Clarksville · Montgomery County

Fishing Near Clarksville, Tennessee

Q: Where can I buy bait near Clarksville?

Tailwater Marine & Tackle, Riverside Drive, Clarksville — full-service marine dealer. The Tackle Box, Clarksville — bass lure specialist. Nock Life Bowfishing, Clarksville — bowfishing equipment. Clarksville Marina at Liberty Park — rentals and storage. Clarksville Bowfishing Charters — guided night bowfishing. Academy Sports and multiple Walmart Supercenters in Clarksville. The Montgomery County Bass Club, affiliated with the B.A.S.S. Tennessee Federation Nation, runs a tournament almost every week for both boaters and non-boaters, which is a genuinely useful thing to put on a city page.. The Clarksville gear page has the rest, plus rental and licenses.

Lake Barkley, Red River, Cheatham Lake. Every public launch and pier within about 30 minutes of Clarksville, and where to buy what you forgot on the way.

Find fishing spots57 public access points within 35 miles Find gear & bait5 bait and tackle shops within 40 miles

Closest first

Every public access within reach of Clarksville

From TWRA’s own access database, with a directions link on each one. Distances are straight-line from Clarksville, so the drive is always a bit longer.

Tap a pin for the spot page and directions. Open the full Tennessee fishing map.

Lake Barkley

What to bring

What to bring fishing near Clarksville

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 checklist Crappie checklist Bluegill and Panfish checklist Fish Finders compared Trolling Motors compared Lithium Marine Batteries compared Shallow Water Anchors compared

Measured from town

Where to fish near Clarksville

The water within reach of Clarksville is Lake Barkley, Cheatham Lake, Red River and 4 more.

Everything on this page is sorted by straight-line distance from Clarksville, not by which county it sits in. Several of the closest spots to Clarksville are across a county line, which is exactly the kind of thing a county-by-county list hides.

What it looks like

The water around Clarksville

Photographs of the lakes and rivers on this page. Drag or swipe for more. Every picture opens that water’s own page.

Lake BarkleyOpen the Lake Barkley page →George Green, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers / Public domain

Cumberland RiverOpen the Cumberland River page →U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, photographer not s / Public domain

Lake BarkleyOpen the Lake Barkley page →George Green, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers / Public domain

Cumberland RiverOpen the Cumberland River page →Brian Stansberry / CC BY 3.0

Lake BarkleyOpen the Lake Barkley page →United States. Army. Corps Of Engineers. Nashvil / Public domain

Cumberland RiverOpen the Cumberland River page →Pub. by Southern Latex Co., Nashville, Tenn. “Ti / Public domain

No boat

Bank fishing near Clarksville

3 public fishing piers within reach of Clarksville. No boat needed for any of them.

Free4 out of 5facilitiesBoat Launch · CityMcGregor ParkLake Barkley · 0 mi from ClarksvilleRiverside Dr1 ramp, 1 lanefishing piercanoe / kayak landingaccessible parkingDirections and detail →36.53105, -87.36501 Free4 out of 5facilitiesBoat Launch · CityTrice’s LandingLake Barkley · 1 mi from Clarksville1 ramp, 1 lanefishing piercanoe / kayak landingaccessible parkingDirections and detail →36.54102, -87.38122 Free3.5 out of 5facilitiesBoat Launch · USACEBluff Creek Access AreaCheatham Lake · 23 mi from Clarksville1 ramp, 1 lanefishing piercanoe / kayak landingaccessible parkingDirections and detail →36.27990, -87.09910

Shoreline access in Montgomery County

Port Royal State Historic Park, bank access to the Red River. Billy Dunlop Park, bank access to the Red River. Smith Branch Recreation Area, bank access to the Cumberland plus a boat ramp. Liberty Park, the 10-acre pond plus river frontage. McGregor Park and the Clarksville Riverwalk on the Cumberland. Trice Landing Park, near where the Red meets the Cumberland. McCormac Landing at Lock B, southern Montgomery County. Dunbar Cave State Park, Swan Lake shoreline.

What is in there

Fish and limits around Clarksville

Water around Clarksville holds largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, crappie, sunfish, rock bass, white bass, sauger, catfish and gar.

Fort Campbell requires a post fishing permit in addition to a state licence, and non-military access is conditional, check current installation rules before directing anyone there. Cumberland River in the Barkley pool: crappie 20 per day with a 10-inch minimum, bass 5 per day with a 15-inch minimum, catfish unlimited under 34 inches with one over. Note the Barkley pool schedule differs from the TVA lakes, it reaches full pool around 1 May and recedes to winter levels after 4 July. Sauger fishing below Cheatham Dam is a December-through-March pattern.

