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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 – April 2024

By GON Staff | March 27, 2024

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…

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Lake Hartwell Fishing Articles

Bassmaster Classic Anglers Eye Warm-Up As They Prepare For Lake Hartwell Event

More water and warmth may be the key factors when the 2022 Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Classic presented by Huk visits Lake Hartwell for the fourth time in the event’s storied history. Competition days will be March 4-6 with daily takeoffs from the legendary Green Pond Landing & Event Center in Anderson at 7…

B.A.S.S. Announces 2022 Bassmaster Classic At Lake Hartwell

The world’s most prestigious professional bass tournament will be returning next year to the site of some of the best moments in the sport’s famed history. B.A.S.S. officials, along with Visit Anderson and VisitGreenvilleSC, announced on March 30 that the 2022 Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Classic presented by Huk will be held for the…

Good Shallow Bite For Lake Hartwell Winter Bass

Cold weather slows anglers and bass down this time of year, but Lake Hartwell bass will feed on rocks and wood cover in short pockets and on main creek banks and points throughout January. They will hit a variety of baits, and you can have a good day fishing if you dress for the weather.…

Lake Hartwell Paradise Found

“Lake Hartwell is a paradise.” Those were the words that kept running through my head in October 2002 as I stared out the window of my new work home at the Clemson office of the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR). I had spent the previous 12 years working for SCDNR in Columbia on…

Madison County Teens Take Bassmaster Win On Hartwell

Logan Fisher and Will Hart spent hundreds of hours on Lake Hartwell during the past five-plus months of shutdowns and social distancing, and they proved the time spent was anything but a diversion. Fisher and Hart, who live in Danielsville, won the Mossy Oak Fishing Bassmaster High School Series event at Lake Hartwell presented by…

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