Graham supports channel cats, and also some big blues (up to 64 pounds, which is the lake record) and a few flatheads, Clyatt said. A healthy threadfin shad population keeps the big fish well fed. If you and your family haven't yet invested in a boat, this is the place for you: "There are lots of areas on the bank here with access to deep water," Clyatt reported.

Boaters catch their share of summer cats by dunking large minnows 15 feet deep along the creek channels.

Lake Graham is five miles east of Jackson; to reach it via Interstate 40 from Memphis, take exit 85, turn right onto Parkway, left on Bendix, left again on Cotton Grove Road and follow the signs. From the opposite direction on I-40, take exit 93 onto U.S. Highway 412 and follow it to Cotton Grove Road. For more information, contact Clyatt's concession store at (731) 422-0950.

GLENN SPRINGS LAKE
If you dream of battling giant catfish without venturing onto major rivers or impoundments, this western Tipton County lake is just your place.

"It's not out of the ordinary to catch 30- to 50-pounders here," according to Ann Clyatt (yes, she's the wife of Graham Lake's concessionaire William Clyatt). "I have a bulletin board full of pictures, including some who've caught catfish up to 60 pounds."

While many of those leviathans succumbed to jugs baited with turkey or chicken livers during the summer, anglers with rods and reels take their share, too.

Spring-fed and clear, Glenn Springs covers 310 acres and was opened to the public in 1995. While the upper end tends to be shallow, the steep shoreline drops off as deep as 35 feet. Although there's not much room for shore-bound anglers, the facilities here make up for it, with three fishing piers that total an incredible 740 feet long and people regularly catch limits from them, Clyatt said.

Boaters and jug-fishermen tend to focus on the dam area, but freshly fallen timber from last winter provides shoreline cover worth a few casts, too. To reach Glenn Springs from Memphis, take U.S. Highway 51 to Millington, turn left on Wilkinsville Road and follow it to Drummonds Road, where you'll take another left. Continue on Drummonds Road to Glenn Springs Road, take a right, and then take a right on Grimes Road. For fishing updates and other details, you can reach the lake concession store at (901) 835-5253.

WHITEVILLE LAKE
This 158-acre northwestern Hardemann County impoundment is relatively shallow and silty compared with the other lakes we've covered, but it still produces average-sized catches of blue and channel cats, thanks to "stocking and management by the fisheries crew," according to Gabbard.

No special lake permits are required here, and you'll find the standard amenities, including a ramp, fishing pier, picnic area and so forth. Whether you cast from shore or a boat, turkey livers, catalpa worms and night crawlers are your best bets here. The lake lies two miles south of Whiteville off U.S. Highway 64. For more information, call the TWRA Region 1 office at (731) 423-5725.

HERB PARSONS LAKE Thanks to a walking trail that encircles this lake in western Fayette County, it's our No. 1 destination for bank-fishermen.