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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

Lake Hartwell Fishing Report – March 2025

By GON Staff | February 26, 2025

Hartwell: Level: 0.8 feet below 660. Temp: 48-53 degrees. Clarity: The main lake is clear, but there is stain in the creeks. Bass: Cole Wilson, with Spot Chaser Guide Service, reports, “When March rolls around, there are a lot of different patterns and ways to catch fish. In the early part of the month, continue to look in the ditches early in the morning using Damiki jigs or small swimbaits since fish will still be out there feeding up. As the sun rises and temperatures rise, look for rocky points in the 10- to 25-foot range and target them with a shaky head, jig or small swimbait reeled slowly along the bottom as the spotted bass will be feeding up heavily. Of course, there is always a prespawn rock bite with a crankbait. Target the rocky banks with deep water nearby with a crankbait. A mud-bug color in the Spro…

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Lake Hartwell Fishing Articles

Hartwell Slam Will Host Top College Bass Anglers

The Association of Collegiate Anglers is set to begin the 2024 season on the Bass Pro Shops Collegiate Bass Fishing Series at Lake Hartwell. The Hartwell Slam will take place on April 13-14, 2024. This no-entry-fee event also includes media coverage on a variety of streaming platforms, live coverage, social media promotions and is nationally…

Will Hart Livescopes Deep Points For Lake Hartwell BFL Win

Boater Will Hart, of Danielsville, caught a five-bass limit weighing 21-lbs., 8-ozs., Saturday to win the MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine on Lake Hartwell. Hosted by Visit Anderson, the tournament was the first event of the season for the BFL South Carolina Division. Hart earned $11,266, including the lucrative $7,000 Phoenix MLF…

Lake Hartwell To Host 2024 BASS College Series Natty

B.A.S.S. officials announced today that the 2024 national championship for the wildly popular Bassmaster College Series will be played out on the waters of Lake Hartwell. The 2024 Strike King Bassmaster College National Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops will showcase the nation’s best college anglers Aug. 22-24. Anglers will launch from and weigh in…

Corps Seeks Campground Park Attendant At Lake Hartwell

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Savannah District, Hartwell Dam and Lake Project, has a campground park attendant contract position open at the Twin Lakes Campground in Pendleton, South Carolina. Lake Hartwell officials are currently looking for an outgoing, active couple who would like to work as paid contract park attendants from April 1 through November…

Davis Makes History As First Back-To-Back Winner Of B.A.S.S. Nation Championship

Will Davis Jr. made history Friday when he won the TNT Fireworks B.A.S.S. Nation Championship for the second consecutive year. Not only did the 31-year-old Sylacauga, Ala., resident become the first angler to win the event in back-to-back seasons, but he started a chain reaction that helped two other anglers receive a bit of B.A.S.S.…

Lake Hartwell Record Fish

Largemouth Bass12-lbs., 6.5-ozs.Jack Breshears03/08/76
Spotted Bass5-lbs., 6.08-ozs.Raulie Bleech03/18/07
Redeye Bass3-lbs., 7-ozs.Steve Williams04/17/04
Striped Bass59-lbs., 8-ozs.Terry McConnell02/03/02
Hybrid Bass20-lbs., 1-oz.Buster Green-----
White Bass4-lbs., 5-ozs.H.T. Davis02/06/67
White Crappie4-lb., 4-ozs.Charles McCullough04/27/68
Black Crappie3-lbs., 1.76-ozs.Jimmy Burns03/02/22
Walleye9-lbs.T.O. Sherriff1974
Blue Catfish30-lbs., 8-ozs.Melvin Wall06/26/03
Flathead Catfish66-lbs.Darrin Sealey04/04/10
Shellcracker1-lb., 4.16-ozs.DJ Hill05/13/23
Chain Pickerel2-lbs., 5-ozs.Jay Franklin03/16/23