With Friday the 13th landing this week, it feels like a bit of a Freaky Friday on the water—but there’s nothing unlucky about what’s happening behind the scenes at one of Georgia’s hatcheries. This week, staff at the Walton Fish Hatchery are busy spawning walleye, marking an important step in supporting this popular sportfish across the state.

These efforts help maintain and enhance walleye fishing opportunities, giving anglers more chances to hook into this cool-water favorite. While the hatchery crew handles the hard work, anglers can enjoy getting out on Georgia’s lakes and reservoirs as spring fishing continues to pick up statewide.

If you would like to learn more about how to fish for walleye or GA DNR’s walleye program, follow this link, georgiawildlife.com/fishing/walleye.

NEWS TO KNOW:

This week, we have fishing reports from Central, Southeast, Southwest and North Georgia. It’s Friday the 13th, so try your luck on the water this weekend and Go Fish Georgia!

CENTRAL GEORGIA

(Fishing report courtesy of Matthew Gerber, Fisheries Biologist with the Georgia DNR Wildlife Resources Division, with help from Region Staff and Local Experts)

This week’s Central Georgia fishing report is brought to you by Ken Sturdivant’s Southern Fishing Report, and contributions from Region 3 WRD Fisheries staff, local guides, and anglers.

RESERVOIR REPORT 

CLARKS HILL LAKE

CLARKS HILL IS DOWN 6.7 FEET, 50’S – Bass fishing is fair. The fish that have committed shallow for the spawn will stay in those general areas and they just may be much less active. The front will negatively affect those fish that were close to spawning or fish that were just starting to move up. It is hard to say exactly what the prevailing pattern will be post cold front. More cold fronts on the way, but a rebound will happen fast.

LAKE OCONEE

LAKE OCONEE IS FULL, 50’S – Bass fishing is good. The temperature is 57 to 62 degrees. The main lake is stained from I20 to Lick Creek, Richland creek is clear to the dam. Fishing is good all over the lake. Spoons fished on the deep humps and roadbeds on the south end of the lake will produce good fish. There are also a lot of fish at shallow depths. Wood is the key. Small crank baits fished along seawalls and around docks will also draw a strike. Jigs fished on the riprap have also produced good-sized fish. Match the jig to the color of the water.

LAKE SINCLAIR

LAKE SINCLAIR IS FULL, 60’S – Bass fishing is good. Fish in the central lake area from 2 to 10 feet deep. The shallow fish are active with warming temperatures. Bass are coming from several different places within the central lake. Check main lake points with rocky bottoms, secondary points, docks, riprap, grass, blow downs, stumps, and brush piles. A few random fish are coming from shallow flat banks with little or no cover. Small to medium size crank baits, Rat L Traps, Carolina rigs, jigs, and spinner baits have all produced recently. Some crank bait choices are #5 and #7 Rapala Shad Raps, #4 and #5 RS Shad Raps, Bomber Models 5A, 6A, and 7A, and Fat Free Shads in sizes #5 and #6. Some good colors are fire tiger, shad, chrome blue, and gold. A Rat L Trap in the ¼ ounce size can be good on shallow flat banks and points, and near the back of coves. Carolina rigs with a Zoom Finesse or Centipede worm are working well, especially on the points. Use a half ounce weight with a 2 foot leader. Good colors are green pumpkin, June bug, and red bug. Lightweight jigs with pork or plastic trailers are catching some fish around docks, rip rap, and blow downs.

PUBLIC FISHING AREA REPORT

MARBEN PUBLIC FISHING AREA (courtesy of PFA Manager Jamie Dowd)–

• Marben PFA Information
• Water Level: Most ponds remain slightly below full pool; recent rains have improved conditions.
• Water Clarity: Clear to lightly stained
• Surface Temperature: Warming into the 50s
• Marben PFA Fishing Guide

Marben PFA is a great place to shake off cabin fever and enjoy early spring fishing. As always, anglers are encouraged to adjust tactics based on daily conditions and water temperatures.

Spring conditions are beginning to take hold at Marben PFA, and warming water temperatures have anglers eager to get back on the water. As daylight increases and temperatures rise, fish activity should steadily improve across all ponds. 

Bass: Bass fishing is expected to improve as water temperatures continue to warm. Fish will begin moving shallower during stable, warming trends. Anglers should focus on soft plastics, spinnerbaits, and shallow-running crankbaits around shoreline cover, woody structure, and pond points during the afternoon hours when water temperatures peak. 

