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Fishing Tims Ford Lake: what the data says
10,700-acre reservoir near Winchester. Deep, clear Elk River highland reservoir; top smallmouth and striper lake. The lake tops out around 143 ft. The contours are modeled from the water's real shoreline and maximum depth. Treat them as a rough guide, and never use them for navigation. What follows comes from the same scoring engine that paints the spots above.
Smallmouth Bass fishing at Tims Ford Lake
In spring, smallmouth bass run shallow here, mostly 3 to 12 ft. Summer pushes them deeper, 10 to 30 ft, and winter fish settle into 20 to 45 ft. Rock reef is the standout, a rock pile at roughly 10.608930222941076 ft, rated prime for spring smallmouth bass. Best bite is early morning and the evening. Summer baits: a drop shot (goby/minnow) or a ned rig gets it done.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 3 to 12 ft | dawn & dusk | Ned rig, Tube jig |
| Summer | 10 to 30 ft | dawn & dusk | Drop shot (goby/minnow), Ned rig |
| Fall | 8 to 25 ft | midday & dawn | Jerkbait, Blade bait |
| Winter | 20 to 45 ft | midday | Blade bait, Hair jig |
Largemouth Bass fishing at Tims Ford Lake
In spring, largemouth bass run shallow here, mostly 2 to 10 ft. Summer pushes them deeper, 8 to 20 ft, and winter fish settle into 15 to 35 ft. Shallow bay flat is the standout, a weed flat at roughly 6 ft, rated prime for spring largemouth bass. Best bite is early morning and the evening. Tie on a texas-rigged 10" worm or a deep-diving crankbait and you're in the game.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 2 to 10 ft | dawn & dusk | Spinnerbait, Chatterbait |
| Summer | 8 to 20 ft | dawn & dusk | Texas-rigged 10" worm, Deep-diving crankbait |
| Fall | 4 to 15 ft | midday & dawn | Squarebill crankbait (shad), Spinnerbait |
| Winter | 15 to 35 ft | midday | Blade bait, Jigging spoon |
Spotted Bass fishing at Tims Ford Lake
In spring, spotted bass run shallow here, mostly 5 to 20 ft. They move out to 15 to 40 ft in summer and finish the year down in 25 to 50 ft. Sharp break is the standout, a drop-off at roughly 39.6974514992426 ft, rated prime for winter spotted bass. Plan around early morning and the evening in the warm months. A drop shot over brush or a underspin + fluke (schoolers) covers the summer program.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 5 to 20 ft | dawn & dusk | Ned rig on gravel points, Shaky head |
| Summer | 15 to 40 ft | dawn & dusk | Drop shot over brush, Underspin + fluke (schoolers) |
| Fall | 10 to 30 ft | dawn & dusk | Walking topwater, Underspin |
| Winter | 25 to 50 ft | midday | Damiki/hover rig, Jigging spoon |
Crappie fishing at Tims Ford Lake
Spring crappie on Tims Ford Lake hold shallow, usually 2 to 8 ft. They move out to 10 to 25 ft in summer and finish the year down in 15 to 35 ft. If you only fish one area, make it Shallow bay flat: a weed flat around 6 ft that scores prime in spring. In summer the feeding windows fall in early morning and the evening. A jig trolled/spider-rigged or a small crankbait (trolled) covers the summer program.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 2 to 8 ft | midday & dawn | 1/16 oz jig + tube, Curly-tail grub |
| Summer | 10 to 25 ft | dawn & dusk | Jig trolled/spider-rigged, Small crankbait (trolled) |
| Fall | 8 to 20 ft | dawn | Jig + minnow combo, Small swimbait (1.5-2") |
| Winter | 15 to 35 ft | midday | Tungsten jig + soft plastic, Tiny jigging spoon |
Bluegill fishing at Tims Ford Lake
In spring, bluegill run shallow here, mostly 1 to 6 ft. Summer pushes them deeper, 4 to 15 ft, and winter fish settle into 10 to 25 ft. Shallow bay flat is the standout, a weed flat at roughly 6 ft, rated prime for spring bluegill. Best bite is early morning and the evening. Tie on a small sponge spider (fly) or a micro tube jig and you're in the game.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 1 to 6 ft | midday & dusk | 1/32 oz jig + micro plastic, Tiny popper (evenings) |
| Summer | 4 to 15 ft | dawn & dusk | Small sponge spider (fly), Micro tube jig |
| Fall | 6 to 18 ft | midday | Micro jig + waxworm, Small spoon tipped |
| Winter | 10 to 25 ft | midday | Tungsten ice jig + plastic, Tiny spoon |
Striped Bass fishing at Tims Ford Lake
Start shallow in spring: striped bass sit in 5 to 20 ft that time of year. They move out to 25 to 60 ft in summer and finish the year down in 20 to 50 ft. If you only fish one area, make it Elk River inflow: a inflow / creek mouth around 8 ft that scores prime in spring. Plan around early morning and the evening in the warm months. A flutter spoon (deep) or a umbrella rig (trolled) covers the summer program.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 5 to 20 ft | dawn & dusk | Bucktail jig + trailer, Walking topwater (dawn) |
| Summer | 25 to 60 ft | dawn & dusk | Flutter spoon (deep), Umbrella rig (trolled) |
| Fall | 10 to 35 ft | dawn & dusk | Topwater walker, Jerkbait |
| Winter | 20 to 50 ft | midday | Alabama rig (slow), Flutter spoon |
Tims Ford Lake also holds walleye (15 to 35 ft in summer), channel catfish (8 to 25 ft in summer). Pick any of them on the map above for rated spots and bait picks.
Notable structure
- Deep basin: deep basin, around 122 ft
- Shoreline point: point, around 54.54731424764197 ft
- Sharp break: drop-off, around 39.6974514992426 ft
- Main-lake point: point, around 36 ft
- Secondary point: point, around 36 ft
- Sharp break: drop-off, around 30.12797054339139 ft
- Offshore hump: offshore hump, around 12.276367021942473 ft
- Rock reef: rock pile, around 10.608930222941076 ft
- Sharp break: drop-off, around 8.011826457828963 ft
- Elk River inflow: inflow / creek mouth, around 8 ft
- Rock Creek inflow: inflow / creek mouth, around 8 ft
- Shallow bay flat: weed flat, around 6 ft
- Back-bay flat: weed flat, around 6 ft
- Rock reef: rock pile, around 4.937915812563596 ft
Common questions
How deep is Tims Ford Lake?
Tims Ford Lake is about 143 ft at its deepest point. The contours here are modeled from the water's real shape and maximum depth, so treat them as a rough guide.
What fish are in Tims Ford Lake?
Anglers target largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, walleye, crappie, bluegill, channel catfish, striped bass, spotted bass on Tims Ford Lake.
Where is the best fishing spot on Tims Ford Lake?
Rock reef is the top-rated area: a rock pile in about 10.608930222941076 ft of water that rates prime for smallmouth bass in spring. Open the map above to see every rated spot for each species and season.
When is the best time to fish Tims Ford Lake?
For smallmouth bass, the summer bite is best in early morning and the evening. Each species page section below lists the seasonal windows, and the map shows a live NOW badge when you're inside one.
Nearby waters
Woods Reservoir · Elk River · Bedford County Lake · Nickajack Lake · Duck River · Center Hill Lake
See how Tims Ford Lake stacks up: best largemouth bass lakes in Tennessee · best smallmouth bass lakes in Tennessee · best walleye lakes in Tennessee · best crappie lakes in Tennessee
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