Overview
Nickajack Lake is a 10,370-acre reservoir on the Tennessee River in Marion County, Tennessee, just west of Chattanooga. It was created in 1967 when the Tennessee Valley Authority completed Nickajack Dam to replace the outdated Hales Bar Dam upstream. Named for a historic Cherokee village once located near the dam site, the lake supports navigation, hydropower, and recreation at the western gateway to the Tennessee River Gorge.
With about 179 miles of shoreline, Nickajack is a mainstem run-of-river reservoir held in a very narrow operating band near 633.5 feet above mean sea level. Steep gorge walls, Nickajack Cave, islands, and the approach to the Tennessee River Gorge give it a dramatic physical setting. Depths concentrate in the navigation channel, while creek mouths and shoreline shelves provide shallower fishing and paddling water against a backdrop of forested ridges.
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 parks near the dam and along the reservoir serve anglers and recreational boaters from Chattanooga and the surrounding valley. The gorge scenery also draws sightseeing boaters and paddlers exploring the lower lake.
Water levels on Nickajack Lake are managed by TVA as a navigation pool near 633.5 feet above mean sea level, with only about a one-foot typical fluctuation. The reservoir sits between Lake Chickamauga upstream and Guntersville downstream on the Tennessee mainstem, so water still moves with basin operations and lock traffic. Monitoring current lake levels remains helpful for boating safety and fishing even when the pool appears stable.
Current Conditions
Nickajack Lake is currently 0.8 feet below full pool and has fallen slightly over the past week.
- 7-day trendFallingLatest movement can differ from the seven-day trend.
- 7-day changeDown 0.71 ft
- 30-day changeDown 0.66 ft
- Drought conditionsAbnormally Dry
About This Lake
Learn how this lake is managed, what affects its water level, and where Lake Insights gets its data.
Nickajack Lake is a 10,370-acre reservoir on the Tennessee River managed by Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA).