Fishing Pickwick Lake

Pickwick Lake, which stretches 50 miles from the Shoals to near Counce, Tenn., is known as a good place to fish for smallmouth and largemouth bass, crappie and catfish.

The swift water released from Wilson Dam during electricity generation is a popular destination for anglers wanting to catch smallmouth and largemouth bass. Huge catfish are frequently caught in the swift water.

Crappie fishing is popular in tributaries of the lake such as Bear Creek near Cherokee and Second Creek in Waterloo.

The upper end of the lake around the Shoals is river-like and fish tend to bite best when water is being released through Wilson Dam.

Fish in the portion of the lake between Waterloo and Pickwick Dam tends to be better when there is strong current in the water. Fish in that portion rely less on water current to trigger feeding frenzies and can be caught in slack water, especially around grass beds in the Waterloo area.