Crappie: Crappie will transition from deeper winter holding areas toward shallow structure as spawning approaches. Target brush, submerged timber, and pond edges with minnows or small jigs. Fishing success should improve significantly with consecutive days of warm weather. 

Bream: Spring is an excellent time to target bream at Marben. Recent bluegill stockings will provide additional opportunities for anglers, and fish will become more active as water temperatures rise. Red wigglers and crickets fished near the bottom around shoreline cover and shallow structure should produce steady action. As spawning activity increases later in the season, anglers can expect even better catch rates. 

Channel Catfish: Catfish activity will increase with warming water temperatures. Anglers fishing cut bait, worms, or prepared baits on the bottom should begin to see improving success, particularly during the evening hours.

MCDUFFIE PUBLIC FISHING AREA (courtesy of Area Manager Chalisa Fabillar)–

• McDuffie PFA Information
• McDuffie PFA Fishing Guide

FLAT CREEK PUBLIC FISHING AREA (courtesy of Area Manager Amory Cook)–

• Flat Creek PFA Information
• Water Level: 38.5” below full pool

• Water Temperature: Low 70’s
• Water Clarity: 26″
• Flat Creek PFA Fishing Guide

Bass: Water temps are up and so is the bass activity. Bass are in shallower waters and exhibiting spawning activities. Anglers are reporting catches using swimbaits and spinnerbaits in white/chartreuse

Bream: Red Wigglers continue to produce Bream. Target the treetops next to the boat ramp.

Crappie: The crappie bite has been steady. The treetops to the right of the boat ramp have been a popular spot for crappie.  Minnows continue to be the choice bait.

Catfish: Catfish activity should be picking up soon. Remember the PFA lake record for catfish is still open and the minimum requirement to qualify is 12lbs or 32in long. You must have the catch weighed on a certified scale and properly documented.  Should you land a catfish that you believe to be at least 12 pounds (about 30 inches long), please notify DNR staff.

If you are having difficulty catching fish at FCPFA, try talking to other anglers. Flat Creek PFA receives high pressure, and it can take some time to narrow down techniques and locations where fish are biting.

SOUTHEAST GEORGIA

(Fishing report courtesy of Joshua Barber, with help from Region Staff and Local Experts)

The warm weather is about to unfortunately come to a halt next week (will be in 30s for a few days). Fish may be a little sluggish with the cold front rolling in tonight but should still bite. Rivers and ponds have been producing some good fish lately so that’s where I would recommend fishing at for next few days.

River Gages as of March 12th:

• Doctortown on the Altamaha – 9.1 feet and falling
• Lumber City on the Ocmulgee – 6.9 feet and rising
• Clyo on the Savannah – 4.2 feet and falling
• Statenville on the Alapaha – 3.1 feet and falling
• Waycross on the Satilla – 6.2 feet and steady
• Atkinson on the Satilla – 5.0 feet and steady
• Quitman on the Withlacoochee – 2.2 feet and steady
• Macclenny on the Saint Marys – 2.0 feet and steady
• Fargo on the Suwannee – 1.5 feet and steady

New Moon is on March 18th. To monitor all the Georgia river levels, visit the USGS website. For the latest marine forecast, check out weather.gov/jax/.

ALTAMAHA/OCMULGEE RIVERS

Seth Carter and Quinton McMichael fished the lower river last Saturday and caught 25 nice bass. They used speed worms to fool them. Jim O’Conner ventured to the upper Ocmulgee River last weekend in hopes to get on some spotted bass. Despite the strong current and stained water, he managed to land a dozen spotted bass while using a Strike King Mini-King firetiger spinnerbait. I heard that some anglers have been catching panfish on the lower Altamaha lately.

ALAPAHA  RIVER

Cj Smith and I fished the upper river on Monday morning for bass. We caught a nice mess of them (lost count) including one around 5 pounds. Buzzbaits, glidebaits, and jerkbaits worked best. A local angler reported that he caught a 6-lb. 13-oz. and a 4-lb. 2-oz. last Friday. Alvin Thift and a friend fished the river last week and landed 10 bass up to 2 ¾-lbs. I have also heard of some other big fish that have been caught in the last week.

SATILLA RIVER

Morris Carter and his wife fished downriver from Atkinson on Monday and caught 12 bluegill, 11 catfish, and 3 shellcrackers on live wigglers on bottom. They tried using crickets under a float but they wouldn’t touch it. Before your next trip to the river, stop by Satilla Feed and Outdoors located at 2270 US-84 in Blackshear. They have a variety of rods, reels, and fishing tackle. For their hours, call 912-449-3001.

