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Middle Tennessee · County seat Lewisburg

Fishing in Marshall County, Tennessee

Duck River. Where to launch, where to fish from the bank, and where to buy what you forgot.

Find fishing spots3 public access pointsFind gear & baitBait shops, tackle, rentals, licences

What to bring

What to bring fishing in Marshall County

Three picks from the largemouth bass checklist that work for the fish here. Affiliate links: buying through them pays this site a small commission at no extra cost to you.

RodUgly Stik GX2 7 ft medium-heavy casting rodStiff enough to set a hook in grass, tough enough to live in a truck bed.Shop on Amazon →Why it is on the list
ReelAbu Garcia Black Max baitcasting reelAn inexpensive baitcaster that casts cleanly once the brakes are set.Shop on Amazon →Why it is on the list
Soft plasticZoom Trick WormThe Tennessee standard on a Texas rig or weightless along docks and grass edges.Shop on Amazon →Why it is on the list
Full largemouth bass checklist (11 items)All gear checklists

Spending more? The bigger purchases, compared side by side:

Smallmouth Bass checklistBluegill and Panfish checklistCatfish checklistFish Finders comparedTrolling Motors comparedLithium Marine Batteries comparedShallow Water Anchors compared

Marshall County at a glance

Marshall County boat ramps and fishing access

Marshall County has 3 public fishing access points: 2 boat ramps and 1 kayak launch, on 2 lakes, rivers and creeks.

2boat ramps
1kayak launches
2lakes, rivers and creeks

The big water in Marshall

Main fishing waters in Marshall County

What each of these is actually known for, and what you can expect to catch.

free-flowing river, 284 mi total, the longest river entirely within Tennessee · drains much of…

Duck River

This is the county’s headline water and the page should lead with the biodiversity claim: the Duck is described as the most biologically diverse river in North America, with over 50 freshwater mussel species and 151 fish species. Below Henry Horton the pools get larger and the catfishing is the strength, with fish averaging around 18 inches.

largemouthsmallmouth and spotted bassrock basschannel and flathead catfish

What it looks like

Marshall County water

Photographs of the water this page covers. Every picture opens that water’s own page. Drag or swipe to see the rest.

Duck River, TennesseeDuck RiverOpen the Duck River page →SBaker43 / CC BY-SA 3.0Center Hill Lake, TennesseeCenter Hill LakeOpen the Center Hill Lake page →Tyler White / Public domainOld Hickory Lake, TennesseeOld Hickory LakeOpen the Old Hickory Lake page →Brian Stansberry / CC BY 3.0Cumberland River, TennesseeCumberland RiverOpen the Cumberland River page →U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, photographer not s / Public domainTims Ford Lake, TennesseeTims Ford LakeOpen the Tims Ford Lake page →Geobeedude / CC BY-SA 3.0Cordell Hull Lake, TennesseeCordell Hull LakeOpen the Cordell Hull Lake page →United States Army Corps of Engineers image / Public domain

No boat, or your own boat

Bank fishing and launching in Marshall County

Fishing from the bank in Marshall County

Henry Horton State Park, Chapel Hill (1,552 acres on the Duck), extensive bank access, plus the historic Wilhoite Mill site. New Lake, Lewisburg, bank and pier fishing from the walking trail.

Duck River bridge crossings on US-431, SR-99 and SR-272. Note the operative access rule on the Duck: on private frontage you may legally fish while floating, but wading requires landowner permission.

Getting a boat on the water in Marshall County

No marina. New Lake has a boat ramp. Henry Horton State Park lists canoe access and paddle rentals and runs guided kayak float trips on the Duck weekly through the summer (children 13 and under must be in a tandem kayak with an adult).

The Duck is Class I here, flat, slow, occasional shoals, best run in spring through early summer before it drops.

Two different trips

Visiting Marshall County versus fishing it like a local

Where visitors get pointed in Marshall County

Henry Horton State Park, lodge, cabins, restaurant, golf course, trap and skeet range, and a Duck River Education Room in the visitor centre with two large freshwater aquariums showing the river’s own species and a touchscreen map of its access points. Lewisburg as the home of the Tennessee Walking Horse breed registry. New Lake. The Duck River itself.

Where Marshall County locals actually go

New Lake, 47 acres of public water inside the county seat that essentially nobody outside Marshall County has heard of. The Rock Creek and Globe Creek mouths where they enter the Duck.

The Duck River reach immediately below the Henry Horton park boundary, where the big pools start and the pressure drops.

Rules and record fish

Limits and records for Marshall County water

Creel and length limits in Marshall County

Duck River, black bass 5 per day combined with no length limits, which is a genuine local exception worth stating plainly. Rock bass 20 per day. Catfish: no limit on fish under 34 inches, only one per day over 34 inches.

The stocked-trout reach of the Duck is the Normandy tailwater in Coffee/Bedford counties, well upstream of Marshall, so the 7-trout rule does not apply here.

State record fish from Marshall County water

The Tennessee (and world) record yellow bass, 2 lb 9 oz, John T. Chappell, 27 February 1998, is credited to “Duck River” with no county specified. Marshall County cannot claim it, the Duck runs through seven counties. Present it as a Duck River record if you use it at all.

2 public boat launches in Marshall County, counted from TWRA’s own access database.

