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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: 1.1 feet above 661. Temp: 58-65 degrees. Clarity: The main lake and bigger creeks are clear, but there is some stain in coves and smaller creeks. Bass: Trent Gober, with Fish Hartwell Guide Service, reports that bass are moving up the hill, headed to spawning areas. Some largemouth spawned in March, but many more will spawn in April back in the pockets. Spots will be spawning out on islands, shoals and points 10 to 12 feet deep. Shad will be in full spawn on rip-rap, rocks and docks, and herring seem to be preparing to spawn early, in April, this year, not May. All the spawning activity of bass and bait means many patterns and baits will work. For prespawn, spawn and postspawn, fish for largemouth in the pockets with a white or white-and-chartreuse bladed jig around any wood or grass. Put a Zoom Tennessee shad colored Shimmer Shad…
Read MoreLake Hartwell Fishing Articles
Will Davis Jr. hoisted the Bryan V. Kerchal Memorial Trophy a year ago, and by all accounts, it looks like he wants to hold on to the hardware that is awarded annually to the winner of the TNT Fireworks B.A.S.S. Nation Championship. Davis, in second place after Day 1 with 16-lbs., 1-oz., jumped into the…
Tim Dube had never fished a competitive round on Lake Hartwell prior to Wednesday’s start of the TNT Fireworks B.A.S.S. Nation Championship. But he went out and treated the place like home water. Dube, a 29-year-old New Hampshire resident, caught a limit of five spotted bass for a total of 16-lbs., 3-ozs. That was enough…
Several dynamic scenarios will be at play when anglers take on Lake Hartwell for the 2023 TNT Fireworks B.A.S.S. Nation Championship, and Bassmaster Elite Series pro Brandon Cobb believes everything will depend on the lake turnover. “This time of year is kind of a strange time,” the Greenwood, S.C., native said. “On Hartwell the fish…
Kale Temple and Luke Schnell were only 4 ounces out of the Day 1 lead at the 2023 Bassmaster Junior National Championship, so they knew a good finish on Lake Hartwell might lock up the tournament title for them. It did. Temple and Schnell, who compete for the Hart County Junior Anglers, closed the gap…
Stripers and hybrids can seem like aquatic nomads in a vast ocean of water, says Capt. Cefus McRae, an expert fishing guide who operates on Lakes Hartwell, Lanier and Clark Hill. Cefus is also the producer and on-screen personality for the “Nuts & Bolts Of Fishing” TV show that airs on FOX Sports South and CarbonTV.…
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 |