Elkin Reservoir near Elkin: Fishing Spots, Seasons and Access

• Overview

  Out in Wilkes County, North Carolina, sits Elkin Reservoir. The ground around here is oak and grass. Small at around 8 acres: two anglers spread out cover most of it. Nearest place of any size is Elkin, 1.7 miles away. Winston-Salem sits 37 miles out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. The boundary is close enough to be worth checking before you fish.

• Where to Fish on Elkin Reservoir

  No figure exists for depth, so let the water show you. Points where the flooded channel swings in are the reliable ones. Rip-rap along the wall holds fish that the open bank never does. Open biodiversity records for Wilkes County list Carolina fantail darter, striped jumprock, piedmont darter, brown trout and margined madtom. Records at this level tell you what is in the area. Read Elkin Reservoir before you fish it and the day goes better.

• Seasonal Patterns

  July is the warm end of the year here, averaging about 76°F, while January sits near 36°F. There is no frozen season to plan round. The cooler months are the comfortable ones to be out. April and May are the settled weeks, with October close behind. Anyone fishing Elkin Reservoir regularly works to that calendar.

• Tackle & Baits

  Nothing we hold confirms whether access is permitted. The closest car park is half a mile away, so pack accordingly. There is a mapped landing stage half a mile away. There are picnic tables recorded roughly half a mile off. A landowner's word beats anything printed elsewhere. Where parking is tight, arriving early solves most problems. Should this one be busy, Cedarbrook Lake is 3.1 miles off. Nothing here settles the position at Elkin Reservoir for certain.