NEWS RELEASE
May 8, 2006
DNR News (803) 734-3950

Freshwater Fishing Trends:

Mountains Area

Lake Jocassee: Good, slow retrieves with plastic worms, casting Carolina-rigged worms and spinnerbaits. Trout: Excellent, trolling with Apex lures, Sutton spoons and Yozuri baits from 30 to 60 feet deep. Smallmouth Bass: Fair. Try drifting large minnows along red clay and rocky points. Crappie: Slow. Try using small minnows. Catfish: Fair, using night crawlers or cut bait on bottom. Bream: Slow. Try worms or crickets.

Lake Keowee: Largemouth Bass: Good, fish moving into shallow water around grass. Try jerkbaits, spinnerbaits, crankbaits, buzzbaits, floating worms and Carolina-rigged worms in green or red colors in 5 to 10 feet of water or less off rocky points. Crappie: Excellent. Try small minnows and jigs in 5 to 10 feet of water around brush piles and bridge pilings. Catfish: Fair. Try using nightcrawlers and cut bait on bottom. Bream: Fair. Try using red worms and crickets around brush piles.

Lake Hartwell: Largemouth Bass: Good, using 5 to 6 inch lizards, crankbaits, spinnerbaits, topwater lures, floating and Carolina-rigged worms. Striped and Hybrid Bass: Good, free-lining live blueback herring up in the creeks. Crappie: Good, using medium and small minnows in about 10 feet of water. Catfish: Good, using cut herring, nightcrawlers and chicken livers on the bottom. Bream: Excellent, using crickets and worms 5 to 8 feet deep.

Piedmont Area

Lake Russell: Largemouth Bass: Fair. Try casting shallow crankbaits along rocky points and in the back of creeks. Yellow Perch: Fair. Try fishing minnows deep. Striped and Hybrid Bass: Good. 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: Fair. Try fishing along steep banks with crickets and earthworms.

Lake Thurmond: Largemouth Bass: Good, casting plastic lizards and worms. Also try Little Cleos and spinnerbaits. Striped and Hybrid Bass: Excellent, using Cleos, Berry Spoons. Crappie: Excellent, around docks using jigs and minnows. Catfish: Good, using worms on the bottom. Bream: Fair. Try crickets and worms 3 to 8 feet deep around brush.

Lake Wylie: Largemouth Bass: Good, casting plastic lizards and floating worms in the back of creeks. White Bass: Good, casting small spinners and jigs. Crappie: Good, using jigs and minnows around piers about 10 to 15 feet deep. Catfish: Good, using nightcrawlers on the bottom. Shellcrackers: Fair. Try using redworms and crickets on the bottom. Bream: Good, using earthworms and crickets around the banks.

Midlands Area

Lake Greenwood: Largemouth Bass: Good, casting floating worms and plastic lizards in very shallow water around docks and structure. Also try plastic worms and lizards of rocky points with a slow retrieve. Stripers: Good, using live bait, herring or shad 15 to 20 feet deep. White Perch: Good, using berryspoons in 12 to 15 feet of water. Also some schooling activity reported. Crappie: Fair. Try using minnows and mini jigs over brush in deeper water. Catfish: Good, using cut bait and worms on the bottom. Bream: Fair. Try using cricket and redworms along shore and brush piles.

Lake Wateree: Largemouth Bass: Fair. Try using spinnerbaits and floating worms in 3 to 4 feet of water in the back of coves and around docks. Striped Bass: Fair. Try using cut shad on the bottom near Cedar Creek. White Bass: Good, using small live shad and jigs. Crappie: Excellent, using minnows and grubs around piers and in shallows, also trolling and drifting with jigs. Catfish: Good, using live minnows or worms in the creeks. Bream: Fair, using crickets and earthworms in warmer areas of coves.

Lake Murray: Largemouth Bass: Excellent, using spinnerbaits, number 5 or 7 Shad Raps or Carolina-rigged worms around rocky points and grass. Striped Bass: Good, try drifting shiners in 6 to 8 feet of water. Crappie: Good, using jigs and small tuffies around bridge pilings and brush piles. White Perch: Good, using live minnows near the bottom. Catfish: Good using cut herring and nightcrawlers on the bottom. Bream: Good, using crickets and worms shallow around docks and bushes.

Santee Cooper System

Lake Marion: Largemouth Bass: Excellent, using artificial worms deep. Crankbaits and white spinnerbaits are being fished along the banks. Striped Bass: Fair. Try casting bucktails to schooling fish or fishing live small blueback herring, shad or shiners. White Perch: Slow. Try jigging off the bottom with Hopkins spoons. Crappie: Fair, using small and medium minnows over deep brush piles, bridge pilings and piers. Catfish: Good, using cut shad in the shallows. Bream and Shellcrackers: Excellent, using crickets, red worms, wigglers and nightcrawlers.

Lake Moultrie: Largemouth Bass: Fair, casting, spinnerbaits, plastic worms and lizards along docks and structure. Striped Bass: Good, fishing live herring 30 to 50 feet deep using down-rods. Crappie: Fair. Try minnows around fish attraction areas. Catfish: Good, using cut bait 20 to 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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