Melton Hill Lake is a 5,400-acre run-of-river reservoir on the Clinch River in Anderson, Knox, Loudon, and Roane counties in East Tennessee, between Norris Dam and the Clinch's confluence with the Tennessee River. It was created when the Tennessee Valley Authority completed Melton Hill Dam for hydropower and navigation. The lock at Melton Hill opened commercial navigation on the Clinch and made the reservoir a working link between Norris storage and the Tennessee River mainstem near Oak Ridge and Knoxville.

With nearly 193 miles of shoreline, Melton Hill is a long, relatively narrow reservoir held in a tight operating band near full pool. Wooded banks, creek arms, islands, and a defined navigation channel create a mix of quiet fishing water and through-traffic for boats moving between the Clinch and the Tennessee. Proximity to Oak Ridge, Clinton, and west Knoxville gives the lake a strong local recreation identity without the scale of the big storage reservoirs upstream.

The lake offers fishing for largemouth and smallmouth bass, crappie, and catfish, with fisheries managed by the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. TVA access areas, public boat ramps, and shoreline parks provide launch points along the reservoir, and the lock lets recreational boaters continue upstream toward Norris or downstream to the Tennessee River. Rowing clubs and local tournaments also use Melton Hill's sheltered water.

Water levels on Melton Hill Lake are managed by TVA as a run-of-river reservoir around a full pool near 795 feet above mean sea level. Because it receives releases from Norris Lake and passes water toward Watts Bar Lake on the Tennessee, elevations shift with generation and lock traffic even though the operating band is narrow. Monitoring current lake levels is helpful for boating, fishing, and dock access throughout the year.

Melton Hill Lake Community

From the community

Dock Talk for Melton Hill Lake

Ask Dock Talk about Melton Hill Lake