News Release
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 | Largemouth Bass: Fair to Good, casting topwater lures and Carolina-rigged green worms. Night fishing has been productive around points and secondary points using black buzzbaits and surface lures. |
| Trout: Fair, fishing early morning and at night using cut bait, minnows and herring 70 to 80 feet deep. Also trolling early morning and during the day with Sutton spoons and Yozuri baits. |
| Smallmouth Bass: Fair, casting brown hair jigs or small plastic worms or grubs on rocky points and rocky banks. |
| Crappie: Slow. Try small minnows and jigs around brush piles. |
| Catfish: Fair, using nightcrawlers or cut bait on bottom. |
| Bream: Good, using crickets and redworms around banks and brush. |
Lake Keowee:
| Largemouth Bass: Good, night fishing with buzzbaits and plastic worms in shallow water. Increased schooling early morning and mid-day. |
| Crappie: Fair, using small minnows and jigs in 20 to 25 feet of water around brush piles and bridge pilings. |
| Catfish: Good, using jumbo minnows, nightcrawlers and cut bait on the bottom. |
| Bream: Excellent, using redworms and crickets around brush piles and around stumps. Also, try fishing around bridge pilings. |
Lake Hartwell:
| Largemouth Bass: Good, using spinnerbaits, bucktails and Roadrunners. |
| Striped and Hybrid Bass: Fair, in lower end of lake with live herring, jigs and jerkbaits around 30-feet deep. Also casting to schools with Super Flukes. |
| Crappie: Fair, using small and medium size minnows 15 to 20 feet deep around bridge pilings, docks and brush piles. |
| Catfish: Good, using cut herring, large shiners nightcrawlers, shrimp and chicken livers on the bottom. |
| Bream: Good, using redworms and crickets under boat docks and bridges. |
Piedmont Area
Lake Russell:
| Largemouth Bass: Good, try shallow creeks, flats, and rocky points with medium-running crankbaits and plastic worms. Better at night. |
| Yellow Perch: Fair, fishing medium minnows deep and jigging spoons. |
| Striped and Hybrid Bass: Good, early morning with bucktails, cut and live herring and jigs especially when water is running below dam. Night fishing has been the most productive. |
| White Bass: Good, using bucktails, spinners and live bait below dam. |
| Crappie: Good, using minnows around brush piles and bridge pilings in 14 to 15 feet of water. Also try fishing jigs along banks with cover. Catfish: Good, using cut bait and nightcrawlers on the bottom. |
| Bream: Excellent, using red wigglers, pinks, crickets and nightcrawlers around bridge pilings. |
Lake Thurmond:
| Largemouth Bass: Good, casting plastic worms. Also, try Little Cleos, spinnerbaits and top water plugs. Good catches with deep-running Rebels and ShadRaps. |
| Striped and Hybrid Bass: Good, using Cleos, Berry Spoons, 1/2 ounce yellow and white RoadRunners with bucktails and KastMasters. Good catches around the dam in 30 to 50 feet of water. Also, try large minnows and live herring. |
| Crappie: Good, using small minnows and jigs around deep brush tops. |
| Catfish: Good, using cut bait and nightcrawlers fishing on the bottom. |
| Bream: Good, using Louisiana pink worms, crickets and jumbo redworms around the banks. |
Lake Wylie:
| Largemouth Bass: Good, casting bass jigs and medium-running crankbaits along points close to the bottom. |
| Striped Bass: Good, using spoons and bucktails behind Lake Wylie dam. |
| White Bass: Good, casting small bucktails and spoons. |
| Crappie: Good, using small minnows and jigs around brush tops in 20 to 25 feet of water. Best time to catch crappies is at night. |
| Catfish: Good, using nightcrawlers on the bottom. |
| Shellcracker: Good, using redworms and crickets on the bottom. |
| Bream: Good, using earthworms, redworms and crickets around the banks. |
Midlands Area
Lake Greenwood:
| Largemouth Bass: Good, using plastic worms and lizards around points and in brush piles in 8 to 12 feet of water. Floating worms and topwater lures early in the morning are producing some fish along banks. |
| Stripers: Good, behind the dam using Bombers, Charlie plugs, and Flukes. |
| White Bass and White Perch: Good, Schools are scattered over lake, popping Striper Bug lures used behind popping cork, producing good catches. Good results jigging with Berry Spoons in 10 to 12 feet of water. |
| Crappie: Fair, using small to medium minnows and mini jigs over brush in 12 to 15 feet of water. Night fishing is the most productive. |
| Catfish: Good, using cut bait and nightcrawlers on the bottom. |
| Bream: Fair, using redworms and crickets along shore and docks. |
Lake Wateree:
| Largemouth Bass: Good, casting to deep banks with deep-running crankbaits and plastic worms. |
| Striped Bass: Fair, using cut bait in the lower end of the lake, 40 to 50 feet of water, near the dam. Some fish being caught below Wateree Dam with topwater lures. |
| Crappie: Fair, try trolling with Wow grubs or Slider grubs. Fish are at the mouths of major feeder creeks suspended in the water column 12 feet deep. |
| Catfish: Good, using live shad, small pieces of shrimp and cut bait close to bottom in 10 to 20 feet of water and deeper down the lake. Night fishing has been productive along underwater bars off points. |
| Bream: Excellent, using crickets and redworms. |
Lake Murray:
| Largemouth Bass: Good, using topwater lures early in the morning and floating worms, jerk baits and along the banks and fishing Flukes off of the main lake points. Try fishing Short Carolina-rigged worms midday around stumps and other structure in 8 to 20 feet of water. |
| Striped Bass: Good, using live bait on downrods and free-lining at depths of 40 to 70 feet. Fish are schooling very early, Good catches with topwater plugs, pencil poppers and striper delights. |
| Crappie: Fair, using jigs and small tuffies trolling in creek runs and in the upper part of lake around the confluence of the little and big Saluda rivers. Try medium minnows fishing brush piles at depths of 10 to 20 feet. |
| White Perch: Good, jigging Flex-it spoons. |
| Catfish: Fair, using cut herring and nightcrawlers on bottom. |
| Bream: Fair. Try fishing redworms, baby night crawlers and crickets in 3 to 15 feet of water. |
| Shellcrackers: Fair, using redworms and baby night crawlers in 6 to 20 feet of water. |
Santee Cooper System
Lake Marion:
| Largemouth Bass: Fair, using artificial worms, and topwater Rebels fishing along the banks and point early in the morning. |
| Striped Bass: Fair, using shad and live herring with down rods in 25 feet of water. |
| White 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: Excellent, fishing with live herring and cut shad off the bottom in deep water. |
| Bream and Shellcrackers: Excellent, using redworms and crickets in 4
to 8 feet of water. |
Lake Moultrie:
| Largemouth Bass: Good, casting, spinnerbaits, plastic worms and lizards along docks and structure. |
| Striped Bass: Good, Jigging and with down-rods in 30 feet of water with live herring near the powerhouse and also trolling stretch 25's when live bait does not produce fish in 30 feet of water. Night fishing has been the most productive. |
| Crappie: Fair, using small to medium minnows and Beetlespins around fish attraction areas and brush piles. |
| Catfish: Excellent, using cut shad, herring, menhaden, live large shiners and nightcrawlers 30 - 35 feet deep. |
| Bream: Excellent, using crickets, redworms, and small minnows, around manmade fish attractors and around the dam. |
| Shellcrackers: Fair, try redworms and green 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 - 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