Here is the current fishing report from the TWRA:
Caney Fork: Fishing is good. Several small rainbows are being caught between the dam and Bettys Island while fishing live bait and flies. A few stripers are being caught near Carthage while fishing shad as bait.
Center Hill: Fishing is good. Water temperature is 77 degrees. Lake is stable. Bass fishing is good while fishing topwater bait early in the morning and late at night in the back of the creeks.
Walleye fishing is fair while trolling nightcrawlers on flats in 26 feet of water. A few crappie are being caught around sunken brush in 20 feet of water.
Chickamauga Lake: The lake is falling. The present elevation on 9/29/13 was 681.7 feet. This was lower summer elevation. Most bass were caught along main lake flats near grass. Weedless frogs, buzzbaits, and plastic worms have been used by many anglers. Several 4 and 5 pound fish were caught this previous week, but most anglers struggled to find many fish. Many out of town anglers have been on the water in recent days looking for fishing spots for the upcoming Heartland Anglers Classic. A large number of visitors are expected to participate in the upcoming event. Crappie anglers have caught several fish this past week. Blowdowns and grassy areas in select locations have been targeted by many crappie anglers. The areas close to deep water have been the best areas to locate fish. Striped bass have been caught in good numbers near the tailwaters. Shad, jigs, and swimbaits have been the baits anglers have used to catch stripers. Some white bass have been schooling in the upper reservoir. Topwater lures, spinner-type baits, and jigs have been the most efficient lures to catch the white bass schoolers. Catfish have been caught in most areas of the lake in the main channel. Most baits generally associated with catching catfish have been used with success.
Dale Hollow: Fishing is fair. Water temperature is 75 degrees. Lake is falling. Several large mouth are being caught in the rivers on jigs and spinnerbaits while fishing shallow cover. Crappie fishing is good in the rivers while fishing laydown trees in 20 feet of water. A few smallmouth are being caught on topwater baits early in the morning while fish are chasing shad.
Hiwassee River near Reliance: Trout anglers caught several fish over the weekend. Most fish caught were rainbow trout. A few brown trout were caught along with the rainbow trout. Corn, worms, “Roostertails”, and various flies were used by those in pursuit of trout. A couple of local anglers caught at least 2 smallmouth bass that weighed heavier than 4 pounds. The baits used for the smallmouth were spinner-type lures. Some striped bass were caught over the weekend.
Parksville Lake: The surface water temperature was cooler than last week. The water surface temperature on Sunday was 84 degrees . The current lake elevation on Sunday was 828.5 feet and this elevation was summer normal. Spotted bass have been caught most often in water depths exceeding 20 feet by those using spoons and worm combinations that could be presented in a vertical manner. Some surface schooling has allowed for a topwater bite at times. Largemouth bass were being caught in water that is shallower on the upper end by those anglers using plastic worms. Crappie have been caught around deeper blowdowns and sunken brush in water deeper than 20 feet. Minnows have been used for bait by most anglers searching for crappie. Bluegill have been caught by a few anglers using worms or crickets for bait. Most bluegill were caught along the steeper banks.
Watts Bar: The lake elevation was at summer normal on 9/29/13. The surface water temperature was at 84 degrees on the same day. Crappie anglers have caught crappie around docks and near secondary channel ditches while using jigs or minnows. Some anglers have managed to catch a limit of fish. Tailwater anglers have caught several striped bass while using shad as bait. Bass anglers have caught a few more fish this week in large secondary locations. Rocks, stumps and brush have been target areas. Most bass that were caught have been in water depths greater than 15 feet. Plastic worms, spinnerbaits, jigs, and crankbaits have been used depending on the type of area being fished. Some bank anglers have caught bluegill in decent numbers. Most bluegill have been caught on bluff walls by those anglers using worms for bait. Catfish drifters have been busy. Many catfish have been caught in the main channel. Most successful catfish anglers were using shad or bluegill for bait to catch the heaviest fish.