OCMULGEE PUBLIC FISHING AREA (near Hawkinsville)

• Ocmulgee PFA Info
• Ocmulgee PFA Fishing Guide

HUGH M. GILLIS PUBLIC FISHING AREA (NEAR DUBLIN)

• Hugh Gillis PFA Information
• Hugh Gillis PFA Fishing Guide

DODGE COUNTY PUBLIC FISHING AREA (NEAR EASTMAN)

• Dodge County PFA Information  
• Dodge County Fishing Guide

PARADISE PUBLIC FISHING AREA

• Paradise Public Fishing Area Information 
• Paradise PFA Fishing Guide

LAKES AND PONDS

Mike Hendrix and Lowell Booth went down to Lake Iamonia last week and caught around 30 bass (top 5 went over 20 pounds). They caught their smaller fish in less than two feet of water and the big fish were caught 4-6 feet deep. They also said that some bass have already spawned but some of the big females still have eggs and are moving shallow now. Frogs, speed worms, flukes (Junebug color worked best), and a Devil’s Horse worked best. Two anglers fished at a Douglas area pond this morning and landed over 100 fliers while using Okefenokee Swamp Sallies. Captain Bert Deener and Teddy Elrod fished at a Brunswick area pond on Tuesday to celebrate Teddy’s birthday. They caught 64 bass and 55 channel catfish all on bass lures. They both had several bass in the 4-5 pound range. Plastic worms, crawfish, spinnerbaits, crankbaits, and a Blurple (blue and purple) colored Bert’s Bladed Fly fooled them. Don Harrison and Tim Bonvechio fished at a Turner County private pond recently and they boated 26 bass (biggest 5 ½-lbs.), 22 crappie (biggest 1 ¼-lbs.), and 3 bluegill. They used a combination of minnow tipped jigs and artificial lures. Cooper and Jackson Winn (with HeyCuz Outdoors) went fishing with their friend Josiah last weekend at a Lowndes County area pond. The trio caught a big mess of bluegill on Bill Dance Red Wigglers from Wormville USA. They will upload the video footage from that trip in their next video on their HeyCuz Outdoors YouTube channel. Rocky Barnard caught his personal best bass at a pond last Saturday. He caught the 6-lb. 5-oz. beast on a crawdad colored crankbait. Way to go Rocky! Danny Cooley and a friend fished at a pond last Sunday and caught 13 bass up to 5 pounds while using a black speed craw. Jimmy Zinker fished at a Worth County pond this week and landed two 5 pounders while using a buzzbait and a black 12-inch Mann Lake Jellyworm.

OKEFENOKEE SWAMP

A group of military families from Kings Bay visited the east side this morning. Some of them fished around the boat basin and caught a bunch of bowfin while using Dura-Spins. Daron and Jill from Illinois fished with Captain Bert Deener on the east side on Monday. They caught 103 fish (fliers, gar, and bowfin)! Pink Okefenokee Swamp Sallies worked best for the fliers and Dura-Spins fooled the bigger fish. Their biggest fish were 6-lbs. 2-oz., 5-lbs. 15-oz., and 5-lbs. 1-oz. The boat ramp on the west side (Stephen C. Foster State Park) is currently closed due to some renovations that are taking place around the boat basin. They estimate that it will probably be at least early May before it is reopened. Anglers can still launch kayaks and canoes though. Captain Bert Deener offers guided fishing trips in the Okefenokee. To book a trip with him, visit his website bertsjigsandthings.com. Recent Swamp level on the east side was 120.09 feet. Be careful driving your boat with the low water conditions.

SALTWATER (GEORGIA COAST)

Two anglers fished the feeder creeks around Jekyll Island yesterday and caught 40 trout while using live shrimp under a Harper’s Super Striker popping cork. The trout were in deep water (12 feet). Tom Lanyi fished with Captain Tim Cutting (fishthegeorgiacoast.com) in the Saint Simons area for the last three days. They caught 6 redfish, 6 trout, 2 flounder, and a couple of black drum on Monday. On Tuesday they caught 14 redfish (2 overslots), several black drum, a few flounder, and 4 trout. Yesterday they targeted sheepshead but only got on some small ones so they went searching for trout. They caught 20-25 trout and 15 of them were good sized ones. Captain Tim reported that he went back today and got on some nice trout. He didn’t catch as many but all were between 16-21 inches long. Swimbaits and live shrimp were the ticket.

