NEWS RELEASE
February 13, 2006
DNR News (803) 734-3950

Freshwater Fishing Trends:

Mountains Area

Lake Jocassee: Largemouth Bass: Fair, casting Carolina-rigged worms and Hopkins, Berry or flexing spoons. Trout: Good, trolling from 60 feet to surface with Doctor, Sutton, Bad Creek, Lucky Jak’s spoons or drift fishing 30 to 40 feet deep with large minnows. Smallmouth Bass: Fair, casting brown hair jigs or drifting live bait on rocky points and rocky banks. Crappie: Slow. Try using small minnows. Catfish: Fair, using night crawlers or cut bait on bottom. Bream: Slow. Try earthworms around banks and brush.

Lake Keowee: Largemouth Bass: Fair, doodling plastic worms, also try jigging spoons in deeper water. Crappie: Fair. Try small minnows and jigs in 10 to 15 feet of water around brush piles and bridge pilings. Catfish: Fair, using nightcrawlers and cut bait on bottom. Bream: Slow. Try red-worms around brush piles and around stumps.

Lake Hartwell: Largemouth Bass: Fair, using buzzbaits and planer boards to get bait close to shore. Also try using spinnerbaits 20-30 deep. Striped and Hybrid Bass: Fair, with live herring on down line, drifting and anchored. Crappie: Fair, using medium minnows in about 10 feet of water. Catfish: Good, using shrimp and chicken livers, cut herring, large shiners, and nightcrawlers on the bottom. Bream: Good, using red worms around brush piles.

Piedmont Area

Lake Russell: Largemouth Bass: Slow. Try worms, lizards and deep crank baits. Yellow Perch: Fair. Try fishing minnows deep. Striped and Hybrid Bass: Fair. Try jigging bucktails. White Bass: Poor. Try bucktails, spinners and live bait below dam. Crappie: Fair. Try using minnows and jigs around brush piles and bridges. Catfish: Fair, using cut bait on the bottom. Bream: Slow. Try fishing deep with crickets or live worms.

Lake Thurmond: Largemouth Bass: Good. Try casting plastic worms, Cleos and spinnerbaits and deep-running plugs. Striped and Hybrid Bass: Good, using Roadrunners, Mr. Champ spoons or deep-running Rebels. Crappie: Good, around docks using jigs and minnows. Fair, using worms on the bottom. Bream: Fair, using earthworms around the banks.

Lake Wylie: Largemouth Bass: Excellent, using large spinnerbaits and lures casting around deep points and drop-offs. White Bass: Good, using small spinners and jigs. Crappie: Excellent, jigs and minnows 15-20 feet over brush. Catfish: Good, using nightcrawlers on the bottom. Shellcrackers: Try using redworms and crickets on the bottom. Bream: Slow. Try red-worms and nightcrawlers from the bank.

Midlands Area

Lake Greenwood: Largemouth Bass: Fair. Try using crankbaits off main points or jigging around brush piles and deep holes and using crankbaits in mixed schools from mid-lake on down. Stripers: Fair, using live bait, herring or shad 20 to 25 feet deep. White Perch: Fair. Try fishing deep with minnows, spoons and earthworms. Crappie: Good, using small minnows in 12 feet of water over brush. Catfish: Fair, using cut bait and worms on the bottom. Bream: Poor. Try using crickets and red worms.

Lake Wateree: Largemouth Bass: Fair. Try using artificial worms and crankbaits. Striped bass: Good. Try fishing with down-rods 14 feet deep with small shiners in 25-35 feet of water. White Bass: Slow. Try trolling shad-like baits or same as striper fishing. Crappie: Fair. Try using small minnows. Catfish: Good, live shad, minnows or worms in the creeks. Bream: Slow. Try crickets and worms deep.

Lake Murray: Largemouth Bass: Fair, using shallow running crankbaits in the back of coves in running baitfish or jigging spoons deep water. Also try Carolina rig worms in the grass. Striped Bass: Good, try dragging free lines along banks also using topwater plugs and drifting shiners. Crappie: Good, using jigs and small tuffies around bridge pilings and brush piles. White Perch: Good, using live minnows near the bottom. Catfish: Slow. Try cut herring near the bottom. Slow. Try fishing worms deep.

Santee Cooper System

Lake Marion: Largemouth Bass: Slow. Try topwater lures. Striped Bass: Slow. Try casting bucktails to schooling fish or fishing live small blueback herring, shad or shinersWhite Perch: Slow. Try jigging off the bottom with Hopkins spoons. Crappie: Fair, Try using small and medium minnows over deep brush piles, bridge pilings and piers. Catfish: Good, using cut shad off the bottom in deep water. Bream and Shellcrackers: Bream: Slow. Try using worms near the bottom.

Lake Moultrie: Largemouth Bass: Good. Try using or Carolina-rigged worms, spinnerbaits or Sammie lures. Also try using plastic worms and crankbaits. Striped Bass: Good, trolling with artificial worms. Crappie: Fair. Try using small to medium minnows and Beetlespins around fish attraction areas and brush piles. Catfish: Good, using cut bait 20-35 deep. Bream: Fair. Try using crickets, redworms, and small minnows, around manmade fish attractors. Shellcrackers: Slow, try redworms 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 - Jocassee Outdoor Center; 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, Lake World; Marion - Randolph's Landing; and Moultrie - Atkins Boat Landing.

- Written by Brett Witt -

For South Carolina freshwater fish regulations: http://www.dnr.state.sc.us/regs/pdf/freshfishing.pdf

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