Tims Ford Lake sits in the hills of Franklin and Moore counties, about an hour and a half south of Nashville. The Tennessee Valley Authority finished the dam on the Elk River in 1970, and the result is roughly 10,700 acres of deep, clear water and about 250 miles of wooded shoreline, with Winchester on one side and Lynchburg a short drive away. It is quieter than the big Nashville lakes, and the locals like it that way.
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The islands. Tims Ford has six boat-in islands: Leatherwood, Big, Little, Maple Bend, Goose and Devils Step. They are the lake's signature. Anchor off one for a swim and lunch, or walk the shoreline while the boat swings on the hook.
Tims Ford State Park. About 3,500 acres of park wrap part of the shoreline, with trails, cabins and quiet coves that are easy to reach from the water.
Toward the dam. The lower lake is wide and deep, the best water for wakesurfing and tubing on a calm morning. The upper arms narrow into coves that stay glassy well into the afternoon.
Tims Ford is a Bill Dance Signature Lake, and it earns the name. Anglers chase smallmouth, largemouth, spotted and striped bass, plus walleye. Early mornings on the points and along the rocky banks are the reliable window before the wake traffic builds.
Tims Ford is a TVA reservoir, so its level follows a yearly plan. TVA fills the lake toward summer pool, 888 feet above sea level, by early June, and begins drawing it down to winter pool in the first week of September. TVA posts the daily number on its Tims Ford lake levels page; check it there rather than trusting a figure in any guide.
The club follows the same rhythm. Spring boating opens April 15, Friday through Sunday. Summer runs Memorial Day to Labor Day, Tuesday through Sunday. Fall weekends run to October 15, and the club is closed from mid-October to mid-April. Winter is the time to plan; the lake will be at full pool by the time most people remember it exists.
Nautical Boat Club – Tims Ford / Twin Creeks runs out of Twin Creeks Marina in Winchester. Members reserve online and walk down to a cleaned, fueled boat with the gear loaded: wake surf boats for the open water, luxury tri-toons for island days, and sportboats for everything in between. The club shares its reservation desk and team with our Nashville clubs, so a Tims Ford membership comes with reciprocal visits on Percy Priest, Old Hickory and beyond.
"Nautical Boat Club has exceeded all expectations—offering a seamless enjoyable boating experience with top-quality vessels and exceptional service. The staff is professional and accommodating and Trent in particular stands out for his attentiveness and dedication to ensuring every outing is smooth and stress-free."
— Josh Virnig, Nautical Boat Club – Nashville (Percy Priest Lake) (Google Review, 5★)
Same Middle Tennessee team, a quieter lake.
A capable wake boat or tri-toon runs $45,000 to $80,000 new and well beyond for a surf boat. Add a slip billed through a season that closes for six months, winterization and storage, insurance at $1,000 to $2,500 a year, and depreciation of 10 to 20 percent in year one, and ownership commonly lands at $9,000 to $15,000 a year. Membership runs a one-time $3,000 to $8,000 initiation and $300 to $600 a month, with the fleet, slip and maintenance carried by the club. The full breakdown is in our 2026 membership cost guide.
Plenty of Tims Ford homes have a dock and a lift out back. If that is you, or you fish a bass rig you have spent years dialing in, owning is the better setup, and we would rather say so plainly. A club is for everyone who wants island days and clear water without the winterizing.
See Nautical Boat Club – Tims Ford / Twin Creeks, call (615) 232-9100, or explore our Middle Tennessee clubs and the rest of our locations at nauticalboatclub.com/locations.
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