Local Intel
Lake Mackintosh
Alamance/Guilford County, NC · 30 min from Greensboro
Surface area
1,200 acres
Max depth
40 ft
Primary species
Largemouth Bass, Crappie, Channel Catfish, Flathead Catfish
From Greensboro · NC
30 min
Live conditions · Lake Mackintosh
Structure & water
~1,200-acre City of Burlington riverine impoundment on Alamance Creek (opened 1993). Long, narrow lake with three major tributary arms — Little Alamance (NW), Big Alamance (S), and Rock Creek (W) — plus countless feeder creeks. Roadbeds, rock formations, deep creek channels, and clay banks throughout. Gas motors are prohibited in the eastern and western ends, creating large electric-only zones. Regarded as NC's top kayak largemouth fishery, with roaming schools that can surface anywhere on the lake.
Forage: Threadfin shad, bluegill, crayfish, shiners
Forage profile
- Threadfin shad40%
- Bluegill25%
- Crayfish18%
- Shiners10%
Structure mix
- Rock / Riprap71%
- Flats14%
- Creek Channels14%
Hot spots
Little Alamance Creek arm (west / Guilford side)
Electric-only; laydowns, overhanging banks, and 10–18 ft channel. Swim jig along the bank, then T-rig the seams.
Big Alamance Creek arm (south)
Roaming schools and Aug–Sep surface blitzes — keep a walking topwater or silver spoon ready.
Rock Creek tributary (west)
Quiet, gravel spawning flats next to deep water. Early-March spinnerbait along the banks is explosive.
Main-lake roadbeds & rock formations
Post-spawn refuge. Carolina rig or T-rig on 12 lb fluoro along roadbeds; football jig on rock for crayfish bite.
Top patterns
Spring
3/8 oz white or chartreuse with a paddle-tail trailer worked tight to banks, laydowns, and docks in the electric-only arms.
Late Summer
Topwater / Silver Spoon
Schools blitz shad in Big Alamance and the main lake — Spook, Whopper Plopper, or 1 oz silver spoon cast past the boil.
Summer
10" ribbon worm (junebug, watermelon red) dragged across 12–25 ft roadbeds and channel ledges; downsize to a 6" shaky head in winter.
Launches & marinas
- Marina
Lake Mackintosh Park & Marina
5300 Lake Mackintosh Park Dr, Burlington, NC 27215
Phone: (336) 538-1010
Fees: Daily launch fee; annual Burlington pass available
Concrete double rampCourtesy dockBoat & kayak rentalsBait & tackleSnack barPicnic areaRestroomsMain east-side (Alamance County) access — best ramp for bass boats running the main lake and Big Alamance arm.
- Public ramp
Guilford County (West) Access
SR-1004 (Friendship-Patterson Mill Rd), Whitsett, NC
Fees: Free
Concrete single rampGravel parkingNo dock, no restroomsElectric-only access to the Little Alamance and Rock Creek arms. Quiet put-in for kayaks and small jons — the trophy-largemouth side of the lake.
Regulations
NC license required. Largemouth: 14" minimum, 5/day. Gas motors prohibited in the eastern (Alamance) and western (Guilford) ends — electric-only zones. Live-well tournaments restricted in summer to reduce mortality. Open year-round.
Local tip
Mackintosh rewards mobility. Tournament fish come from all three arms AND the main lake — don't lock into one. Burn a swim jig or chatterbait the first hour to find active fish, then slow down with a finesse worm on the best cover. When a schooling group erupts, stay on it; they move, but they circle back.