Douglas Lake (headwaters)
What to throw right now
Per-species breakdown & tactics
Pick a fish, then Fly, Spin, or Colors. Your last pick is remembered.
Best window: first light
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
Ultralight 6'6" rod, 4-6 lb mono OR 8 lb braid + 6 lb fluoro leader. Spring: 'shoot' a 1/32 oz curly-tail grub far under docks by bow-and-arrow casting the rod tip + flicking the lure. Let it fall on slack line; strike on the drop. Summer: vertical-jig a 1/16 oz hair jig directly above marked brush piles; 6" lifts, 3-second pauses. Minnow on a slip-bobber set 6" above the brush is the bail-out when the bite is light.
Lures: 1/32 oz curly grub (white/chartreuse), 1/16 oz hair jig, Minnow under slip-bobber
Chartreuse jig tipped with minnow, vertical over brush. Slow fall triggers the eat.
In a few hours
- Natural / shad Disappears correctly in clear water. Invisible for the wrong reason once stain cuts visibility.
- Watermelon red The clear-water bass standard. Red flake reads as craw without spooking pressured fish.
Best colors right now: chartreuse, white, pink/white
Good colors for clear water (fall): smoke shad, natural minnow, pearl white
Crappie hunt by flash and vertical profile. Chartreuse and white outproduce naturals in every stain level except gin-clear.
Full color matrix for clear water
- Crappie bite shuts down hard during post-frontal high-pressure days; commit to spring + fall windows where you can.
- + water temp in target range+20
- + preferred time of day+11
- + barometric trend+9
- + wind speed+7
- + cloud cover+6
- + solunar major window+5
- + in season+4
- + cloud preference+3
- + new/full moon amplifier+1
Best window: first light
Flies: Clouser Minnow #6 (chartreuse/white), Frog Popper #4
Olive wooly bugger or black game changer. Dark silhouette first, drop to rust nymph if refusals.
In a few hours
Lures: Texas-rigged worm (watermelon red flake), 1/2 oz spinnerbait (white/chartreuse), 3" soft jerkbait (smoke shad), 3/8 oz football jig + craw trailer (deep summer)
Black and blue jig or chartreuse spinnerbait tight to cover. Stained fish hold on wood and rock edges.
In a few hours
- Natural / shad Disappears correctly in clear water. Invisible for the wrong reason once stain cuts visibility.
- Watermelon red The clear-water bass standard. Red flake reads as craw without spooking pressured fish.
Best colors right now: watermelon, chartreuse/white, shad
Good colors for clear water (fall): watermelon red, natural shad, green pumpkin
Bass see red and green well and chase high-contrast silhouettes in stain. Black and blue reads as a shad or bluegill profile when detail drops out.
Full color matrix for clear water
- Topwater commits hardest in the first 90 minutes after sunrise on calm warm mornings, see /learn/technique/topwater-bass.
- Bluebird high-pressure days after a cold front kill the topwater bite; switch to slow soft plastics in deeper cover.
- + water temp in target range+20
- + preferred time of day+11
- + barometric trend+9
- + wind speed+7
- + cloud cover+6
- + in season+5
- + solunar major window+5
- + cloud preference+3
- + new/full moon amplifier+1
Best window: last light
Flies: Clouser Minnow #4 (white/chartreuse), Wooly Bugger #6
Olive wooly bugger or black game changer. Dark silhouette first, drop to rust nymph if refusals.
In a few hours
Lures: 1/4 oz Roostertail, 1/8 oz spoon (silver), Sassy Shad 3"
Black and blue jig or chartreuse spinnerbait tight to cover. Stained fish hold on wood and rock edges.
In a few hours
- Natural / shad Disappears correctly in clear water. Invisible for the wrong reason once stain cuts visibility.
- Watermelon red The clear-water bass standard. Red flake reads as craw without spooking pressured fish.
Best colors right now: white, chartreuse, silver
Good colors for clear water (fall): watermelon red, natural shad, green pumpkin
Bass see red and green well and chase high-contrast silhouettes in stain. Black and blue reads as a shad or bluegill profile when detail drops out.
