Blewett Falls Lake

BLEWETT  FALLS  LAKE

( ANSON COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA )

SOME FACTS ABOUT BLEWETT FALLS LAKE

Blewett Falls Lake is a 2560-acre lake in the south-central part of the state between Wadesboro, NC and Rockingham, NC. The lake is the storage reservoir for the Blewett Falls Hydroelectric Dam and is located at approximately mile 195 on the Yadkin-Pee Dee River between Anson and Richmond counties in central North Carolina.  The dam has a maximum height of about 50-feet above the river bed, and forms the Blewett Falls Lake.

The Blewett Falls development began operation in 1912 and is owned and operated by Progress Energy.  The surface area of Blewett Falls Lake covers about 2560 acres at the normal full pool elevation of 178 feet above mean sea level. At full pool elevation, the lake contains approximately 34 linear miles of shoreline.

SOME FACTS ABOUT THE YADKIN-PEE DEE RIVER

From its headwaters nearing Blowing Rock, the Yadkin River flows east and then south across North Carolina’s densely populated midsection.  It travels 203 miles --- passing farmland; draining the urban landscapes of Winston-Salem, Statesville, Lexington and Salisbury; and fanning through seven man-made reservoirs before its name changes to the Pee Dee River below Lake Tillery.  The Pee Dee courses another 230 miles (for a total length of 433 miles) to the Atlantic, leaving North Carolina near the Community of McFarlan and ending its journey at South Carolina’s Winyah Bay in the Georgetown, South Carolina area.  The Yadkin-Pee Dee River Basin bisects North Carolina, running north to south, neatly separating counties on its journey.

Major tributaries of the Yadkin-Pee Dee River include the Mitchell, Ararat, Uwharrie and Rocky Rivers and Dutchman’s, Long and Abbotts Creeks.  The uppermost reservoir in the basin is W. Kerr Scott Reservoir.  Six reservoirs farther downstream are known as the Yadkin chain lakes: High Rock, Tuckertown, Badin, Falls, Tillery and Blewett Falls. They were all built in the first half of the 20th century to power aluminum smelters and electric utilities.  High Rock is the first and largest of the Yadkin chain lakes. Badin, the oldest in the chain, was built in 1917 just below the gorge called “The Narrows” to power the aluminum plant in Badin.

FISHING ON BLEWETT FALLS LAKE

Anglers fishing in Blewett Falls Lake will find the lake well stocked with bass, crappie, bream, stripers and catfish.  Different species are known to be more active at different times of the year.  However, the lake is probably best known for the large catfish that are regularly caught there, including blue cats, channel and flathead catfish.

Catfishing on the lake is a good trip for the entire family or for someone new to the sport of catfishing.  The action is usually fast, and you can expect to catch catfish in 5 – 30 pound range, during the day or night, year round.

Crappie fishing in the early spring is quite popular on Blewett Falls Lake, and the size and quantity of the catch is usually very rewarding.

BOAT RAMPS ON THE LAKE

Two boat ramps are available to the boater and angler in Anson County, and both are free to the public.  The major boat landing and ramp is located close to the dam on Boat Landing Road, which branches off Blewett Falls Road, just off Highway 74.  The other boat landing is on Highway 109 north of Wadesboro, just beside the Highway 109 Bridge that crosses the Pee Dee River on the north end of Blewett Falls Lake.

WEBSITES TO CHECK IN RELATION TO BLEWETT FALLS LAKE

·      For a map of Blewett Falls Lake, click on this MapQuest link:   

            http://www.mapquest.com/maps?city=Lilesville&state=NC&cat=blewett+falls+lake&country=US&latitude=34.967499&longitude=-79.984703&geocode=CITY  

· For the weather outlook for the Blewett Falls Lake, clink on this link:  www.weather.com/outlook/recreation/outdoors/fishing/17694:21   

· You may also click on this link for weather forecast: http://www.erh.noaa.gov/rah

· For the Southeast River Forecast, click on this link: http://www.srh.noaa.gov/alr/

· To obtain other information of happenings in Anson County, North Carolina, you can click on this link:  http://www.discoveranson.com/index.html  (Link to Discover anson.com)