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Lake Information for Fort Loudon Lake
Fort Loudoun contains 14,600-acres and was created by the Tennessee Valley Authority in 1943. The reservoir supports a variety of recreational activities and provides hydroelectric power and flood control. It connects to Watts Bar Reservoir via a lock and directly to Tellico Reservoir by a canal.
The reservoir is located at the headwaters of the Tennessee River near Knoxville and extends 55-miles upstream from the dam to the confluence of the Holston and French Broad Rivers. Since Fort Loudoun is a navigable mainstream waterway, the annual drawdown is only six vertical feet. Water levels fluctuate between 813 and 807-feet above sea level and there are 360-miles of shoreline.
Fort Loudoun is surrounded by private and commercial development and is used extensively for fishing and other aquatic recreations.
Health advisories issued by the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation against the consumption of catfish, largemouth bass over two pounds, and any largemouth bass from the Little River embayment are still in effect. These advisories are due to PCB contamination and account for the low number of fish harvested.
The most commonly harvested fish are largemouth, smallmouth, and white bass. Bluegill, crappie, sauger, and catfish are also present in good numbers.
Spotted bass - Bridge riprap and similar rocky areas with small white spinners, plastic grubs on leadhead jigs, doll flies, and crawfish crankbaits.
Largemouth bass - Spring: Creek points and channels using shallow running crankbaits, spinner baits, buzz baits, Carolina-rigged floating worms, and Texas-rigged worms; Summer: River channel points and humps with deep running crankbaits and Carolina rigs; Fall: Creek mouths and river channel points using shallow running crankbaits and top water plugs; Winter: Creek mouths and river channels using crankbaits, jigs, and lizards.
Smallmouth bass - Spring: Creek mouths and river channel points with shallow running crankbaits, pig ‘n jig, and grubs; Summer: River channel points and humps using deep running crankbaits and pig ‘n jigs; Fall: River channels using shallow running crankbaits and topwater plugs; Winter: River channel near the dam using jigs, grubs and shiners.
Crappie - Spring: Creek channels in open water and brush with jigs, grubs, and minnows; Summer: River channels at night with jigs, grubs, and minnows; Fall and Winter: In creeks with jigs, grubs, and minnows.
Sauger - Spring: Upstream of Knoxville trolling with crankbaits or drifting with grubs, jigs, and minnows.
White bass - Little Turkey, Sinking, and Ish creeks offer good white bass fishing in the spring. They are abundant in the Tennessee River across from the UT Agricultural School and the French Broad and Holston Rivers above Knoxville.
Catfish - Blue, channel, and flathead catfish hit nightcrawlers, chicken livers, or shiners on rocky outcroppings, on flats near the channels, and in the rear of large hollows.
Businesses Located Nearby
Boat Rental
- Knoxville Boat Sales Incorporated
- 508 Omni Ln - Knoxville, TN
- (865) 966-9224
- Deyton Camp Boat Dock Rentals
- 306 Massey Branch Rd - Robbinsville, NC
- (828) 479-7422
- Auto & Marine Installation
- - Knoxville, TN
- (865) 310-3286
Vacation Rental
- All Seasons Cabins
- 721 Schneider Ln - Sevierville, TN
- (865) 453-8722
- Living Well A Vacation Rental on Norris Lake Tn
- 224 Lakeshore Dr - Maynardville, TN
- (865) 719-9261
- The Cedars Vacation Rentals in Pigeon Forge
- 220 Sugar Hollow Rd - Pigeon Forge, TN
- (865) 209-9880