Full color matrix for clear water
- + water temp in target range+20
- + preferred time of day+15
- + barometric trend+9
- + wind speed+7
- + cloud cover+6
- + in season+5
- + solunar major window+5
- + cloud preference+3
- + new/full moon amplifier+1
Next 24 hours · weather forecast
Scroll for hourly temperature, wind, and precipitation.
Latest readings
Live telemetry| Air temp (°F) | 70.0°F |
|---|---|
| Cloud cover (%) | 93% |
| Dew point (°C) | 3.9°C |
| Relative humidity (%) | 32% |
| Chance of precipitation (%) | 1% |
| Barometric pressure (mb) | 1,026.0 mb |
| Rain past 6h (in) | 0.00 in |
| Wind direction | E (90°) |
| Wind (mph) | 10.0 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.
Year-round on TVA tailwaters (Clinch, Holston, Watauga, S Holston)
Weeks 36-46 (Sep-early Nov); cool overcast afternoons. Shop consensus.
Next few hours · best species
Prime windows for active feeding over the next 12 hours (EDT).
7-day forecast
Composite spot scores over the coming week.
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 | 79°F | 50°F | 7 mph ESE | 75% | 5% | 1,026.2 mb | nws |
| Sun Nov 1 | 68°F | 55°F | 7 mph ESE | 96% | 21% | 1,028.1 mb | nws |
| Mon Nov 2 | 74°F | 53°F | 3 mph ENE | 75% | 17% | 1,025.5 mb | nws |
| Tue Nov 3 | 79°F | 52°F | 4 mph ESE | 38% | 1% | 1,021.0 mb | nws |
| Wed Nov 4 | 76°F | 58°F | 4 mph ESE | 82% | 54% | 1,014.8 mb | nws |
| Thu Nov 5 | 73°F | 59°F | Calm | 96% | 64% | 1,012.0 mb | nws |
| Fri Nov 6 | 70°F | 56°F | Calm | 81% | 43% | 1,006.5 mb | nws |
| Sat Nov 7 | 67°F | 51°F | Calm | 55% | 17% | 1,010.2 mb | nws |
| Sun Nov 8 | 62°F | 48°F | 4 mph SSW | 53% | 14% | 1,009.6 mb | openmeteo |
| Mon Nov 9 | 51°F | 44°F | 6 mph W | 77% | 19% | 1,009.5 mb | openmeteo |
Trends · 7 days
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)
| Species | Rule |
|---|---|
| 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 |
Access points & navigation
- Boat Ramp 36.0096, -83.4080 phone map Google OSM
- Boat Ramp 36.0018, -83.3717 phone map Google OSM
- Boat Ramp 36.0391, -83.3264 phone map Google OSM
- Boat Ramp 36.0361, -83.3510 phone map Google OSM
- DANDRIDGE 36.0098, -83.4128 phone map Google OSM
- Dandridge Boat Dock 36.0073, -83.4154 phone map Google OSM
- Hwy. 321 Bridge 35.9812, -83.1607 phone map Google OSM
- Indian Creek Boat Dock 35.9773, -83.3391 phone map Google OSM
- Inspiration Point, Inc. 35.9587, -83.4129 phone map Google OSM
- Leadvale Access Area 36.0915, -83.2513 phone map Google OSM
- Moon Hill Bridge 35.9554, -83.3674 phone map Google OSM
- NINA 36.0522, -83.3151 phone map Google OSM
- Newport Police Dept. 35.9678, -83.1836 phone map Google OSM
- Rankin Access Area 36.0540, -83.2090 phone map Google OSM
- SPRING CREEK 36.0352, -83.3500 phone map Google OSM
- Smoky View Campground 35.9916, -83.4338 phone map Google OSM
- Swann's Dock 36.0356, -83.3318 phone map Google OSM
- Tannery Island 35.9428, -83.1789 phone map Google OSM
- Terry Point Dock 35.9930, -83.4345 phone map Google OSM
- Walters Bridge 36.0422, -83.2563 phone map Google OSM