Carters Lake Fishing Guides and Conditions, Georgia

About the Carters Lake

Carters is the deepest lake in Georgia and it neither looks nor fishes like the rest of the state. The Corps built it as a pumped-storage project on the Coosawattee River in the mountains north of Ellijay, and the combination of great depth, steep forested shoreline and almost no private development gives it clear water and a genuinely remote feel within about two hours of Atlanta.

Spotted bass are the primary fishery and they behave the way spots behave in deep clear water: relating to bluff ends, points and bait rather than to cover, and feeding well off the bank in water most anglers would idle straight over. Largemouth are present but secondary. The lake also holds walleye, which is unusual this far south and is the result of stocking into water cold enough to support them through the summer.

Pumped storage is the thing to understand before fishing Carters. Water is moved between the main lake and the reregulation pool below the dam, and the resulting level change is larger and faster than on a conventional reservoir. It can move within a single day. Fish respond to that movement, and anglers who fish it often plan around the generation schedule at least as much as around the weather.

Access is almost entirely through Corps recreation areas, and there is no strip of docks and boathouses to fish. That absence changes the game: without shoreline cover to work along, anglers here spend their time on offshore structure, on the timber lines left in the creek arms, and on bait. It rewards electronics and patience more than casting accuracy.

The gauge below gives the lake surface elevation. On most reservoirs that number tells you about the season. On Carters it tells you about today.

Access

Woodring Branch: Corps ramp and campground on the north side.
Doll Mountain: Corps ramp, camping and access to the upper lake.
Ridgeway: day-use ramp with quick access to the main lake.
Damsite and the reregulation pool: bank access and a separate small fishery below.
Carters Lake Marina: the only marina on the lake, with fuel and rentals.
Coosawattee arm: the upper end, shallower and first to colour after rain.
Note: development is minimal, so nearly all access is through Corps recreation areas.

Seasons

Winter: deep, clear and slow, with walleye beginning to move toward the upper end.
Spring: the best all-round fishing, spotted bass shallow and walleye catchable.
Summer: deep fish, very clear water, early starts and light line.
Fall: cooling water brings bait and bass back up onto the points.