BIG SMALLMOUTH?

[Football Hunter]

Im fascinated by them now.I want one!Ive gotten pretty good at catching 18 TO 22 INCH ONES at Center Hill,Dale Hollow,and a few at Priest.But I really want to catch a big one.

Where would you try,a reasonable distance from Nashville?Below OH dam?Ky Lake?Tims Ford?

 

[arctic_cat]

make a weekend out of it and come east. alot of great smallmouth in east tn. not to bad of a drive.

 

[TNTomtaker01]

Pickwick.

 

[stretch]

Pickwick, in the next couple of months.

 

[Football Hunter]

Pickwick was one I was thinking of

 

[ShaneHallum]

Nickajack is a good spot for smallies

 

[Lincoln Co Archer]

Drifting big shiners on Pickwick is a pretty good method of catching one of those monsters. I don't live bait fish but if I was going after a true monster that is where I would go and what I would do.

My top 3 lakes for big smallies would be:
1. Pickwick
2. Dale Hollow
3. Tims Ford

 

[Kimberman]

Pickwick

 

[easy45]

Pickwick, not a great numbers place but their are some monsters there

 

[stik]

laugh all you want but ft. loudon is my pick.

 

[arctic_cat]

laugh all you want but ft. loudon is my pick.

Im with you. I seen some good smallmouth weighed in when FLW was here and during the Tim Irwin tournament

 

[Headhunter]

If it is closer, below Old Hickory is where you need to go. A buddy of mine in 4 days last year had 17 smallmouth from 4 to 7 lbs.

 

[bowriter]

Pickwick

 

[Rackseeker]

I would say Pickwick, Tims Ford gives up some decent smallies, but anything over 5 lbs is very rare.

 

[stik]

Pickwick.

Pickwick, in the next couple of months.

Pickwick was one I was thinking of

1. Pickwick

Pickwick

pickwick

Pickwick

Pickwick

while my 1st choice is still ft. loudon, i believe the next world record smallie is currently swimming somewhere in pickwick lake.

 

[ttf909]

nickajack below chick dam. i caught 5 over 5lb in 6 weeks time in 2005. some by artificial and others by minners.
its awesome this time of year.so long as they are running water.

theres also a local guy that guides down there. dont know the name. sorry

 

[arctic_cat]

cool video, but bass fishing with live bait is just not for me

 

[Headhunter]

If he will let me, I will post a picture of a 9 lb smallmouth that came out of cumberland below Old Hickory in February of 2010. I have seen it and not sure what I think it weighs from the picture but it is huge. It was let go.

My opinion, nothing beats Canada. Rainy Lake is my favorite with the Manitou being second. I have spent many weeks on both and nothing in Tennessee can even begin to compare. We almost never see another fisherman, we get to watch bears, eagles, pelicans, see and listen to the loons (my favorite bird, love it when they come through on priest), see the occasional moose and catch ridiculous numbers of smallmouth up to 5 lbs each and if you get an urge you can go back in the weedy bays and catch pike on top by the bunches. Just running a spinnerbait under the top and it looks like a huge comode flushing when the pike hit.
Incredible experience. And it is truly what I call God's country, just breathtaking to see the country.

 

[Kimberman]

laugh all you want but ft. loudon is my pick.

I wont laugh, I tend to think that you stand a better chance of catching a 6+ pound smallmouth out of Loudon/Tellico than you do out of Dale Hollow. Most people laugh when I say it, but if you look at the dates that all of the BIG Dale Hollow smallmouth were caught, I believe the lake has past its prime. You hear of alot more 7-8 lb smallmouth coming out of Loudon/Tellico or Watts Bar than you do out of Dale Hollow these days. Now if you want to catch 3-4 lb smallmouth with the occasional 5 mixed in with regularity, Dale Hollow is tough to beat. I still think there are a few 9+ pound smallies swimming in Pickwick. My buddy caught a 19" fish that went 5lb 8ounces last year. That is one chunky smallmouth, a fish with that build with a 21-22" length will push 9lb easy.

 

[Kimberman]

bass fishing with live bait is just not for me

X2. I will crappie fish with minnows but I would rather catch them on jigs. I will not bass fish with live bait. For some reason it just doesn't interest me. I guess because anytime I'm bass fishing I'm trying to learn something I can use in a tournament someday.

I wont bass fish with live bait either, but my biggest smally came off of Watts Bar while crappie fishing with a crappie jig tipped with a minnow.

 

[PickettSFHunter]

Dale Holler trolling big shiners around Divers Rock for the big ones. Still some big ones left.

 

[stik]

i see bass fishing with live bait as any other kind of fishing with live bait. for some really big bass, float a 3-5 inch bluegill under a balloon.

 

[TN Larry]

Another vote for Pickwick

 

[Football Hunter]

Is the small mouth fishing good on the Tn side,or do you need a Bama liscense?

 

[river925]

Is the small mouth fishing good on the Tn side,or do you need a Bama liscense?

Tn lisc allows to fish to mouth of bear creek. you can cover the most water for the money with Ms lisc

 

[stretch]

There is a rock wall in Bear creek you will want to fish so I would get either a mississippi or alabama license.

 

[MFBAB]

Drifting shiners in the TN river tailraces anywhere from below Wheeler Dam, Wilson Dam and on down to below Pickwick Dam is pretty hard to beat.

 

[Football Hunter]

Dale Holler trolling big shiners around Divers Rock for the big ones. Still some big ones left.

Where is divers rock?

 

[Anonymous]

Spent many summers on pickwick as a younger lad. Seen many big smallmouth come out of that lake, as well as I bringin one out :)

 

[JohnnyBond]

:cool: