Apalachia Reservoir is located entirely in Cherokee County in western North Carolina, west of the town of Murphy. The dam was designed and built for power generation during World War II. Apalachia Reservoir is a small, deep, cool-water reservoir set on the Hiwassee River in the mountains of western North Carolina. The dam was built primarily to generate hydropower, but the reservoir also provides a beautiful site for fishing, canoeing, hiking and primitive camping. Adjacent to the Nantahala National Forest, the reservoir has very little private shoreline development and no commercial recreation facilities. Because of its remote location, relatively few anglers use the reservoir, although there is a significant amount of rafting and fishing downstream. Sport fish include smallmouth bass, spotted bass, largemouth bass, redbreast sunfish and white bass.