Photo: Thomson M, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Carters Lake is a 3,220-acre U.S. Army Corps of Engineers lake on the Coosawattee River between Ellijay and Calhoun, about two hours from Atlanta. It is the deepest lake in Georgia, with steep bluffs and no shoreline development, and it is famous for “magnum” Alabama bass, trophy stripers and hybrids, and some of the state’s best walleye fishing.
- Size3,220 acres
- OperatorU.S. Army Corps of Engineers
- Best betsAlabama bass, striped bass, walleye
- Fish attractors55 sites (DNR and Corps)
Getting on the Water
Corps ramps include Doll Mountain, Ridgeway and Woodring Branch, among others. The only marina is the privately run Carters Lake Marina & Resort (706-276-4891). With so little shallow water, electronics help a lot here: DNR and the Corps have built 55 fish attractor sites, and their GPS coordinates are on DNR’s forecast page. For lake levels, boating and camping, call the Carters Lake project office at 706-334-2248.
2026 Fishing Outlook
Summarized from Georgia DNR fisheries biologists’ 2026 forecast for Carters Lake, based on their sampling.
| Species | Outlook | Where and how |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama bass | The dominant bass and the reason for the lake’s “magnum spot” reputation. Average 12 to 14 inches, and 5-pound-plus fish are still plentiful. | Deep rocky main-lake points in early spring; pea-gravel coves to spawn in April; deep brush and attractors at 20 to 40 feet in summer; points and woody cover in fall; 50 to 60 feet near shad on bluffs in winter. Finesse worms, topwater at dawn, Texas or Carolina rigs, football jigs, drop shots, spoons and float-and-fly. |
| Largemouth bass | Only about 5% of the bass, but good-sized: most around 2 pounds, with 6- to 7-pounders possible. | The backs of coves with submerged timber or fallen trees, the lake’s only real shallow habitat. Finesse worms in spring, big ribbon-tail worms later, pig-and-jig, live crayfish or minnows. |
| Striped bass | Modest numbers but plenty of trophies. Fish from 2021 and 2024 stockings run 20 to 30 inches; 2013 and 2014 year classes are now 30-plus inches and 15 to 25 pounds. | Best October through June. Hot spots: around the Doll Mountain ramp, Fisher Creek, the Woodring Branch cove and the “Big Island” in the Coosawattee arm; upper-lake points and timber in spring, deep humps in summer and fall. Free-lined or balloon-rigged live bait below 65°F, down lines at 30-plus feet above 65°F. |
| Hybrid bass | Modest, stable numbers. Most are 22 to 24 inches and 4 to 6 pounds, with a few over 10 pounds. | Near shad and alewife schools; near the dam in spring, 20 to 30 feet in summer, over 50 feet in fall and winter, and mid-lake humps year-round. Live trout or shad, umbrella rigs, crankbaits; stickbaits at night in summer. |
| Walleye | Above the long-term average thanks to strong stockings. Most are 16 to 22 inches, and the lake can grow walleye over 8 pounds. | Rocky banks above the Ridgeway ramp during the February to March run; timber and long points after the spawn; 30 to 50 feet in summer; rocky points mid-lake and up the Coosawattee arm in late fall, including the tip of Doll Mountain. Spoons, deep cranks, jigs with minnows or nightcrawlers, Lindy rigs; night fishing works. |
| Catfish | Average numbers of 1-pound channel cats; flatheads usually 3 to 5 pounds, occasionally over 20; a few blues. | Rocky cracks in the Coosawattee arm, dam riprap, river shoals in late winter, 20 to 30 feet off points in summer. Live or cut shad, livers and worms. |
| Crappie | Never abundant, but those present run half to three-quarters of a pound, some over 1.5 pounds. | Standing timber and the few docks in spring (try the timbered cove behind the Ridgeway ramp), deep brush the rest of the year. Small minnows under a float or slow jigs. |
Carters Lake
Carters LakeContact: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Carters Lake, 706-334-2248. Georgia DNR fisheries, Armuchee, 706-295-6102.
More nearby: Carters Lake recreation, Lake Allatoona, Lake Blue Ridge and all Georgia lakes.
Sources we checked
Facts in this guide were checked against the agencies and operators that run these places:
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