This Dale Hollow smallmouth, and others like it, are the reason hard-core anglers brave winter cold to fish Tennessee's premier brown bass fishery. Photo by Larry Self.

There's nothing like a smallmouth bass. And the best news is you're living right in the middle of one of the best states to chase brown fish. From lakes to moving waters, Tennessee is one serious smallmouth destination.

Anglers travel from abroad to catch the smallies we have from one end of the state to the other. If you haven't taken your chance at hanging into a healthy smallmouth bass, an opportunity is nearby, regardless of where you live in Tennessee.

As we do each year, let's take a look at the best brown fish opportunities the Volunteer State has to offer.

TENNESSEE'S TOP SMALLMOUTH LAKES
You can't say it wasn't expected, but we do have a little bit of a shake-up in the top smallmouth lakes across the state. You can now add Tims Ford Reservoir to the list of top destinations -- and it's been a long time coming.

George Scholten, the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency's (TWRA) reservoir and river fisheries coordinator, said he would have to say the top brown fish lakes now are Dale Hollow, Tims Ford, South Holston and Pickwick reservoirs in that order.

Dale Hollow continues to provide excellent smallmouth fishing, with high catch rates and quality fish. Scholten said their survey this spring showed high numbers and an excellent size distribution at the legendary lake. In addition, in 2006, South Holston had some of the highest percentages of quality and preferred size smallmouth bass of any of the fisheries in East Tennessee.

About Dale Hollow, where do you start? So much has been said and so much has been written about the granddaddy of all smallmouth lakes, that it's hard to find more words to describe it. Dale Hollow is best experienced for yourself. When you point the truck and boat in that direction, keep one thing in mind. Fishing Dale Hollow isn't about numbers -- sure, there are days that you can boat more than average, but for the most part, Dale is about quality. The trophy smallmouth regulations in place there for the last few years have made it even more of a quality destination.

Whether you fish at night in the summer when big brown fish jerk the rod out of your hand in the black darkness or face winter's bitter bite, there's nowhere else in the country that equals the feeling you get when casting a lure into these famed waters. The nighttime smallmouth fishing with jigs and spinnerbaits is unrivaled for big brown fish. Couple that with the excellent float-n-fly fishing from December through March with 4-pound-test line, and you have a recipe for year-round success with the springtime and fall opportunities tacked in between the nighttime and winter fishing.

South Holston Lake should be called Little Dale Hollow. Like Dale, South Holston can be tough, but it can be a smallmouth bonanza at times, too. No one is shocked in the winter to see tournaments won on jigging spoons or the float-n-fly with winning weights over 25 pounds. At less than a third the size of Dale, this small-package lake contains a lot of smallmouth dynamite.

The grub-and-jig fishing after dark is worth the drive from anywhere, and the late season and winter float-n-fly action can be as good as it gets. But South Holston can also humble you on any given day. You might boat 30 smallies in one trip and zero on the next. However, trust me, on those days that they're biting, the numbers and the occasional 5-pound-plus brown bass are hard to beat.