Lake Guntersville on the Decline

[Land Between the Lakes]

I have read a lot of articles, even from local guides who say the lake is declining from what it used to be. Some guides say the lake is fishing the worst they have seen it in many years.

What are your opinions?


I would assume the declining fishing conditions are a result of the tremendous fishing pressure now days on the lake. Plus now days it seems like everyone has a side scan/down scan sonar in their boat, so pretty much anyone can find every ledge, habitat drop, and area of structure on the lake. Tournaments are probably a huge issue also, there are so many tournaments on the lake it's causing pressure and unwanted attention and publicity. This same issue is occurring right now on KY Lake. The fishing on KY Lake has really declined over the last few years as a result of the high amount of fishing pressure and tournaments.

[jdlong49]

I was up there Memorial weekend and was a little disappointed in the size, but numbers were decent. There were 4 tourneys that Sat that had over 100 boats and several club tournaments. Lots of traffic, boats everywhere. One of the tournaments took 24(3 fish) to win. Several 7+ on the big bass list. One of the guys at my hotel caught 2 5s, a 7, and an 8 in the same day (picture verified). It may be down, but it's still better than anything around here. These lakes run in cycles. Chickamauga was dead as hell last year when I went but is blowing up right now from what I hear.

[Basswhippa]

1. Tournaments. Poorly run small tournaments or any in the summer are the worst. The small ones kill fish. If I had a quarter for every 7 to 8 pounder I've seen floating on Sunday or Monday around Goose Pond, I'd be rich. Every high school, college team fishes there. The big ones attract people.
2. Guides. They advertise all the time on every website you can imagine. Again, they attract attention. "Billy Bob Guide Service" caught 30 fish today with a 7.5 pound big fish". The person who reads this thinks they can too. Some of the guides charge $600 a day. No wonder they advertise so much.

The first two are the most problematic.

3. Pressure. Comes from never ending tournaments.
4. Out of state'ers. Not really a problem other than many are idiots. They normally don't catch a lot, so they are mostly moot.
5. Lack of lake management. Think limits, lack of law enforcement, not stocking Florida's in recent years, etc. When I say law enforcement, yeah, I get checked by the lazy good for nothing game wardens who just want to drive around the lake all day in boat and check (harass) dudes with $15,000 to $75,000 boats. What they need to be doing is getting their lazy butts into the back sloughs, on local docks and public fishing holes, and up and down the rip rap banks and checking the meat fishers who are chunking shad and shiners.
5. Carp hunters. Don't go there. They are mostly helping remove trash fish biomass, so other fish (game fish) can live. Besides, wait until the several acre sized fields of Asian show up lake they are in Kentucky Lake. Carp hunters will be more valued.
6. Grass killers. Currently I don't think it's that much of a problem, except for in Roseberry/Poisonberry.

I still catch good fish there sometimes. Real big ones. That said, it isn't always on my lake to fish first list anymore. If I go there, fine. If not, I'll be somewhere else I can catch them as good or better.

Good news is Tennessee is undertaking a massive stocking plan in our Tennessee River lakes. Watts Bar, Chick, Nick, KY Lake, etc. This will take pressure off Guntersville. I mean we catch them over 15 pounds two lakes up. I think the official Guntersville record is only in the 14's. Alabama should do the take notice and stock Floridas.

What am I leaving out?

[jdlong49]

4. Out of state'ers. Not really a problem other than many are idiots. They normally don't catch a lot, so they are mostly moo

From my experience, most of the "idiots" I've encountered there had Alabama registration.

This last trip I was fishing a pocket with a bluff wall and had my poles down on a point on the edge of the pocket about 20' from the bank with the bow of my boat pointed into the pocket clearly facing the bluff. I'm standing there casting to the wall clear as day. 2 geezers in a Z8 run up on me on plane, get on the trolling motor and, without hesitating, troll between me and the bank down the bluff I'm fishing. They were fishing shiners on a cork. I had a few choice words and they never looked at me. Just kept on fishing. I pulled up my poles and moved on. They had Alabama numbers.

