Chattooga River South Carolina

The Chattooga River begins in the Appalachian Mountains of North Carolina fed by sereral springs and abundant rainfall. From here it takes a fifty-mile journey to Lake Tugaloo between Georgia and South Carolina.  It flows southward for ten miles in North Carolina, and then continues for forty miles as the state boundary between South Carolina and Georgia bisecting Ellicott Rock Wilderness. On its journey, it drops nearly one-half mile in elevation. 

The Chattooga watershed is made up of 180,000 acres in three states (SC, GA and NC) and composed of private and public lands.  The Chattooga is a free-flowing river with no upstream dam to control the flow.  As such it responds rapidly to rainfall or drought conditions.  There are numerous rapids up to Class V, followed by calm pools.

Since May 10 1974, the Chattooga River has been protected along a 15,432-acre  corridor as a national Wild and Scenic River.  The Chattooga River is also famous for its beautiful scenery and also as the site for filming the Deliverance,  The Chattooga River offers what some have described as the best trout fishing within the state of South Carolina, and indeed very good for such a southern state.

For wild trout fishing the best area is between the North Carolina State line and Burrells Ford.  The entire river lies within the Chattahoochee, or the Sumter National Forest with the exception of a few tracks of private land downstream of the Highway 28 bridge.  

The SCDNR state stocks the trout fingerling from Burrells Ford downstream for about five miles. Along this stretch of the river, there is plenty of food for the trout to eat and they can grow nicely.  However, due to river conditions, there is very little spawning occuring here, as a result, do not expect to see many wild trout.

There is a delayed harvest designation on the Chattooga River starting at the Highway 28 bridge and going upstream for 2 1/2 miles.  The stream becomes warmer and somewhat wider in this area. Be sure to check out the SC fishing regulations.

Seasons:

The early season will provide the best fishing usually from April to June

Spring:

Spring is obviously the best season to fish the river due to its southern location.

Summer:

The water can get a little warm during the hot summer even though it often provides some shade.

Fall: 

Autumn is an excellent time to fish the river as it is one of the most beautiful times of the year.  In addition to that, it offers an excellent opportinity for catch and release fishing of brown trout, because they are spawning during this season.

Winter:

Due to the southern nature of the Chattooga River, the winter is one of the most productive seasons.

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