Norris Lake (Loyston Sea)
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
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+8
- + wind speed+7
- + in season+5
- + solunar major window+5
- + cloud cover+4
- + cloud preference+3
- + new/full moon amplifier+1
Best window: first light
Flies: Game Changer 6", Clouser Minnow #1/0 (chartreuse/white)
Olive wooly bugger or black game changer. Dark silhouette first, drop to rust nymph if refusals.
In a few hours
Lures: 3/4 oz bucktail (white), 5" Sassy Shad on 1/2 oz head, Topwater pencil popper (fall schooling), Live skipjack on planer board (trophy water)
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: chartreuse/white, shad, bone
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
- Stripers stress hard above 78°F surface temp. If you're trophy-hunting in July-August, fish dawn-only on Cherokee or Norris and bring an aerated bait tank.
- TWRA stocks Cherokee, Norris, Watts Bar, Tims Ford, Cumberland tailrace, the trophy water is Cherokee + Norris.
- + water temp in target range+20
- + preferred time of day+11
- + barometric trend+8
- + wind speed+7
- + in season+5
- + solunar major window+5
- + cloud cover+4
- + cloud preference+3
- + new/full moon amplifier+1
Best window: first light
Niche on fly. Heavy chartreuse Clouser trolled along 20 to 30 ft ledges.
In a few hours
Lures: Bottom-bouncer + nightcrawler harness (chartreuse spinner), 3/8 oz long jighead + 4" swimbait (smoke), #7 jointed shad-rap troll along 20-30 ft contour
Bottom-bouncer plus chartreuse crawler harness along contour. Slow troll 1.0 to 1.5 mph.
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, purple, shad
Good colors for clear water (fall): smoke shad, perch, purple
Walleye eyes gather light. They feed low-light and see chartreuse and orange deeper than any other colors.
Full color matrix for clear water
- Lake walleye scatter in summer; without electronics you're searching blind. A graph + structure-aware troll is the difference between zero and double-digits.
- + water temp in target range+20
- + preferred time of day+11
- + barometric trend+8
- + wind speed+7
- + in season+5
- + solunar major window+5
- + cloud cover+4
- + 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) | 66.0°F |
|---|---|
| Cloud cover (%) | 95% |
| Dew point (°C) | 5.0°C |
| Relative humidity (%) | 40% |
| Chance of precipitation (%) | 3% |
| Barometric pressure (mb) | 1,026.0 mb |
| Rain past 6h (in) | 0.00 in |
| Wind direction | E (90°) |
| 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.
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 | 74°F | 53°F | 6 mph E | 76% | 5% | 1,026.3 mb | nws |
| Sun Nov 1 | 65°F | 53°F | 6 mph E | 97% | 25% | 1,028.2 mb | nws |
| Mon Nov 2 | 71°F | 51°F | 4 mph ENE | 72% | 26% | 1,025.7 mb | nws |
| Tue Nov 3 | 76°F | 47°F | 3 mph ENE | 38% | 1% | 1,021.1 mb | nws |
| Wed Nov 4 | 72°F | 55°F | 3 mph E | 80% | 62% | 1,014.6 mb | nws |
| Thu Nov 5 | 70°F | 57°F | Calm | 97% | 66% | 1,011.8 mb | nws |
| Fri Nov 6 | 68°F | 53°F | 3 mph NW | 84% | 35% | 1,006.7 mb | nws |
| Sat Nov 7 | 65°F | 49°F | Calm | 73% | 12% | 1,010.2 mb | nws |
| Sun Nov 8 | 57°F | 47°F | 4 mph SSW | 67% | 10% | 1,009.6 mb | openmeteo |
| Mon Nov 9 | 50°F | 40°F | 7 mph WNW | 66% | 14% | 1,009.7 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
- BEAR CREEK 36.3600, -83.6570 phone map Google OSM
- Beach Island Marina 36.3288, -83.7529 phone map Google OSM
- Black Fox 36.3280, -83.6583 phone map Google OSM
- Black Fox Access Area 36.3288, -83.6443 phone map Google OSM
- Blue Springs Dock 36.4046, -83.8792 phone map Google OSM
- Boat Ramp 36.3665, -83.7154 phone map Google OSM
- Claiborne Dock, Inc. 36.3646, -83.7138 phone map Google OSM
- DODSON CREEK 36.3189, -83.7240 phone map Google OSM
- Greenwelch Hollow Access Area 36.3546, -83.5997 phone map Google OSM
- Lakeview Dock 36.3387, -83.7825 phone map Google OSM
- NEEDHAM HOLLOW 36.3559, -83.7310 phone map Google OSM
- Palmers Junction 36.3522, -83.7520 phone map Google OSM
- Post Master 36.3423, -83.7582 phone map Google OSM
- Ruff Miller 36.3360, -83.7849 phone map Google OSM
- Straight Creek Boat Dock 36.3805, -83.6712 phone map Google OSM
- Union County Dock 36.4056, -83.8437 phone map Google OSM