…
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 |