From TWRA’s statewide creel and length limits, last updated 4 August 2026. Water-specific exceptions change, so check the current guide before keeping a fish.

Weather

Clarksville fishing weather and wind forecast

Wed, Sep 30 night

66°F

Partly Cloudy

Wind SSE 5 mph

0% chance of rain

Thu, Oct 1

93°F

Mostly Sunny

Wind S 5 to 15 mph

0% chance of rain

Thu, Oct 1 night

71°F

Partly Cloudy then Chance Rain Showers

Wind S 5 to 10 mph

29% chance of rain

Fri, Oct 2

82°F

Showers And Thunderstorms

Wind WSW 5 to 10 mph

78% chance of rain

Fri, Oct 2 night

62°F

Showers And Thunderstorms Likely

Wind NNE 5 mph

56% chance of rain

Sat, Oct 3

75°F

Rain Showers Likely

Wind NE 5 to 10 mph

60% chance of rain

National Weather Service forecast, updated 6:51 PM, Wed, Sep 30.

Sun and moon, Thu, Oct 8

Sunrise6:51 AMCDT

Sunset6:24 PMCDT

First light6:25 AMLast light 6:50 PM

Daylight11 hr 33 minSunrise to sunset

MoonWaning crescent8% lit. New moon in 3 days

8 public boat launches in Montgomery County, counted from TWRA’s own access database.

Questions people ask

Fishing near Clarksville: common questions

Where is the closest place to fish to Clarksville?

McGregor Park on Lake Barkley, right in Clarksville, Montgomery County. It is a boat launch with a fishing pier.

How many fishing spots are near Clarksville?

There are 40 public access points within about 30 miles of Clarksville, 30 of them boat launches, across 7 named waters.

Can I fish near Clarksville without a boat?

Yes. McGregor Park on Lake Barkley has a fishing pier and is right in Clarksville. There are 3 piers within range in total.

Do I need a license to fish near Clarksville?

Yes, anyone 13 and over. 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 sells no non-resident one-day license. Note the $33 combination license does not cover trout, that needs the $21 supplemental.

What is the best lake near Clarksville?

Lake Barkley carries the most public access within reach of Clarksville, followed by Cheatham Lake. Which one fishes best depends entirely on the season and what you are after.

Where can I buy bait near Clarksville?

Tailwater Marine & Tackle, Riverside Drive, Clarksville, full-service marine dealer. The Tackle Box, Clarksville, bass lure specialist. Nock Life Bowfishing, Clarksville, bowfishing equipment. Clarksville Marina at Liberty Park, rentals and storage. Clarksville Bowfishing Charters, guided night bowfishing. Academy Sports and multiple Walmart Supercenters in Clarksville. The Montgomery County Bass Club, affiliated with the B.A.S.S. Tennessee Federation Nation, runs a tournament almost every week for both boaters and non-boaters, which is a genuinely useful thing to put on a city page.. The Clarksville gear page has the rest, plus rental and licenses.

What fish can you catch near Clarksville?

Mainly largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, crappie, sunfish, rock bass, white bass, sauger, catfish and gar.

Towns near here

Towns near Clarksville

The nearest towns to Clarksville with pages of their own. If nothing near Clarksville suits, one of these usually does.

27 miles from Clarksville · Robertson CountyFishing near SpringfieldCheatham Lake, Old Hickory LakeSee the spots →27 miles from Clarksville · Stewart CountyFishing near DoverLake Barkley, Kentucky LakeSee the spots →31 miles from Clarksville · Dickson CountyFishing near DicksonHarpeth River, Cheatham LakeSee the spots →41 miles from Clarksville · Davidson CountyFishing near NashvilleJ. Percy Priest Lake, Cheatham LakeSee the spots →44 miles from Clarksville · Sumner CountyFishing near HendersonvilleOld Hickory Lake, Cheatham LakeSee the spots →

Clarksville water holds largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, crappie, sunfish.

Wider net

Montgomery County beyond Clarksville

Clarksville is one town in Montgomery County. The county page covers every water inside the county line, including the ones nowhere near Clarksville.

Fishing in Montgomery County

With a guide

Fishing near Clarksville with a guide

Local captains who run the water near Clarksville are listed on the guides page with their own phone numbers. You call and book with them directly.

Tennessee guides by water

Keep going

More Clarksville 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 water Licence and limits