Do you like to head out on new adventures or do you prefer to go to a “regular” fishing hole? If you are looking for something different, we hope some of this info below provides some inspiration!

• Find new fishing places, catch more fish – 5 Steps to Finding a Public Fishing Opportunity.
• Need a smile today? Cade (in our blog header photo) has one for you. Check out his great grin with this mighty nice largemouth he landed at Rocky Mountain PFA. Cade’s dad, Clint Henderson (who also got a nice walleye on this trip), reports the water is warm and the bass are deep. Look for fish holding on deep brush or rock piles in the 10- 12 foot depth range. Best bets are to fish Shakey Heads or big ribbontail plastic worms slowly around the deep structure – a pattern that will hold until fall.
• Lucky Lunker Catch! Angler Mike Chance caught a nice 23 ½-inch largemouth bass on the Savannah River near Augusta this week.

While we don’t have a lot of reports this week, we do have a mighty nice one from Southeast Georgia. Give it a read, make your plans, and then Go Fish Georgia!

SOUTHEAST GEORGIA 

(Fishing report courtesy of Bert Deener, fisheries biologist with Georgia DNR Wildlife Resources Division, with help from Region Staff and Local Experts)

The few reports I got from the Satilla were great with the fish biting again now that there is water and you can get at them. Swamp fishing was fantastic and saltwater was very good, especially for flounder. Pond fishing was solid again this week. New Moon is July 2nd. To monitor all the Georgia river levels, visit the USGS website HERE.

ALTAMAHA RIVER

The river is still high and muddy. J.J. and Lance at Altamaha Park said that in the lower, tidal area the flathead catfish bite was best this week with lots of nice fish caught. Anglers catching bream for bait were having trouble, as the panfish that inhaled their crickets were too big to use for bait. That’s a good problem to have… when you are not targeting them for catfish bait. Lots of mullet were caught with green worms. The surprise of the week was that the crappie bite picked up. Anglers did well with minnows fished around cover in oxbow lakes. The river level was 6.6 feet and falling (85 degrees) at the Baxley gage, and 8.6 feet and rising (84 degrees) at the Doctortown gage on June 25th.

SATILLA RIVER

Please keep the family of Sonny Lewis in your prayers, as he passed away in an accident on the river this weekend. The upper river provided great fishing for Chris Nugent who floated the river on Saturday. He smacked some big redbreasts, catching a total of 62 fish on crawfish Satilla Spins. Some of his fish were the giants like he caught this spring. On Wednesday, Rob Murray fished the Brantley County section for 2 1/2 hours and caught a dozen panfish (mostly redbreasts) on the small side and a small gar by pitching crickets. He said it started clouding up as the slug arrived while he was fishing. John Hal Barnett of Waycross caught a big warmouth on Saturday by pitching a cricket. His fish missed the river record by just a few ounces. You’d better get out there this weekend if you want another shot at them. Floating is the perfect way to approach the river this weekend, but you can use a boat if you don’t mind dragging around a few trees and over sandbars. Michael Winge of Winge’s Bait and Tackle in Waycross said that the water was clearing and the catches were good. Redbreasts were eating copperfield and black/chartreuse Satilla Spins and black/chartreuse beetlespins in the upper river. Anglers caught some nice bream by pitching crickets. Good creels of catfish were reported by anglers putting shrimp on the bottom. The river level on June 25th at the Waycross gage was 5.2 feet and falling (83 degrees), and the Atkinson gage was 4.4 feet and falling.

ST. MARYS RIVER

Catfishing has been great, with whiskerfish taking about any bait you wanted to put on the bottom. Some big bream were caught with crickets in the tidewater portion of the river. For information about bream tournaments on the river, check out Shady Bream Tournaments on Facebook. The group plans to hold one more tournament this year, and it is slated for July. The river level at the Macclenny gage on June 25th was 1.6 feet and falling.

