Photo by Kevin Yokum.

A relatively few anglers know how good Tennessee waters are when it comes to walleye and sauger fishing. Most anglers think it’s necessary to head north for the really good action. However, nothing could be farther from the truth. There’s a good place to walleye fish within an easy day’s drive of nearly everyone, and you don’t have to leave Tennessee to get there.

Let’s take a close look at five of the best.

But keep in mind that the fishing in all of these venues, and the opinions of the state officials, guides and local anglers, are dependent upon Mother Nature. The drought and sweltering heat of 2007 has hit Tennessee especially hard. Water levels are down nearly everywhere. Water temperatures are up nearly everywhere. Many reservoirs are faced with ramp closings.

All this affects fishing. If water levels rise over the 2007-2008 winter and reach near normal levels, the fishing should be close to normal in 2008. If water levels continue to drop, all bets are off.

DALE HOLLOW LAKE
According to most experts, Dale Hollow Lake, located in northern Clay County near the Kentucky border, is one heck of a walleye fishery.

“Dale Hollow is a super walleye fishery -- period,” said David Duvall, retired director of the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Foundation (TWRF). “It’s a clear-water, upland reservoir with tremendous grass, a good forage base and lots of deep water. It’s probably the best place in the state.”

He continued on to explain that Dale Hollow walleyes follow predictable travel and feeding patterns, even given the low water conditions the lake faced in 2007. “Like most game fish, Dale Hollow walleyes hold in deep-water sanctuaries over the winter months and then move shallow in the spring,” he said.

Most years, that movement will start in March and end with the spawn during the full moon in April. After that, they’ll head back out toward deep water for the summer before traveling shallow again in the fall for a brief feeding binge. Their travel patterns and holding areas are controlled almost exclusively by weed growth and alewives.

“A lot of anglers don’t realize how much weed growth is in this lake,” he said. “It’s not just around the shore. There are hundreds of acres of vegetation from shallow water out into depths of 30 feet or more. The walleyes follow the weed breaks and will usually hold anywhere there’s a little green growth in the early spring.”