Before your next fishing trip, stop by Winge’s Bait and Tackle located at 440 Memorial Drive in Waycross. They have all the tackle you need for a successful trip! For their hours, call 912-283-9400.

If you have any fishing reports or fish pictures that you would like to be included in this report, email them to me joshuabfishhunter@gmail.com or send them through Messenger on Southern Waters Fishing Report’s Facebook Page.

SOUTHWEST GEORGIA

(Fishing report courtesy of Caroline Cox, Fisheries Biologist , with help from Region Staff and Local Experts)

LAKE WALTER F GEORGE

According to Ken Sturdivant at Southern Fishing, Bass fishing is fair. Once the latest fronts roll through the fishing will rebound. Spinner baits will catch some fish around grass, stumps, and blow downs. Bass are also coming from deeper water down the lake in slightly clearer water. Most of these fish had been from 6 to 14 but in the last few days they have been mostly 10 to 18 feet deep. Look for them on main river and creek humps, flats, and points. Try the Bomber Fat Free Shad sizes 5 (Fingerling 3/8 ounce) & 6 (Jr. 1/2 ounce). Bomber Fat Free shad Citrus Shad. Most are holding on the sides of these structures near the sharper drops into very deep water. Jigging spoons, Carolina rigs and Little George’s are the best baits with deep crank baits working at times. Whether fishing shallow or deep, mid-winter fish are more sluggish and require slow bait presentations. Run the Lucky Craft 2.5 or 3.5dd Norman Deep Little N in 133 color.

Male crappies have been moving shallow, and the females should follow soon. There have been some reports of good catches off docks at night. The upcoming cold front may slow them down but expect fishing to pick up afterwards.

LAKE BLACKSHEAR

Congratulations to Silas Turner, of C&S Guide Service, for catching the new Georgia state record for longnose gar on Blackshear!

Water temperatures have been in the mid-60s this past week, so Largemouth will be moving into those backwater areas to spawn. This past week Crappie have been reported moving into the shallows, around 3 to 8 ft, to bed. If you are looking for them it would be a good place to start. Striped bass have been reported more up-river of Blackshear in deeper water while whites are roaming in shallow water all over upstream or near the ledges of the dam.

Keep an eye out for tagged fish! GA DNR will be tagging crappie this spring in Lake Blackshear to gauge angler catch rates. If you catch a tagged crappie, please remove the tag and call the Albany office at 229.430.4356. All tag returns will receive a free keychain to commemorate their catch and will be entered into a gift card raffle at the end of the study.

LAKE SEMINOLE

According to Ken Sturdivant at Southern Fishing, Bass fishing is good. The fish that have committed shallow for the spawn will stay in those general areas. Try the Bomber Fat Free Shad sizes 5 Fingerling 3/8 ounce and the Jr. 1/2 ounce. The Bomber Fat Free shad Citrus Shad is working on the shallow points mid-day. Run the Lucky Craft 2.5 or 3.5dd Norman deep little N in 133 color. Look for shad over the points and on underwater islands from the middle of the lake down to the dam and up to Cowikee Creek and beyond. Find the shad on the Lowrance Down Scan or Lowrance Structure Scan technology and use a small ½ ounce Flex It spoon on 10-pound test Sufix Elite line on a medium action rod. Fish this up 4 to 6 inches and let the bait fall back down. Be a line watcher as the bites will come while the bait falls. If we have a couple of warm days in a row some fish will move into the shallows around rocks. As the sun warms the water up in this area, use a ¼ ounce chrome and black Rat L Trap. Fish this bait slow around the rocks and offshore on the grass lines.

Bryan Alday reports that Lake Seminole continues to produce some solid catfish. Dragging baits along the bottom is a great way to find them.

BIG LAZER PFA

• Big Lazer PFA Information
• Surface water temperature:  58^oF
• Water visibility:  Visibility is about 33”
• Water level: Water level is up 1” from full pool
• Big Lazer PFA Fishing Guide

There have been some reports of decent largemouth bass fishing trips as they begin to move to shallower water. Bass fishing should really start picking up in the coming weeks. Try throwing spinning baits or crankbaits in 6 to 8 feet of water. Baits should still be fished slower due to cool water temperatures. Casting your line near good cover should yield some decent bites. Bream fishing is fair. Anglers seem to be having luck fishing with worms around the fishing piers. This time of year, bream are in 4-6 feet of water. Try locating woody structure for increased chance of bream bites. In general, March water temperatures at Big Lazer are starting to warm up and so is the fishing.  March and April are some of the best times to fish Big Lazer as pre-spawn largemouth bass start to move into shallower water followed by bream. Good luck!

