Fishing on Old Hickory Lake

Posted by admin on May 1, 2013

There have been numerous questions and concerns raised since the May 2010 flood on what affect it played on the fishery here at Old Hickory Lake. However, after a brief phone conversation with TWRA's Region II Fishery Program Manager Todd St. John, the immediate future for the state of the Old Hickory Lake fishery is looking bright. No matter what game fish you seek out, there are several reasons to be optimistic about the coming years.

Both crappie and largemouth bass had strong spawn classes relative to the coming year's harvestable rate. What does this mean? Well, largemouth bass take about four years to become a harvestable fish. Therefore, as we approach future years, we should see an abundant harvestable rate after successful 2007 and 2008 spawns. And with crappie having a faster growth rate combined with the good recent spawns, crappie fishermen have plenty to look forward to as well.

The following information on the stocking program on Old Hickory Lake should raise plenty of optimism for the near future. In 2010, there were 146,000 walleye and 63,000 sauger stocked. Then in 2011, 362,000 striped bass were stocked. This helped to raise the Old Hickory Lake distribution to 16 striped bass per acre well over the target of 10 per acre. Old Hickory Lake's fishing for the near future is looking bright, but we must remember that the resources of the lake are ours to protect. Only keep what you can eat or better yet practice catch and release. As with any activity on the water be safe and wear your life jacket. Good luck out there!

Discover more at Old Hickory Recreation Site