[vickwareagle]

I am sure everything mentioned here plays a role, but also remember lakes are cyclical and naturally have peaks and valleys. Guntersville has been on a peak for a long time now and may just be experiencing a natural decline.

[jclark408]

Pickwick is the same. I've been on it since 2005 almost exclusively. It's declined year by year. Pressure is my theory. Every male over 10 years old seems to be in the right of passage to fish some tournament every single weekend. Add in practice days, and it gets hammered.

[PROCRAFT192]

I fish Pickwick almost exclusively jclark You are right. Still some hellatious strings weighed in in the tourneys but I don't know how the fish can stand all the pressure. I am not a tournament fisherman and I understand that lots of folks love it . I used to go fishing in February not too many years ago and see very few boats on the lake Last year I counted over 50 bass boat trailers at the State Line ramp on a Tuesday in Feb. Guess everyone is lucky it is still as good as it is.

[jclark408]

Exactly. I don't tourney fish either and my job now takes up all weekdays. I hammered smallmouth for years up until about 2012 and it's gotten tougher each passing year.

[Land Between the Lakes]

That's another big issue here on KY Lake, winter fishing. It seems like more people fish during the winter months now than ever before, especially since the umbrella rig became so popular a few years ago. Now these lakes are getting pressured 12 months per year. Is this true for Pickwick and Guntersville Lakes?

[Sandman38]

I live in Stevenson AL about 25mins north of Goosepond I'm not sure of the problem but fishing this year hasn't been as good as the past and i heard that Game and Fish were looking to possibly stock the Florida bass like they did on Chickamauga. The water down some and no current and it being so clear has hurt my fishing but we still have a good lake.

[mcryer87]

My brother caught a 5.06 largemouth with blood dripping off its tail today in grass along the main river.its crazy to think fish are still spawning in july.

[jclark408]

That's another big issue here on KY Lake, winter fishing. It seems like more people fish during the winter months now than ever before, especially since the umbrella rig became so popular a few years ago. Now these lakes are getting pressured 12 months per year. Is this true for Pickwick and Guntersville Lakes?

Absolutely with Pickwick...............ramps full year around

[jdlong49]

I've been on Guntersville for the past 2 days and the ramps are FAR from full here. Ramps that usually have 30-40 trucks parked on them had 4. I've never seen the lake with this few boats on it. The fishing is TOUGH and it is hot so I can see why.

[Itismemc]

We're going on our big family vacation all next week and I finally convinced them (wife) not to go to the beach. So we have a week on G. Ya'll are making me nervous.

[Bamaman]

I've been on Guntersville for the past 2 days and the ramps are FAR from full here. Ramps that usually have 30-40 trucks parked on them had 4. I've never seen the lake with this few boats on it. The fishing is TOUGH and it is hot so I can see why.

I drove past the Wilson Dam ramp 2 days ago, and there were 3 boat trailers. Not even any pleasure boaters were on the lake. it's hard to believe we have a premier lake with hundreds and hundreds of incredible homes, and only 3-4 boats were in sight yesterday afternoon. I guess it's just too hot this week for wusses to go out.

[BAMABAX]

Bamaman, I live in one of the smallest houses and I'm also one of the wusses you are referring to. Yep, purdy dang hot!!!!

[MCombs]

i believe once they started to spray the grass several years ago, its been on the decline. The thick grasslines have changed so drastically in the past few years on gville.

[flyingwillie]

I was at the lake the last two days.....Tues and Wed. Not one boat in the Goose Pond ramp lot either day. On the Tuesday Waterfront was empty and yesterday two trucks in the lot. I assumed the hot weather has people staying home. It was weird to see the empty lots. I did not fish as I was there organizing a fish camp for myself.

[bassworm1]

when BASS started fishing it.... the pressure started and also to add the same time they started killing the grass in areas. BASS will kill a good lake

[Justin M]

GUNTERSVILLE SUCKs!!! Ive been there all day on a perfect day and we did not catch em