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May 9, 2005 DNR News (803) 734-3950

FRESHWATER FISHING TRENDS

MOUNTAINS AREA

LAKE JOCASSEE: Largemouth Bass: Good, casting Carolina-rigged worms, and jerk baits with slow retrieve. Recent 8- to 11-pound bass caught with plastic worms. Trout: Fair, trolling from near surface to 40 feet with Bad Creek spoons, Sutton, Doctor and Apex spoons. Also try drifting large minnows from surface to 40 feet of water and trolling minnows. Smallmouth Bass: Fair. Casting Yozuri plugs deep around rocky points and drifting minnows around rocky points. Crappie: Poor. Try small minnows and jigs around brush piles. Catfish: Fair. Try nightcrawlers or cut bait on bottom. Bream: Fair. Try redworms around banks and brush. Bream expected to pick up with warmer spring weather.

LAKE KEOWEE: Largemouth and Spotted Bass: Good, fishing with medium to jumbo minnows on bottom and free lining near surface to 20 feet deep. Also doodling with drop-shot rigs in 15 to 30 feet of water. Good catches in the mid-lake area, 8 to 12 feet with jerkbaits and crankbaits. Sizes averaging one to 3 plus pounds. Limits being caught. Bass are starting to bed. Crappie: Fair, using small minnows and jigs in 10 to 15 feet of water around brush piles and bridge pilings. Catfish: Good, using minnows, nightcrawlers and cut bait on the bottom. Many catfish being caught in baskets. Bream: Slow. Try using redworms and crickets around brush piles, stumps and bridge pilings.

LAKE HARTWELL: Largemouth Bass: Good. Try casting spinnerbaits and crankbaits off points and jigs around structure. Good catches with live large minnows. Striped and Hybrid Bass: Good, trolling umbrella rigs at 30 to 35 feet, also free-lining live herring and large minnows and jigging in about 38 feet of water. Good catches around the dam with live herring at 15 to 20 feet. Crappie: Good. Try umbrella crappie rigs, also using small and medium minnows and small crappie jigs over brush and structure. Catfish: Good, using cut herring, large shiners, nightcrawlers, shrimp and chicken livers on the bottom. Bream: Slow. Try using redworms and crickets under boat docks and bridges.

 

PIEDMONT AREA

LAKE RUSSELL: Largemouth Bass: Good, castings spinnerbaits, plastic worms and lizards around flats and points. Yellow Perch: Fair, fishing deep with medium minnows and jigging spoons. Striped and Hybrid Bass: Very Good, with bucktails, cut and live herring and jigs below the dam when water is running. White Bass: Good, using bucktails, spinners and live bait below the dam when water is running. Crappie: Good, using minnows and jigs around brush piles and bridge pilings. Fish are moving to shallow water with catches at 5 to 7 feet. Catfish: Good, using cut bait and nightcrawlers on the bottom. Bream: Slow. Try using crickets and earthworms around bridge pilings and structure.

LAKE THURMOND: Largemouth Bass: Good. Try casting plastic worms, Rattletraps, Count Down lures, deep running Rebels, ShadRaps, Yozuri plugs and Challenger plugs. Striped and Hybrid Bass: Very Good, using medium and large minnows, sidewinder spoons, and 1/3 and 2/5 ounce Cleos. Also, Berry spoons, KastMasters and Hopkins spoons. Hybrids also being caught on large minnows. Crappie: Excellent, using small minnows and black and chartreuse with pepper colored and chartreuse and green colored mini-jigs around deep brush tops mini-jigs black, wobbly eyed jigs, crappie thunder and road runners. Catfish: Good, using cut bait and nightcrawlers fishing on the bottom. Good catches around structure and bridge pilings. Bream and Shellcrackers: Good. Try using earthworms around banks and brush.

LAKE WYLIE: Largemouth Bass: Good, casting spinner baits and medium-running crankbaits along points close to the bottom. Striped Bass: Good, using spoons and bucktails behind Lake Wylie dam. White Bass: Good, below the dam casting smaller bucktails and spoons. Crappie: Excellent, using small minnows and jigs around docks, piers and brush tops in 5 to 10 of water. Catfish: Good, fishing on the bottom with a variety of baits. Shellcrackers: Good. Try using redworms and crickets on the bottom. Bream: Good. Try using earthworms and crickets around the banks.

