Georgia

Chattahoochee River

Georgia·Metro Atlanta·34.06° N, 84.13° W

Solunar · next 7 days

About Chattahoochee River

The Chattahoochee below Buford Dam is the improbable thing: a genuine coldwater trout river running through the northern suburbs of a metro area of six million people. Buford Dam holds back Lake Sidney Lanier and pulls its releases off the bottom of the reservoir, so the water that comes out the other side stays in the 50s year-round even in an Atlanta July, when the air is 95 and the parking lots are melting. That cold ribbon carries stocked and holdover rainbows and a naturally reproducing population of brown trout — including the fish that produced Georgia's state-record brown, better than 20 pounds — for roughly 40-plus miles down through Gwinnett, Fulton, and Cobb counties before the coldwater gives out below Atlanta. It's the marquee urban tailwater of the Southeast, and Georgia's Wildlife Resources Division stocks it hard.

The catch, as with every tailwater, is the dam. Releases at Buford are on no fixed schedule — the Corps generates for power and downstream demand, and when the turbines spin up the river can come up several feet in minutes. You fish this river on the release, not the hatch: the wading windows open at low, stable flow and slam shut when generation starts. Call the Corps hotline (770-945-1466) or watch the Buford Dam and Norcross gauges before you wade the shoals, because people drown here. Between pulses the upper reaches wade well over gravel, granite, and shoal shelves; farther down (below Abbotts Bridge, and again in the McGinnis-to-Jones flats) it widens, slows, and turns into better float-boat water. Midges dominate the bug life — this is a fish-a-#20-zebra-midge-year-round tailwater — with sulphurs, BWOs, and caddis layered on top in spring.

Access is unusually good for a river this close to a city because most of the corridor is federal: the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area (CRNRA, a National Park Service unit) strings a chain of parks down the river — Bowman's Island, Settles Bridge, Abbotts Bridge, Medlock Bridge, Jones Bridge, Sope Creek — each with parking and river access. The trade-off is pressure: this is the most-fished trout water in Georgia, tubers and paddlers share the summer river, and the popular shoals see a lot of boots. But the regulations do real work here — a long artificial-only reach up top and a winter Delayed Harvest section down low — and if you time the release and walk away from the put-ins, the metro Hooch fishes far better than a river inside I-285 has any right to.

Species

Brown Trout
Primary · Oct-Feb · 10-18"+
The real draw. Naturally reproducing in the cold reaches below Buford; holdovers reach 17-20"+, and Georgia's state-record brown (>20 lb) came from here. Streamers pre-spawn in fall; the protected shoal water in the artificial-only reach grows the biggest fish.
Rainbow Trout
Primary · Nov-May · 9-16"
WRD stocks heavily — monthly in season, with 50,000+ fish going into the Delayed Harvest reach across a winter. Holdovers grow to 16"+ in protected shoal water. The everyday numbers fish, especially through winter and spring.
Brook Trout
Rare · Winter · 8-11"
Incidental — small numbers turn up in stockings but this is not a target brook-trout fishery.
Striped Bass
Seasonal · Summer · varies
Below the trout zone, past Atlanta, the coldwater fades and the river turns warmwater — stripers and shoal bass show up there. Noted for context; not a tailwater trout target in the metro reach.

Species	Abundance	Best Season	Size
Brown Trout	Primary	Oct-Feb	10-18"+
Rainbow Trout	Primary	Nov-May	9-16"
Brook Trout	Rare	Winter	8-11"
Striped Bass	Seasonal	Summer	varies

Sections

5 reaches

Bowman's Island — Buford Dam to Settles Bridge

WadeBrown Trout · Rainbow Trout

The coldest, most classic tailwater water — riffles, runs, and gravel/granite shoals immediately below the dam. Scoured, swift, and the most sensitive reach to generation, coming up first and fastest when the turbines spin. Wade only at low, stable flow; the shoals here are prime but dangerous on a release.

Best for: Wild brown trout and holdover rainbow trout on nymphs (zebra midge, WD-40, pheasant tail) and streamers; sight-fishing on low, clear water. Coldest water on the river.

Settles Bridge to Abbotts Bridge (Artificial-Only Shoals)

Wade & FloatBrown Trout · Rainbow Trout

The heart of the artificial-only reach — plentiful shoals, pockets, and moderate current, and the most reliable hatch water on the tailwater. Artificial lures only, single hook per lure, from the Hwy 20 bridge down to Medlock Bridge.

Best for: Dry-fly and nymph fishing on hatches (sulphurs, caddis, BWO, midge) for holdover brown trout and rainbow trout; walk-wade to the protected shoals. Best bug life on the river.

Abbotts Bridge to Medlock Bridge

Wade & FloatBrown Trout · Rainbow Trout

The river widens and slows below Abbotts Bridge over the roughly four miles to Medlock Bridge (Hwy 141), reducing current into more even glides and tailouts. Downstream end of the artificial-only regulation.

Best for: Dead-drift nymphing and evening dry-fly on caddis and sulphur in glassy tailouts for rainbow trout and brown trout; float-fish the slower water.

Medlock Bridge to Jones Bridge (Norcross reach)

Wade & FloatRainbow Trout

Flatter, slower general-regulation water with deeper pools and some shoals; bait becomes legal below Medlock. The USGS Norcross gauge (02335000) sits in this reach and is the standard downstream reference for how much water is coming from Buford.

