Tennessee Fishing and Tn Fishing Maps

From Mississippi River catfishing in the west to the trout streams in the east, Tennessee offers an array of fishing outlets for almost anyone to take advantage of. There are a few tried and true lakes such as Reelfoot Lake and Kentucky Lake that traditionally boast an excellent crappie fishery year after year. As far as the state's largemouth population is concerned, bass can be found in any of the typical mainstream Tennessee River reservoirs throughout the state, including Kentucky and Chickamauga Lakes.

For smallies, highland lakes such as South Holston, Norris, Dale Hollow, and Watauga are best. Many of the lakes in the eastern part of the state feature excellent catch and release sized fish. Most of these smallmouth lakes have an 18 inch minimum length limit and while those fish numbers under the limit are increasing somewhat, the trophy-sized 18-inch and above are staying steady. Dale Hollow, however, is still the premier smallmouth lake in the state, with its 16 to 21-inch slot and a reputation for housing trophy-sized smallmouth.

See Tennessee Fishing Maps from Fishing Hot Spots

Catfish anglers in Tennessee have the best of all worlds: big rivers small lakes, small rivers, and reservoirs. Big fish bodies of water including Watts Bar, Cheatham, Barkley, the Mississippi River, Kentucky Lake, and Chickamauga are excellent throughout the spring and summer, while small lakes such as the Agency's Family Fishing lakes in middle and west Tennessee offer year round catfish fishing. Sauger fishermen can have success below Pickwick and Cordell Hull dams during the winter months, while walleye can be caught in good numbers in Norris, Center Hill, Tims Ford, and Tellico lakes in the spring. Trophy striped bass and Cherokee bass (hybrid striped bass) can be found in lakes such as Norris, Cherokee, Watts Bar, and Tims Ford in the spring and winter months.

For trout anglers, the brookies in the Smokies and in the Cherokee National Forest offer a challenging fishing experience. World class rainbow and brown trout fishing can be found in tail waters below South Holston, Wilbur (Watauga), Norris (Clinch), and Center Hill (Caney Fork) dams.

Article courtesy Bobby Wilson: Tennessee WRA Fisheries Management