Angler's Headquarters

Straddling the North Carolina/ South Carolina border near Charlotte, NC and Rock Hill, SC, Lake Wylie is located on the Catawba River chain generally south of Lake Norman and generally north of Lake Wateree.  (Immediately above and below Lake Wylie are, respectively, the less well-known Mountain Island Lake and Fishing Creek Lake.). The oldest of the lakes on the Catawba River, Wylie was first created in 1904 by a dam near Fort Mill.  In 1924 the dam was rebuilt, and today the lake’s surface area is approximately 13,500 acres with around 325 miles of shoreline.  Lake Wylie is managed by Duke Energy and supports both hydroelectric and nuclear power generation.  Since North Carolina and South Carolina do not have reciprocity, fishing licenses for each state are required to fish their respective waters.

The popular species targeted by Lake Wylie anglers include largemouth bass, crappie, a large population of white perch (including the co-state record holding fish caught by our correspondent Captain Rodger Taylor), bluegill, and catfish. Striped bass are not stocked in the lake and are extremely rare, but there are a few.  Probably because of the absence of striper fishermen, there is not a population of blueback herring in Lake Wylie, and the main forage base consists of threadfin and gizzard shad.