Chickamauga Lake (Sale Creek arm)

83 excellent scored 56 min ago how is this scored?
Bass 83
Water: Lake
Regime: Lake / Reservoir (Reservoir / Lake)
Location: Hamilton
Target: Largemouth Bass, Crappie, Striped Bass
Nearest Access: Chickamauga Lake (Sale Creek arm) (35.38190,-85.08830)
Sun: 8:00 AM – 6:46 PM (EDT)
View on Map Google Maps
Lake / Reservoir Chickamauga Lake (Sale Creek arm) Conditions
Level Stable
Flow / Discharge Unmeasured Reach Local Hydrology
Water Temp Pending Telemetry Thermal Lag Model
Generation State Unregulated flow Natural Drainage
Barometer Trend — NWS Station Barometer

What to throw right now

Fly anglers
8 wt rod, integrated intermediate or floating line, 8 ft of 16-20 lb fluoro tapered down (4X butt to 0X bite). #4 deer-hair frog or #4 popper on calm warm mornings; #6 Clouser in chartreuse/white or olive Game Changer on overcast days or deeper. Cast tight to cover (overhung wood, dock corners, weed edges), let the popper sit 4-6 seconds, then a sharp pop. For sub-surface: cast across to the bank, let the streamer fall, then 2-3 ft strips with hard pauses. Strip-set hard; bass jaws are bony and you need the line tight to drive the hook.
Spinning / casting anglers
Medium-heavy 7' rod, 20 lb braid + 12-15 lb fluoro leader (or straight 12 lb fluoro on a baitcaster). Texas-rigged 7" watermelon-red worm with a 3/16 oz tungsten weight + 4/0 EWG hook is the all-conditions standard. For active fish: 1/2 oz spinnerbait slow-rolled along points + drop-offs. For deep summer suspended fish: 3/8 oz football jig + craw trailer hopped along 12-18 ft ledges. Post-front shutdown: switch to a weightless wacky-rigged 5" Senko in green pumpkin, work it dead-slow next to cover.

Per-species breakdown & tactics

Pick a fish, then Fly, Spin, or Colors. Your last pick is remembered.

Best window: first light

Bugs are hatching (fly). Crappie rarely smash big dries — try a Crappie Candy or tiny white marabou jig, or a midge cluster drifted slowly through brush and dock corners. Watch for a soft pickup and strip-set on any line stop.

5 wt rod with floating line, 9 ft 5X tippet to a #8 Crappie Candy or 1/32 oz marabou jig. Spring spawn (55-68°F water): dap or short-cast under dock corners + into brush; let the fly fall 2-4 ft then twitch once. The fall does the work. Summer + winter: switch to a sink-tip or full intermediate line, count down to the brush depth (8-12 ft), then microscopic 2" strips. Crappie eat lightly, set on any line stop, no rod sweep.

Flies: Crappie Candy #8, Marabou Jig 1/32 oz

Chartreuse marabou jig or small Clouser under an indicator. Count down to the school depth.

In a few hours

Fly
60%
Lure
89%
Bait
38%
Hatch: 64% (BWO (fall)) Active hatch. Fly imitations and small surface bugs are working.
  • Crappie bite shuts down hard during post-frontal high-pressure days; commit to spring + fall windows where you can.
Conditions Match Breakdown
  • + water temp in target range+20
  • + preferred time of day+11
  • + barometric trend+8
  • + wind speed+7
  • + cloud cover+5
  • + solunar major window+5
  • + in season+4
  • + cloud preference+3
  • + new/full moon amplifier+1

Next 24 hours · weather forecast

Scroll for hourly temperature, wind, and precipitation.

8PM
65°
0 N
9PM
63°
0 N
10PM
62°
0 N
11PM
61°
0 N
12AM
60°
0 N
1AM
59°
0 N
1AM
59°
0 N
2AM
58°
0 N
3AM
58°
0 N
8% rain
4AM
58°
0 N
11% rain
5AM
56°
0 N
15% rain
6AM
56°
0 N
18% rain
7AM
55°
0 N
44% rain
8AM
54°
0 N
50% rain
9AM
54°
0 N
55% rain
10AM
55°
5 E
59% rain
11AM
57°
5 E
53% rain
12PM
60°
5 E
44% rain
1PM
60°
5 E
45% rain
2PM
61°
5 SE
35% rain
3PM
62°
5 SE
38% rain
4PM
61°
5 SE
45% rain
5PM
61°
5 E
54% rain
6PM
58°
0 N
57% rain

Latest readings

Live telemetry
Air temp (°F) 69.0°F
Cloud cover (%) 94%
Dew point (°C) 8.9°C
Relative humidity (%) 47%
Chance of precipitation (%) 2%
Barometric pressure (mb) 1,025.7 mb
Rain past 6h (in) 0.00 in
Wind direction SE (135°)
Wind (mph) 5.0 mph

Reading freshness

Source update lag
Barometric pressure (mb) 6 min ago openmeteo
Wind (mph) 6 min ago nws
Cloud cover (%) 6 min ago nws
Air temp (°F) 6 min ago nws
Rain past 24h (in) 3864.1 h ago openmeteo stale
Rain past 6h (in) 5.1 h ago nws

Hatch matcher · this month

Active aquatic insect emergences & suggested imitations.

Midge Sizes 18–24
Recommended patterns: Zebra Midge #20, Griffith's Gnat #20, WD-40 #20

Tailwater staple; year-round on Caney Fork

BWO (fall) Sizes 20–22
Recommended patterns: RS2 #22, Parachute BWO #20

Cool overcast afternoons

Next few hours · best species

Prime windows for active feeding over the next 12 hours (EDT).

Sat 9:00 PM
Striped Bass (after dark) 72
Sat 10:00 PM
Striped Bass (after dark) 68
Sat 11:00 PM
Striped Bass (after dark) 69
Sun 12:00 AM
Striped Bass (after dark) 72
Sun 1:00 AM
Striped Bass (after dark) 74
Sun 1:00 AM
Striped Bass (after dark) 71
Sun 2:00 AM
Striped Bass (after dark) 71
Sun 3:00 AM
Striped Bass (after dark) 80
Sun 4:00 AM
Striped Bass (after dark) 76
Sun 5:00 AM
Striped Bass (after dark) 69
Sun 6:00 AM
Striped Bass (after dark) 70
Sun 7:00 AM best window today
Striped Bass (first light) 84

7-day forecast

Composite spot scores over the coming week.

Sun Nov 1
55 fair
Sun Nov 1
56 fair
Sun Nov 1
48 fair
Sun Nov 1
50 fair
Sun Nov 1
54 fair
Sun Nov 1
56 fair
Sun Nov 1
53 fair

10-day weather & pressure outlook

NWS forecast where it reaches, Open-Meteo beyond it. Days run midnight to midnight, spot time.

Day High Low Wind Cloud Rain % Pressure Source
Sat Oct 31 75°F 50°F Calm 83% 3% 1,025.2 mb nws
Sun Nov 1 62°F 54°F Calm 93% 59% 1,027.6 mb nws
Mon Nov 2 72°F 52°F Calm 77% 38% 1,025.0 mb nws
Tue Nov 3 75°F 54°F 5 mph SE 56% 8% 1,020.6 mb nws
Wed Nov 4 70°F 61°F 6 mph SSE 97% 70% 1,014.2 mb nws
Thu Nov 5 70°F 58°F Calm 96% 67% 1,011.4 mb nws
Fri Nov 6 71°F 54°F 3 mph NW 60% 28% 1,007.6 mb nws
Sat Nov 7 69°F 51°F Calm 60% 6% 1,010.2 mb nws
Sun Nov 8 61°F 52°F 8 mph SW 65% 8% 1,009.4 mb openmeteo
Mon Nov 9 55°F 43°F 7 mph NW 60% 16% 1,009.7 mb openmeteo

Hover chart points for telemetry details. Gold dot represents latest reading.

Barometric pressure (mb)

Water temperature (°F)

Fishing regulations (TWRA)

Statewide creel and length limits. Confirm the current rule on TWRA before you keep a fish.

These are statewide defaults only. Many waters have their own creel, size, or season rules that override this list. Check the water you are fishing on TWRA before you go.

TWRA fishing regulations · Water-specific exceptions

Statewide defaults (19 rules)
SpeciesRule
Alligator Gar No harvest allowed. Must be returned to water immediately.
Black Bass (includes Largemouth, Smallmouth, Spotted Alabama And Coosa) No more than 5 black bass per day in any combination may be taken. | None
Catfish Only one (1) catfish over 34 inches may be harvested per day. No harvest limit on catfish less than 34 inches.
Crappie 15 | 10 inches
Lake Trout Only 2 of your 7 total trout may be lake trout. | None
Muskellunge 1 | 36 inches
Paddlefish Paddlefish may be harvested from April 24 through May 31. Daily creel limit is 2 fish per day with no size limit. Culling is prohibited. Exceptions on Center Hill, Cherokee, and Watts Bar reservoirs.
Redear Sunfish (shellcracker) 20 | None
Redear Sunfish Or Shellcracker 20 | None
Region 1 Crappie Exception: Unless Otherwise Noted For Specific Waters. 30 | None
Rock Bass Or Redeye And Shadow Bass 20 | None
Sauger Or Sauger/walleye Hybrids 10 | 15 inches
Shovelnose Sturgeon No harvest allowed. Must be returned to the water immediately.
Skipjack Herring 100 | None
Striped Bass Or Hybrid Striped Bass (any Combination) 2 | 15 inches
Trout (all Trout Species Combined) 7 | None
Walleye 5 | 16 inches
White Bass 15 | None
Yellow Bass, Bluegill, Warmouth, Bream, Bullheads, Pickerel, Northern Pike, Yellow Perch, And Nongame Species no limit | None

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