NORTH GEORGIA

(Fishing report courtesy of John Damer, Fisheries Biologist with the Georgia DNR Wildlife Resources Division, with help from Region Staff and Local Experts)

RESERVOIR REPORT 

WALLEYE UPDATE

Blue Ridge Walleye Spawning Report: (From Fisheries Biologist John Damer): Our sampling crew went to the headwaters of Lake Blue Ridge this week to check on the walleye spawn.  We found more fish on the spawning grounds than we’ve ever seen before!  Most were males in the 2–3-pound range, but we did find a couple females that were closer to 4 pounds.  Head to the extreme upper end of the lake for your shot at landing a few for the frying pan.  But don’t wait because the spawning run won’t last long.

If you would like to learn more about how to fish for walleye or GA DNR’s walleye program, follow this link, georgiawildlife.com/fishing/walleye.

Carters Lake Walleye Report: (This report courtesy of Eric Crowley, Lake and Stream Guide Service): Captain Eric Crowley of Lake and Stream Guide Service continues to send in some great photos of walleye caught on Carters Lake.  In case you missed it, check out last week’s WRD Fishing Report for the when/where/how he is putting these tasty fish in the boat.

LAKE ALLATOONA 

Lake Allatoona Bass (Courtesy of Ken Sturdivant, The Southern Fishing Report) — Lake Allatoona is down 8.7 feet, and in the 50s. Bass fishing fair. It has been slow early each day and one more cold front is coming with rain. The bass will then get more active, but the cold water and winds can make the fishing tough. During the day, the high sun pushes the bass into the deeper cover. Early and late try small shad crank baits and finesse worms in the creeks and around docks. Up the rivers use a jig and pig or a Zoom Creepy Crawler in dark reds or pumpkinseed. The pumpkinseed Zoom U tail worms on 2-foot Carolina rig on points are fair but move a lot. Work soft lures or live baits slowly. And never forget the Bass Pro Shops Strata spoons this month. Use the smaller sizes early and then afternoons, go to the ¾ ounce Flex it. Spotted bass are fair and small green or motor oil worms or live bait around the main lake marinas is barely fair. Day time fishing is slow and cold runoff and high winds have hampered efforts. Stay on the points on the main lake with a small Zoom finesse worms in greens on a Texas rig and brass and glass.

Lake Allatoona Bass Report: (This report courtesy of The Fish School ): March is a month of immense change on our North Georgia lakes as well as across the entire Southeast. Days are getting longer, Daylight Saving Time kicks in, temperatures will begin to truly rise despite a few guaranteed cold fronts that will try to slow down the inevitable Spring season. Bass and gamefish are hyper-aware of these changes, often making moves long before the average fisherman begins adjusting from their wintertime tactics. Baitfish begin to push shallow, and the gamefish are hot on their heels. With these abrupt changes, and the beginning stages of fish moving from deep to shallow, March fishing can often be “feast or famine.” I cannot begin to convey how often late February and March fishing trips go from driving around on a seemingly dead lake with no activity whatsoever, to stumbling into a feeding frenzy that most fisherman don’t believe until they experience it. The “Spring Transition” (as well as the “Fall Transition” when that comes back around) are times when I do not linger in any location and slowly drag baits around. It is a season of fast-paced casting and frequent boat driving to try and find the right spot where “the magic” is really happening. The “magic” I speak of refers to very specific locations where shad have broken off from the main groups out in the creek and river channels, and have pushed way back into pockets and creeks, but have found themselves in the unfortunate situation of being found by schools of spotted bass (and hybrids, stripers, and white bass, at times, too).  Continue reading the rest of this great in-depth March report at storymaps.arcgis.com.

Lake Allatoona Crappie (Courtesy of Red Rooster Custom Baits redroosterbaits.com) — Air Temp: High: 82 – Low: 55

• Wind: 5-10 (Up to 25 mph gusts) mph
• Lake Level: 833′
• Water Surface Temp: 64 – 66
• Water Clarity: Heavy Stain on each end of the lake, stained in mid lake
• Area Fished: Clark, Tanyard, S-Turns, Victoria, Kellogg/Owl Creek & Little River Area
• Jigs Used: Catawba – Slab Dragon, Tre’s Gold – Slab Dragon, Pappy’s Magic – Kic’n Chic’n, Chicken Pox – Kic’n Chic’n, Mardi Gras – Kic’n Chic’n XL, Contrail – Slab Dragon, