Both Norris and Cherokee lakes days of quality Striper fishing seem to be falling into memory.
Norris once yielded the state record for Striped Bass. In April of 1978, a 49.5 lb Norris Striper captured the title and the future of the lake seemed bright. Then in 2003 disaster struck. Water quality caused a major fish kill that ended the lakes reputation as a quality Striped Bass fishery. Most anglers agreed that any Striped Bass recovery on Norris would be limited even with the change to a 36-inch size limit.

Stocking levels on Norris have not increased while fishing pressure on Norris has increased drastically. There are more anglers than ever before. This is partly due to the normal growth in population but the Internet has also played a major roll in bringing anglers to the area. Events in neighboring states have also increased fishing pressure. Water levels in lake Cumberland are quite low while repairs are being made to the dam. This caused Anglers that once dropped their lines in Cumberland, to now attempt to fish Norris.

Norris Striped bass stocking levels:
2005 - 103655
2004 - 103196
2003 - 103489
2002 - 104200
2001 - 105857
2000 - 103607
1999 - 102685

Now should be the time to increase the stocking levels of Striped Bass in Norris but any hope of this seems dim. There are many local Non-Striped Bass Anglers who oppose increased stocking levels and in fact, wish to end stocking altogether. They unjustified believe that Striped Bass are eating other game fish. Studies have shown Stripers prefer to eat shad. Very few non-shad species have ever been found in their stomachs. There’s a great web site that tells more of the story at:
http://www.arkansasstripers.com/norris-reservoir-striped-bass-cotroversy-tennessee.htm

Drought and flooding conditions will always play a roll in the ecosystem of the reservoir. Some water quality problems are caused by natural cycles of nature and we have little control over their occurrence. We need to focus on the man-made water quality problems that seem to be overlooked.
The Clinch River arm of Norris Lake is being contaminated with coal dust. This dust is being carried down river to the reservoir from upstream out of state coalmines.
To this day, some docked houseboats still dump their holding tanks into the water.
The TWRA recently issued a “Precautionary advisory for largemouth bass” due to Mercury “ levels.
The effect of all this pollution has not yet been determined and may have a major impact in the future health of the fishery.

This left Cherokee lake as the anglers’ best hope in the region and Anglers figured this out in a hurry. It got to be well known that Cherokee was growing and retaining a decent size population of quality fish. The lake was developing into a fishery where a twenty-pound Striped Bass was becoming common and landing a fish in the 30 pound range was more than possible. Long time Norris anglers were flocking to Cherokee in droves. The Internet caused Anglers from other states to start making the drive to try their luck. Fishing pressure on Cherokee was increasing at an alarming rate. Now reports indicate that recent water conditions (due to the 2007 drought) have all but destroyed Cherokees’ population of fish exceeding 8 pounds.

Are these two lakes now doomed never to recover? Maybe. But there are things you can do to help that don’t take much effort.

First off start by looking in the mirror and asking yourself a few questions:

#1: Do I really need to take my picture with another fish?
No matter how careful you are, picking the fish up out of the water for a photo may cause that fish to die due to undo stress that YOU UNNESSARYLY caused. You WILL remove some of the slime coating from the fish. It may swim off and appear to be fine, but removing this protective coating can cause viruses and bacteria that kill the fish even weeks later. This practice should be avoided. Isn’t that picture just wasting hard drive space anyway?

#2: Why do I weigh the fish I catch that I plan to release?
Anglers really lift a Striper out of the water by its’ gills, or use one of those scales that they stick through the fishes lower jaw & expect it to live! Either way they are hanging that fishes entire weight from it’s head! No Fisheries Biologist condones this practice. Imagine the stress this causes. Most anglers can guess the weight of a fish and get really close. Does it really matter if this fish was 20 or 22 pounds anyway? Most of us are after bigger fish. We’ve caught the 20’s and 25’s, so we tend to weigh the bigger fish, you know, the ones that can take the stress the least. Weighing a fish causes undo stress! Just tell your buddy it was 25. He doesn’t need to know that you didn’t weigh it on your K-mart scale does he?

#3: Do these fish I release in the summer really live?
Chances are not. Fighting a fish to the boat or bank causes Lactic Acid build up in the fish. This changes the fishes’ blood chemistry and may compromise survival.

#4: Should I take someone fishing who hasn’t bought a fishing license?
A person who fishes without a license hasn’t contributed to the financial support of the fishery.

#5: Should I trade in my old fuel leaking, oil burning, smoking, stinking outboard for a newer model?
If you’re interested in the water quality maybe it’s time! The wife will love this idea! How much oil does your old outboard put in the lake? This might just be the excuse you were looking for. The new motors use less fuel, run better, start faster and are much cleaner!

I’m not asking anyone to quit their job and attempt to save the world. Just do what you easily can. Thanks for your time.

Toney Stevens