Pickwick Landing Dam is a significant producer of hydroelectric power. It provides a flat pool of water that extends eastward to Wilson Dam in Alabama and covers a portion of the treacherous Muscle Shoals, which once hampered navigation on the Tennessee River.

Pickwick Reservoir has excellent sportfishing areas, including the Wilson Dam tailwater at the upper end of the reservoir, noted for record-size smallmouth bass and catfish. Another favorite spot is the discharge basin at Colbert Fossil Plant west of Sheffield, Alabama, where the warm water discharged from the power plant attracts fish during cold weather.

Pickwick is popular with water skiers, and its large campground located on the water below the dam includes 35 sites with full hookups.