 

MIDLANDS AREA

LAKE GREENWOOD: Largemouth Bass: Very Good, using spinnerbaits around structure at 2 to 6 feet. Good catches reported on floating worms around docks and sea walls in shallow water. Stripers: Good, behind the dam using Bombers, Charlie plugs, and flukes. Also good catches in lower lake with bucktails and Berry spoons. Good catches around bird activity over the water. White Bass and White Perch: Good, Try casting and jigging Berry Spoons. Also, good catches up the Saluda River. Crappie: Good using small to medium minnows, mini jigs and slider jigs around brush in up to 10 feet of water. Many limits being caught. Good catches below the dam using minnows. Catfish: Good. Try using redworms in 6 to 8 feet of water. Bream: Good, with redworms and crickets along shoreline structure and docks in 4 to 6 feet of water.

LAKE WATEREE: Largemouth Bass: Good, casting spinnerbaits and shallow-running crankbaits. Striped Bass: Good, using cut shad, live shad and bucktails at the Cedar Creek Dam. White Bass: Slow. White Perch: Good, casting and jigging Twister-tail grubs and live minnows. Crappie: Good, backs of creeks trolling Wow grubs, Sliders, Kalin's grubs. Good catches jigging around piers. Catfish: Good, using earthworms, nightcrawlers, shrimp, small pieces of cut bait and live shad, grubs and jigs in shallow water in backs of creeks. Bream: Good. Try worms fished around piers with brush. Bream are starting to pick-up. Lake is clearing.

LAKE MURRAY: Largemouth Bass: Excellent, fishing Carolina rigs, Texas rigs, top water plugs, spinnerbaits and jerk baits around shrubs and brush in 3 to 4 feet of water. In deeper water try one-ounce spinnerbaits and jigs. Bigger fish reported caught in deeper water. Striped Bass: Good, all over the lake fish in 20 to 35 feet of water with cut bait and live bait, trolling also producing catches. Crappie: Good, around brush piles using minnows and jigs in 8 to 15 feet of water. In 8 feet of water, fish at depth of 3 feet In 15 feet of water, fish at a depth of 8 feet Some crappie are moving into shallow water. White Perch: Good, jigging with small spoons in 8 to 20 feet of water. Good catches also with live tuffies and red worms. Catfish: Good, using cut herring and nightcrawlers on the bottom 3 to 10 feet deep. Fish are moving into shallow water. Bream: Good, using redworms and crickets around new flooded grass 2- 8 ft water fish are starting to bed.

 

SANTEE COOPER SYSTEM

LAKE MARION: Largemouth Bass: Good, using artificial worms, Carolina rigs and bucktails fishing along the banks and points, especially in the morning. Striped Bass: Fair, using live shiners with down rods in 25 feet of water and trolling with red headed rebels. Some schooling reported and catches with top water plugs. White Perch: Slow. Try jigging off the bottom with Hopkins spoons. Crappie: Excellent. Try using small and medium minnows over deep brush piles, bridge pilings and piers. Catfish: Excellent, using cut bait, cut shad, herring and shiners off the bottom in deep water. Good catches in shallow water at night. Bream and Shellcrackers: Very Good. Good size fish being caught using redworms and crickets in 4 to 6 feet of water and moving shallow.

LAKE MOULTRIE: Largemouth Bass: Good. Try casting spinnerbaits, plastic worms and lizards along docks and structure. Also, casting Rattletraps and Rapala lures around the Pinopolis point and the old hatchery. Striped Bass: Good. Good catches in the early morning and at night fishing with live herring 40 feet deep around the power plant and the Pinopolis Dam. Also some catches trolling with Stretch-25s. Crappie: Good, using crickets, small to medium minnows and Beetlespins around fish attraction areas and brush piles. Catfish: Good, using cut herring, menhaden (which are schooling), chicken livers and shiners 10 to 20 feet deep near the bottom along dike edges and around the dam. Bream: Good, using crickets and red worms around fish attraction areas and crappie beds. Shellcrackers: Good. Try crickets and red worms along the banks along river runs and points.

REPORTERS: The S.C. Department of Natural Resources appreciates the cooperation of fishing trend reporters for South Carolina's major lakes: Jocassee - Hoyett's Tackle; Keowee - Fishing Hole; Hartwell - Lake Hartwell Fishing and Marine; Russell - Tony's Bait and Tackle; Thurmond - Bladon's; Wylie - Catawba Tackle; Greenwood - Sportsman's Friend; Wateree - Wateree Marina; Murray - Dooley's Sport Shop; Marion - Lanes; and Moultrie - Atkins Boat Landing.

- Written by G. Michael Willis -

For South Carolina freshwater fishing regulations: http://www.dnr.state.sc.us/etc/rulesregs/img/freshfishing.pdf

 

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