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West Point Lake
West Point is a great fishing lake, but it has undergone major changes in the past several decades. Once overly fertile because of Atlanta's upstream influence, environmental changes have reduced the flows of nutrients that once created pea-green waters and super largemouth bass fishing. The lake is clearer these days, and the less fertile waters are transitioning from largemouth to spotted bass. Bass fishing is still excellent, just more spotted bass are caught these days. Hybrid bass fishing is very good, especially during the famed spring run up the Chattahoochee River to Franklin. West Point is a man-made reservoir of 25,900 acres impounded by the West Point Dam, built by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
West Point Lake Resources
West Point: Level: The lake is 10 feet below 635 as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers conducts spillway maintenance. Temp: 60-70 degrees. Bass: Guide Keith Hudson reports, “We tend to forget about fishing a bit this time of year, but you can really be missing out. November is normally a great month to be out on the water. Thankfully, the bass fishing has gotten much better over the last month. The lower surface temps and the lake being a little stained in places definitely helped. The lake was about 10 feet down on Nov. 1 and should stay that way at least until mid January. The below normal level is because of repairs needed on the dam. Quite a few ramps should still be accessible, but I would recommend Pyne Road Park on 109 (definitely the best dock). If you do want to fish shallow for bass, any wood or…
Read MoreWest Point Lake Articles
The West Point Lake Project Management Office will begin accepting unwanted, live Christmas trees for recycling from Dec. 26, 2023, until Jan. 9, 2024, at three drop-off sites around the lake. Artificial trees will not be accepted. Drop-off locations are Yellowjacket Boat Ramp, Sunny Point Boat Ramp and Rocky Point Ramp. Decorations—including tinsel, lights, garland,…
Head to West Point this month to catch hot-water bass on points and docks. September may be the meanest month for bass fishing, but the spots and largemouth have to eat, and you can catch them. West Point is a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers lake that extends 35 miles on the Chattahoochee River near…
Now that April Waldrop has been bitten by the record fish bug, the Hogansville woman has set her sights on something even bigger. April was fishing for gar with her husband, Larry, and her two sons on West Point Lake recently when she landed a lake-record longnose gar that weighed 23 pounds. The 52 1/2-inch…
You can catch more than 200 crappie a day at West Point shooting docks in June. That may seem like an unachievable dream, but Payton Caldwell does it almost every trip. In the June 2003 issue, GON published an article on shooting docks at West Point with Payton’s grandfather, Joel Chambers (gon.com/fishing/run-run-and-gun-for-west-points-deep-shade-crappie). During the fishing…
Thirty-seven striper teams fished the April 1 Striper Bass Challenge on West Point Lake. With a two-fish limit, it took 36.3 pounds to win the event. The team of Lineside Addiction took the win. This tournament attracted some of the best striper teams in the Southeast. The first-ever event was a fundraiser for Georgia Sheriffs’…
West Point Lake Record Fish
| Largemouth Bass | 14-lbs., 2-ozs. | Richard Little | 04/15/1988 |
| Spotted Bass | 6-lbs., 9-ozs. | Wendell Young | 02/07/1990 |
| White Crappie | 3-lbs., 14-ozs. | Willie Arnold | 02/15/1989 |
| Black Crappie | 3-lbs., 6-ozs. | Edward Cagle | 03/14/1996 |
| Hybrid Bass | 14-lbs., 12.75-ozs. | Dustin Pate | 03/13/2009 |
| Shoal Bass | 3-lbs., 7-ozs. | Danny Swafford | 08/02/1997 |
| Blue Catfish | 61-lbs. | Jerrimie Tolbert | 10/22/2022 |
| Flathead Catfish | 48-lbs. | Mike Felter | 08/22/2020 |
| Yellow Perch | 1-lb., 2.4-ozs. | Toney Booker | 11/18/2017 |
| Channel Catfish | 16-lbs., 7.5-ozs. | Owen Knabe | 4/22/2018 |
| Striped Bass | 40-lbs. | Mike Steele | 3/24/2024 |
| Shellcracker | 1-lb., 8-ozs. | Justin Tomlinson | 10/26/2024 |
| Longnose Gar | 23-lbs. | April Waldrop | 07/21/2023 |
West Point Most-Read Articles
Many of our lakes and rivers are loaded with large, trophy-sized trash fish that no one really cares about fishing for because they are supposedly not that good to eat. Carp and gar are at the top of that list, and even if their taste and table quotient is questionable, they sure are sporting. Just…
There’s a reason tournament partners Earl Kitchens, of Gray, and Wayne Ard, of Lizella, drive halfway across Georgia to fish West Point Lake. The crappie fishing can be that good. And, in late February and early March, when the first waves of egg-heavy females begin pushing into the shallows to spawn, the fishing gets that…
In July, the days are often long and hot, and the lakes can be crowded with pleasure boaters. Conditions can be tough for bass fishermen. To lower your frustration and catch some fish, head to West Point Lake. The spotted bass and largemouths there feed even on the hottest days, and summer bassin’ at West…
There’s no doubt that amongst the beautiful scenery of West Point Lake there’s a huge population of hungry, eager and hard-fighting linesides. And, as the weather continues to warm this month, the action should only get hotter, according West Point Lake angler and part-time guide Todd Pursley. Now that the crowded spring striper and hybrid…