FORT LOUDOUN LAKE
One year after qualifying for and fishing the Bass Masters Classic, pro angler Wesley Strader from Rockwood still calls East Tennessee lakes his home waters. In between road trips fishing the FLW Tour and Everstart Series, Strader gets on lakes like Watts Bar and Fort Loudoun as time allows.

There are days that Strader said Fort Loudoun could be considered a numbers lake for smallies, but for the most part, it's a quality brown fish destination. By the numbers, you could boat as many as 10 to 15 smallies per outing. What counts for most smallmouth diehards are the days that produce the big boys as opposed to numbers of average brown fish. The days of four or five smallies in the 5-pound class are treasured, and Strader said they happen on Loudoun in the month of February.

Of the underutilized smallmouth waters we're profiling, Fort Loudoun probably has the most color in February. Strader said early February calls for hair jigs on main channel structure, but as the water starts to warm in midmonth and later on, Loudoun is a crankbait lake. The stained conditions and water temperatures nearing the upper 40s make the lake's smallmouth bass susceptible to Bandit 200 Series crankbaits as well as the Flat-Shad Little PT. These baits run about 9 to 10 feet down and are suited for fishing February's offerings.

Strader said smallies are mostly on main channel areas or up the lake a little ways where it narrows to a river situation. The good smallmouth fishing in February is best on the lower half of the lake. From the dam on up the Tennessee River just before you see the Knoxville skyline is where Strader said to put your smallmouth fishing emphasis. Access from the lower end can be found at Fort Loudoun/Tellico Canal Ramp adjoining those two bodies of water. On up the lake just west of Knoxville, anglers can utilize the Concord Ramp to explore that remaining section identified by Strader as quality smallmouth waters.

What he's looking for in his big smallmouth hunt are transition-type banks. We're talking about banks that change from rock to mud or even pea gravel to a flat. Somewhere in that transition, he said you'd find them with a crankbait. Concentrate on long, tapering points vs. the more winterlike ones with a 45-degree angle. Skip over the vertical structure and start keying on areas near flats with more of a slope and pinpoint transition banks.

The smallies aren't quite ready to spawn, but they're thinking about it and moving slightly shallower. Crawfish are also starting to molt and make an appearance. That makes crankbaits in crawfish color imitations deadly in Strader's eyes, and he's seen what they can do in February. He said with a laugh that there's not a specific color to use in February other than a crawfish pattern. The "spring craw" color or those with root beer and chartreuse highlights are hard to beat in Loudon's stained water.

TELLICO LAKE
Tellico Lake gets a lot of fishing pressure, but local angler and smallmouth fanatic Wesley Bivens said it's not specifically for smallmouth bass. Bivens said he's been catching brown fish on Tellico since they dammed it up back in the mid-1970s. That's a lot of water covered in nearly 30 years. Tellico like Watauga Lake, another lake on our overlooked review, can be tough to fish and tough on anglers with its clear water. Tellico may be an adjacent neighbor to Fort Loudoun, but the water clarity differs greatly.

Clear water calls for a different strategy, a strategy Bivens said could lead to catching a trophy smallmouth. He went on to say Tellico has a huge number of big smallmouths, and February is a key month to catch a big fish. He's planning to put more than his share of pressure on them with the Float-N-Fly system this winter. To do so, Bivens said there's not a place on the lake he'd rather fish than around the Lauderdale area. From the Lauderdale boat ramp, he said a 10-minute boat ride in either direction would put you where the big smallies live. The lower end of the lake is what he calls primed with opportunity.

The boat access at the Fort Loudoun/Tellico Canal Ramp will also keep you close to the action on the lower section of Tellico and the adjacent Back Creek section of the lake. Bivens said the top smallmouth structure and cover in February is all related to the main channel. The first bluff right out of the Lauderdale Ramp is as good a starting place as you'll find anywhere on the lake. Bivens said there are just not a lot of hollows anglers target on Dale Hollow in February and March, but there are some very good points and bluffs.