Questions people actually ask

Marshall County fishing questions

Where can I fish from the bank in Marshall County?

Henry Horton State Park, Chapel Hill (1,552 acres on the Duck), extensive bank access, plus the historic Wilhoite Mill site. New Lake, Lewisburg, bank and pier fishing from the walking trail. Duck River bridge crossings on US-431, SR-99 and SR-272. Note the operative access rule on the Duck: on private frontage you may legally fish while floating, but wading requires landowner permission.

How many public boat ramps are in Marshall County?

TWRA’s access database lists 2 boat launches in Marshall County. Most of them are on Duck River. Every one is listed further up this page with its owner and lane count.

Do I need a fishing license to fish in Marshall County?

Yes. Anyone 13 and over needs a Tennessee fishing license, and there is no license required for ages 12 and under. A resident annual combination hunt and fish license is $33, a resident one-day all-species license is $11, and a non-resident three-day all-species license is $40. Tennessee has no non-resident one-day license. Buy online at gooutdoorstennessee.com, from a county clerk or from a licensed agent. Licenses are digital, nothing arrives in the post.

What fish can you catch in Marshall County?

The main species across Marshall County water are largemouth bass, spotted bass, sunfish, rock bass, catfish and redhorse. Each water body on the fishing spots page lists what it is actually known for, which is not always the same thing.

Does my Tennessee license cover trout in Marshall County?

Not automatically. The $33 resident combination hunt and fish license does not cover trout, and neither does the county-of-residence license or the cheaper no-trout short-term options. Those need the $21 annual trout supplemental added on. The Sportsman licenses and every non-resident all-species license already include trout. There is no designated trout water in Marshall County, but it is worth knowing before you drive to a tailwater elsewhere in the state.

What are the creel limits in Marshall County?

Duck River, black bass 5 per day combined with no length limits, which is a genuine local exception worth stating plainly. Rock bass 20 per day Catfish: no limit on fish under 34 inches, only one per day over 34 inches Always check the current TWRA guide before you keep anything, because water-specific exceptions change.

Where can I buy bait and tackle in Marshall County?

No tackle or bait shop verified in Marshall County.Walmart Supercenter, Lewisburg, for licences and basic tackle. Academy Sports in Columbia (~25 min west) or Murfreesboro (~40 min northeast).. There is a fuller list on the Marshall County gear page, including anywhere renting boats or kayaks and the nearest big-box store.

Where do locals fish in Marshall County?

New Lake, 47 acres of public water inside the county seat that essentially nobody outside Marshall County has heard of. The Rock Creek and Globe Creek mouths where they enter the Duck. The Duck River reach immediately below the Henry Horton park boundary, where the big pools start and the pressure drops.

The water itself

Lakes and rivers in Marshall County

Each of these has a page of its own covering the whole water, not just the Marshall County end of it, with every public access point on it and what it holds.

RiverDuck River2 access points in Marshall County, 26 in totalSee the spots →

Marshall County water holds largemouth bass, spotted bass, sunfish, rock bass.

Conditions

Marshall County river levels and trout stocking

River levelsDuck River level todayUSGS flow, gauge height and the seven-day trend.Open →TroutTrout stocking in Marshall CountyTWRA stocks Big Rock Greenway. Dates are on the stocking schedule.Open →

Statewide limits: 5 black bass, 15 crappie at 10 inches, 2 stripers at 15 inches, 7 trout.

About this list

Where the Marshall County access list comes from

The 3 access points above come from the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency’s public access database, which is why each one names the agency that owns or manages it. A state or TVA ramp is usually free. A Corps of Engineers site, a state park ramp or a marina often is not.

The waters, species and local notes are researched separately, county by county, against TWRA’s own reservoir pages, TVA, the US Army Corps of Engineers and Tennessee State Parks.

Ramps close for repairs, gravel roads wash out and regulations change. Treat anything here as a starting point and call ahead if you are driving a long way for it.

By town instead

Towns near Marshall County

These pages measure from the middle of town rather than the county line, which is usually the number you actually care about.

24 access points within 30 milesFishing near ColumbiaDuck River, Harpeth RiverSee the spots →24 access points within 30 milesFishing near ShelbyvilleDuck River, Normandy LakeSee the spots →24 access points within 30 milesFishing near FranklinHarpeth River, J. Percy Priest LakeSee the spots →24 access points within 30 milesFishing near MurfreesboroJ. Percy Priest Lake, West Fork Stones RiverSee the spots →

Tennessee sells no non-resident one-day fishing license. The three-day is the shortest option.

Keep looking

Counties next to Marshall

Fish do not respect county lines. These are the nearest counties to Marshall with public water of their own. Each one opens its own page.

Next county overMaury CountyDuck River, Bluecat LakeSee the spots →Next county overBedford CountyDuck River, Bedford LakeSee the spots →Next county overWilliamson CountyHarpeth RiverSee the spots →Next county overGiles CountyRichland Creek, Elk RiverSee the spots →Next county overLincoln CountyElk RiverSee the spots →

Keep going

More Marshall County water, and who fishes it

Every guide and charter on this site is listed by the water they run, so you can call the captain direct. Licences, limits and the state record list are one click away too.

Guides by waterLicence and limits

Weather alerts, power outages and road closures in Marshall County right now: Marshall County conditions.