ALAPAHA RIVER

On Thursday Eddie Vickers from Douglas caught lots of redbreasts in the middle river by pitching crickets. He said that they were on the small side. The river level on June 25th at the Statenville gage was 1.9 feet and rising.

OKEFENOKEE SWAMP

Zane caught this nice warmouth last month on a worm and a Catfish Catcher Jighead. The warmouth bite has been good in the Okefenokee and the rivers lately.

Glen Solomon and George Gillette did great on the east and west sides this week, catching fliers and warmouth on sallies and Glen’s favorite 4-inch worm. They hammered the bowfin and a few pickerel (jackfish) on Dura-Spins. Their best colors were fire tiger, and jackfish. Glen fished by himself on Friday on the east side and caught 82 bowfin along with several other species on Dura-Spins. Other anglers reported catching warmouth on the east side by going early and pitching crickets. On the west side the warmouth are still biting well. Catfish have also been biting well on the west side for those putting worms or shrimp on the bottom. Remember, your duck stamp runs out June 30th, so you will need to get another duck stamp or Okefenokee annual pass once your duck stamp expires.

LOCAL PONDS

Chad Lee and Daniel Johnson reported the biggest bass I heard of this week. Daniel had two 7-pounders while fishing with Chad on Friday night from dark until about midnight. He caught them on a black/blue Christie Craw and a Whopper Plopper topwater. Chad had a 2-pounder on a Whopper Plopper. On Saturday, Chad fished the morning and caught a few small ones on a hollow-body frog and senkos. Saturday evening he caught a half-dozen in the 2-pound range that inhaled a jointed snake bait. Monday evening Chad caught a nice fish on a frog, and Tuesday evening he had a 5-pounder and a couple 3-pounders on the snake crankbait. Michael Winge reported that in Waycross area ponds, big bream were fooled with crickets and catfish ate worms.

SALTWATER (GA COAST)

Ed Zmarzly caught a 22-inch doormat flounder on Sunday while pitching a chartreuse bucktail jig to the St Marys Jetties. He also had another 17-inch flounder, a few black sea bass, and 2 trout with the same presentation. He saw over 100 tarpon roll and had a hit, but was unable to catch any. He said that the water color was beautiful. On Saturday he fished around St Simons and caught 25 seatrout on topwater walking baits (white/chartreuse) fished around shell mounds. Steve and Brenda Hampton fished for flounder from the Jekyll Pier two trips this weekend and landed 3 keepers. It was a little slow, but the fish they caught were solid 15-plus inch fish. Steve’s solid keeper on Saturday inhaled a mud minnow fished on a Capt. Bert’s Stand-up Flounder Head. They have started a Facebook page “Flat Fish Fanatics”, so check that out if you are interested. Brentz and Alex McGhin went crabbing from a boat in the Brunswick area and only caught a few, but then got up on the dock and caught them well. They ended up with a couple of pounds of crab meat. Michael Winge reported that in the Brunswick area, tripletail were caught around the markers inside. On the offshore reefs, the kingfish and Spanish mackerel have showed up. Waycross anglers reported catching trout and redfish around creek mouths and oyster beds. Seatrout catches were good for anglers fishing the beach this week. Mike and Trish Wooten of St. Simons Bait & Tackle reported that the flounder bite was tops from the pier. Both mudminnows and curly-tail grubs produced fish. Whiting and sharks were also caught in good numbers. Baskets produced some good blue crab catches. You can monitor the marine forecast HERE.

BEST BET

The water level is good for a float trip on the Satilla. Expect to catch redbreasts, bluegills, stumpknockers, and warmouth by pitching crickets or flinging artificials. In saltwater, flounder fishing from the piers or at the jetties should be good. Pitching bucktails to the St Marys Jetties for redfish or flounder, working live bait for tarpon, or fishing the beach for seatrout should be good if the weather allows. Pond fishing should be consistent for bream or bass. If you want to catch lots of bowfin in the Okefenokee, now is the time to go!