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Madison County, Tennessee

Where to Buy or Rent Fishing Gear in Madison County

Bait, tackle, rental boats and licenses in and around Madison County.

What to bring

Tackle for Madison County water

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:

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

Closest first

Bait and tackle shops in and near Madison County

The nearest bait, tackle and marina stores to Madison County’s water, each with its own page, directions and phone number.

Lexington · about 16 milesBeech Lake MarineTackle and bait for Henderson County water. Call ahead out of season, winter hours are short.Directions and phone →Laurel Hill · about 27 milesLaurel Hill Bait & DeliLive bait, so this is the stop for minnows, crickets and nightcrawlers.Directions and phone →Parsons · about 33 milesPerryville MarinaMarina store. Fuel, ice, terminal tackle and live bait when the lake is running.Directions and phone →Gleason · about 36 milesWorms Sporting GoodsSporting goods. Rods, reels, line and a licence counter.Directions and phone →Crump · about 40 milesGardner’s Bait & TackleLive bait, so this is the stop for minnows, crickets and nightcrawlers.Directions and phone →Savannah · about 42 milesHurst-Young Wholesale Bait IncLive bait, so this is the stop for minnows, crickets and nightcrawlers.Directions and phone →Savannah · about 42 milesLonnie’s Sporting GoodsSporting goods. Rods, reels, line and a licence counter.Directions and phone →Savannah · about 42 milesPickwick Landing State Park Marina storeMarina store. Fuel, ice, terminal tackle and live bait when the lake is running.Directions and phone →Savannah · about 43 milesWal-Mart SupercenterOpen late, sells licences at the counter, and carries terminal tackle and line.Directions and phone →

Buy it at the ramp

Marinas and bait at the water in Madison County

Access points in Madison County that TWRA records as carrying bait, rentals or marina services. Buying where you launch is the cheapest way to avoid a wasted trip.

Free5 out of 5facilitiesBoat Launch · TWRAAccess Area 1Lake GrahamOff Hurts Chapel Rd, 5 miles east of Jackson, TN2 ramps, 2 lanesfishing piercanoe / kayak landingrestroomsrentalsaccessible parkingDirections and detail →35.63111, -88.72353

The big stores

Chain stores near Madison County

You do not have to drive far for a full tackle wall. Distances here are straight line, so the drive is longer.

Jackson, TennesseeAcademy Sports + OutdoorsChain sporting goods. Rods, reels, line, terminal tackle and a licence counter.Open in maps →

Before you cast

Buying a Tennessee fishing license in Madison County

Buy online at gooutdoorstennessee.com and the license is on your phone in a minute, nothing is mailed. Over the counter, the Madison County Clerk in Jackson sells them, along with most Walmart stores and licensed agents in the county.

Anyone 13 and over needs a license to fish Madison County water, and under 13 is free. If you live in Madison County, the $10 county-of-residence license covers you on Madison County water, though not for trout.

All license prices and rules

Gear questions

Buying and renting gear in Madison County

Do I need a fishing license to fish in Madison 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.

Does my Tennessee license cover trout in Madison 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 Madison County, but it is worth knowing before you drive to a tailwater elsewhere in the state.

Where can I buy bait and tackle in Madison County?

No independent tackle shop verified in Madison County this session. Jackson is the regional retail hub: Academy Sports and Walmart Supercenters carry licences, bait and tackle, and Jackson is where anglers from Chester, Henderson, Crockett and Haywood counties come to buy. Bass Pro Shops, Memphis, roughly 1 hr 20 min west. Do not name a local shop without checking it first, Jackson has had independent tackle stores come and go.. There is a fuller list on the Madison County gear page, including anywhere renting boats or kayaks and the nearest big-box store.

Can I buy a fishing license in Madison County?

Yes. County clerks, most Walmart stores and licensed agents in Madison County sell them over the counter, and gooutdoorstennessee.com sells them 24 hours a day. The license is digital or printable, nothing is mailed.

Do I need a boat to fish Madison County?

No. Madison County has 1 public fishing pier and bank access at several of its parks and river crossings.

What it looks like

What Madison County water looks like

The lakes and rivers you are buying gear for.

Forked Deer River, TennesseeForked Deer RiverOpen the Forked Deer River page →Malepheasant at en.wikipedia / Public domainReelfoot Lake, TennesseeReelfoot LakeOpen the Reelfoot Lake page →User:JeremyA / CC BY-SA 2.5Mississippi River, TennesseeMississippi RiverOpen the Mississippi River page →Ceptember / CC BY-SA 4.0Pickwick Lake, TennesseePickwick LakeOpen the Pickwick Lake page →Kbh3rd / CC BY-SA 3.0Obion River, TennesseeObion RiverOpen the Obion River page →David.k.hochreiter / CC BY-SA 3.0
Tennessee River, Tennessee
Tennessee River, TennesseeScott Basford / CC BY-SA 3.0

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

Where to fish it

Now find the water in Madison County

Got what you need? The Madison County fishing spots page has every ramp, pier, creek and lake in the county, with directions to each one and the limits that apply on it.

Madison County fishing spotsBack to the county page

Keep going

More Madison 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