Best for: Stocked and holdover rainbow trout on nymphs and streamers; good winter numbers fishing. Watch the Norcross gauge to time a wade.

Delayed Harvest — Sope Creek to US 41 (below Morgan Falls)

Wade & FloatRainbow Trout

Georgia's flagship metro Delayed Harvest reach in the lower CRNRA, below the re-regulation Morgan Falls Dam — a cold-water refuge of shoals and pools that holds trout through winter. Nov 1-May 14, catch-and-release, artificial single-hook only. This reach is well downstream of the two Buford gauges and re-regulated at Morgan Falls, so the upstream flow overlay does not apply here.

Best for: Catch-and-release winter trout fishing on heavily stocked water (50,000+ rainbow trout across the DH season) with nymphs and small streamers.

At a glance

Ideal wading flow: 600–1,000 cfs
Blow-out: >1,500 cfs
Ideal water temp: 50–58°F

Best seasons

Winter (Dec-Feb) is prime: the Delayed Harvest reach is open and heavily stocked, midging is steady, and low clear water plus light crowds make for the best conditions. Spring (Mar-May) brings the sulphur, caddis, and BWO hatches and the best dry-fly window, with DH open through May 14. Fall (Oct-Nov) is streamer season for pre-spawn browns as the tubers thin out. Summer still fishes because the water stays cold when nothing else in Georgia does — go early and beat the paddlers. The controlling variable is always the release: wade only on low, steady flow, and treat a rising gauge as the real blow-out, not a rain event.

Regulations

Managed as year-round trout water below Buford Dam (no seasonal closure), stocked heavily by Georgia WRD. A long artificial-only reach up top and a winter Delayed Harvest section down low do the real work. A Georgia fishing license plus a trout license is required for anglers 16+.

Year-round trout water below Buford Dam — no seasonal closure like the mountain streams.
Artificial lures only, single hook per lure, from the GA Hwy 20 (Buford Hwy) bridge downstream to Medlock Bridge (Hwy 141).
Delayed Harvest — Sope Creek (off Columns Drive) downstream to US Hwy 41 (Cobb Parkway): Nov 1-May 14, catch-and-release, artificial lures only with one single hook per lure (dropper rigs allowed if each lure carries a single hook). Reverts to general regulations May 15-Oct 31.
General regulations apply elsewhere below Medlock Bridge, where bait becomes legal in stretches under standard Georgia trout creel/size limits.
Georgia fishing license plus trout license required (age 16+).

Releases at Buford Dam are on no fixed schedule and can raise the river several feet in minutes — wade only on low, steady flow and leave the shoals the moment the level starts to rise. Corps generation hotline: 770-945-1466 (also 1610 AM). The Delayed Harvest reach sits below the re-regulation Morgan Falls Dam (hotline 404-329-1455). Regulations change annually — reconfirm before your trip.

Source: Georgia Wildlife Resources Division (DNR). Regulations change annually. Verify before fishing.

Getting there

Buford / Roswell, GA

30-50 min from downtown Atlanta and Hartsfield-Jackson airport to the upper access points

Fly shops

Camping: No camping on the tailwater itself — the CRNRA units are day-use parks. Lodging is standard metro-Atlanta hotels throughout Buford, Suwanee, Duluth, Johns Creek, Peachtree Corners, Roswell, and Sandy Springs.

Most river access is through the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area (CRNRA), a National Park Service unit — a chain of riverside parks with parking and put-ins: Bowman's Island (Buford Dam / Lower Pool Park, Cumming), Settles Bridge (Suwanee), McGinnis Ferry, Abbotts Bridge (Duluth/Johns Creek), Medlock Bridge (Peachtree Corners), Jones Bridge, and Sope Creek (Columns Drive). A daily or annual CRNRA parking pass is required at the lots. This is the most-fished trout water in Georgia; expect company at the popular shoals and share the summer river with tubers and paddlers.

Chattahoochee River

Solunar · next 7 days

About Chattahoochee River

Species

Sections

Bowman's Island — Buford Dam to Settles Bridge

Settles Bridge to Abbotts Bridge (Artificial-Only Shoals)

Abbotts Bridge to Medlock Bridge

Medlock Bridge to Jones Bridge (Norcross reach)

Delayed Harvest — Sope Creek to US 41 (below Morgan Falls)

Fishing reports

More in Georgia

Other regions

Chattooga River

Toccoa River

Upper Chattahoochee River

Upper Toccoa River

Chattahoochee River

Solunar · next 7 days

About Chattahoochee River

Species

Sections

Bowman's Island — Buford Dam to Settles Bridge

Settles Bridge to Abbotts Bridge (Artificial-Only Shoals)

Abbotts Bridge to Medlock Bridge

Medlock Bridge to Jones Bridge (Norcross reach)

Delayed Harvest — Sope Creek to US 41 (below Morgan Falls)

Fishing reports

More in Georgia

Other regions

Chattooga River

Toccoa River

Upper Chattahoochee River

Upper Toccoa River

Fishing conditions

See the 5-day fishing forecast for the Chattahoochee River

Fishing conditions

See the 5-day fishing forecast for the Chattahoochee River