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East Tennessee · County seat Altamont

Fishing in Grundy County, Tennessee

Grundy County is thin on public water. This page lists what there is, then points at what is close.

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

What to bring

What to bring fishing in Grundy 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 checklistMusky checklistFish Finders comparedTrolling Motors comparedLithium Marine Batteries comparedShallow Water Anchors compared

Grundy County at a glance

Grundy County boat ramps and fishing access

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

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

The big water in Grundy

Main fishing waters in Grundy County

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

river · 67 miles to its confluence with the Caney Fork above Great Falls Dam; the scenic…

Collins River

The Collins is one of very few rivers in Tennessee with a good muskellunge population, which is the single most distinctive thing about fishing in Grundy County

muskellungesmallmouth bassrock basssunfish
river · rises at the junction of Laurel and Jay creeks near Elkhead in Grundy County · TWRA

Elk River headwaters

The Elk River genuinely begins in Grundy County, a good, true, cross-linkable fact, though the headwater reach here is small creek water, not the river it becomes at Tims Ford.

smallmouthrock basssunfish

What it looks like

Grundy County water

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

Collins River, TennesseeCollins RiverOpen the Collins River page →Brian Stansberry / CC BY 3.0
Elk River, Tennessee
Elk River, Tennesseedmtilley / CC BY 3.0
Norris Lake, TennesseeNorris LakeOpen the Norris Lake page →Brian Stansberry / CC BY 3.0Cherokee Lake, TennesseeCherokee LakeOpen the Cherokee Lake page →TVA Web Team / CC BY 2.0Watauga Lake, TennesseeWatauga LakeOpen the Watauga Lake page →Mark Larson from Atlanta, GA / CC BY-SA 2.0Clinch River, TennesseeClinch RiverOpen the Clinch River page →Brian Stansberry / CC BY 3.0

The ones nobody writes about

Small and out-of-the-way water in Grundy County

County lakes, park ponds, creeks and river stretches in Grundy County that never make a best-of list. Several of them fish better than the famous water on a busy weekend.

four man-made lakes ranging from 1 to 16 acres · 162-acre park site

Grundy Lakes

On the outskirts of Tracy City via Lakes Road off US-41

largemouth bassbluegillcatfish
state park lake · small

Grundy Lake #4

Confirmed on TWRA’s winter rainbow trout stocking schedule as “South Cumberland SP, Grundy Lake #4.” This is the county’s confirmed trout water and it is genuinely obscure.

stocked rainbow trout
creek

Flat Fork Creek

Reported as a stocked water in one TWRA listing; not confirmed on the winter schedule.

troutsunfish
creeks

Savage Creek and Big Creek

Gorge creeks within Savage Gulf; extremely difficult access down the gulf walls.

sunfishsmall bass
one-acre pond · 1 acre

Meadow Trail lake, South Cumberland visitor centre

Beside the visitor centre; personal boats not permitted.

breamsmall bass
creeks

Firescald Creek and Little Fiery Gizzard Creek

Scenic rather than productive.

sunfish

No boat, or your own boat

Bank fishing and launching in Grundy County

Fishing from the bank in Grundy County

Grundy Lakes, Tracy City, the paved 1.7-mile loop road with a walking lane circling the two largest lakes is the best bank access in the county and is close to fully accessible; the one-acre lake on the Meadow Trail near the South Cumberland visitor centre; Elk River headwater crossings near Elkhead; Collins River public road crossings downstream of the natural area boundary

Getting a boat on the water in Grundy County

Grundy County has effectively no boating. Personal boats are prohibited on the Grundy Lakes. Boats and fishing are both prohibited on the Collins Scenic River section inside the State Natural Area boundary.

The Collins becomes paddleable and fishable downstream in Warren County toward Great Falls Reservoir, which is where anyone wanting to fish for Collins River muskie actually needs to go. There are no marinas and no verified rental operations.

Two different trips

Visiting Grundy County versus fishing it like a local

Where visitors get pointed in Grundy County

Grundy Lakes and the historic coke ovens at Tracy City; Savage Gulf State Park (19,000 acres across Grundy and Sequatchie counties, a National Natural Landmark since 1971, with the Stone Door entrance and gift shop, three picnic areas and nine backcountry campgrounds); the Fiery Gizzard Trail, one of the best-known hiking trails in the Southeast; Grundy Forest State Natural Area; Beersheba Springs; Monteagle

Where Grundy County locals actually go

Grundy Lake #4 during the winter trout stocking, a small plateau lake stocked with rainbows that almost nobody outside Grundy County knows about. The two smaller of the four Grundy Lakes, away from the loop road and the swimming beach.

The one-acre Meadow Trail lake by the visitor centre. The Elk River headwaters near Elkhead, which is the genuine source of a river famous 60 miles downstream.

Rules and record fish

Limits and records for Grundy County water

Creel and length limits in Grundy County

Grundy Lake #4 at South Cumberland State Park is on TWRA’s winter rainbow trout stocking schedule, so trout regulations and a Tennessee trout licence apply there seasonally. Personal boats are not permitted on any of the Grundy Lakes.

Boats and fishing are both prohibited on the Collins Scenic River section within the State Natural Area boundary, this is a genuine closure, not a restriction, and it needs to be stated plainly because the Collins is otherwise the county’s headline water. Muskellunge on Tennessee waters generally carry a 1 per day limit at a 50-inch minimum; confirm the Collins River’s specific rule with TWRA before publishing, and note that the fishable Collins is in Warren County.

1 public boat launches in Grundy County, counted from TWRA’s own access database.

Questions people actually ask

Grundy County fishing questions

Where can I fish from the bank in Grundy County?

Grundy Lakes, Tracy City, the paved 1.7-mile loop road with a walking lane circling the two largest lakes is the best bank access in the county and is close to fully accessible.

How many public boat ramps are in Grundy County?

TWRA’s access database lists 1 boat launch in Grundy County. Most of them are on Collins River. Every one is listed further up this page with its owner and lane count.

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

The main species across Grundy County water are largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, bluegill, rock bass, muskellunge, catfish and rainbow trout. 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 Grundy 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. This matters in Grundy County, because there is trout water here.

What are the creel limits in Grundy County?

Grundy Lake #4 at South Cumberland State Park is on TWRA’s winter rainbow trout stocking schedule, so trout regulations and a Tennessee trout licence apply there seasonally. Personal boats are not permitted on any of the Grundy Lakes Boats and fishing are both prohibited on the Collins Scenic River section within the State Natural Area boundary, this is a genuine closure, not a restriction, and it needs to be stated plainly because the Collins is otherwise the county’s headline water Always check the current TWRA guide before you keep anything, because water-specific exceptions change.

Where can I buy bait and tackle in Grundy County?

No dedicated bait or tackle shop was found inside Grundy County. No bait shop, tackle shop or sporting goods retailer in Grundy County was verified by name, and given the county’s population it is plausible there is none. Nearest Walmart Supercenter: Manchester (Coffee Co., ~35 min from Altamont) and Winchester (Franklin Co., ~35 min). Nearest Academy Sports: Mur

Where do locals fish in Grundy County?

Grundy Lake #4 during the winter trout stocking, a small plateau lake stocked with rainbows that almost nobody outside Grundy County knows about. The two smaller of the four Grundy Lakes, away from the loop road and the swimming beach. The one-acre Meadow Trail lake by the visitor centre. The Elk River headwaters near Elkhead, which is the genuine source of a river famous 60 miles downstream.

If the county comes up short

The nearest real fishing to Grundy County

Grundy County is genuinely thin for anglers despite being rich in scenery. The fishable Collins River is downstream in Warren County, roughly 30–40 minutes north of Altamont. Great Falls Reservoir (2,110 acres, TVA, 1916) with its Collins River muskie fishery is about 45 minutes north via Rock Island State Park. Tims Ford Lake is about an hour southwest. Woods Reservoir about 50 minutes west. Normandy Reservoir about an hour northwest.

Nickajack and the Tennessee River are about an hour south. The honest framing for a Grundy page: superb hiking and scenery, four small stocked lakes you can walk around, one trout water in winter, and a drive for anything else.

Grundy County water holds largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, bluegill, rock bass.

The water itself

Lakes and rivers in Grundy County

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

RiverCollins River2 access points in Grundy County, 7 in totalSee the spots →

Conditions

Grundy County river levels and trout stocking

River levelsElk River level todayUSGS flow, gauge height and the seven-day trend.Open →TroutTrout stocking in Grundy CountyTWRA stocks Collins River, Grundy Lake #4 / Fiery Gizzard SP. 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 Grundy 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 Grundy 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 McMinnvilleCenter Hill Lake, Collins RiverSee the spots →24 access points within 30 milesFishing near WinchesterTims Ford Lake, Woods ReservoirSee the spots →24 access points within 30 milesFishing near TullahomaNormandy Lake, Tims Ford LakeSee the spots →24 access points within 30 milesFishing near Soddy-DaisyChickamauga Lake, North Chickamauga CreekSee the spots →

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

Keep looking

Counties next to Grundy

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

Next county overSequatchie CountySequatchie RiverSee the spots →Next county overWarren CountyBarren Fork River, Collins RiverSee the spots →Next county overVan Buren CountyGreat Falls LakeSee the spots →Next county overCoffee CountyNormandy Lake, Duck RiverSee the spots →Next county overFranklin CountyTims Ford Lake, Woods ReservoirSee the spots →

Keep going

More Grundy 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 Grundy County right now: Grundy County conditions.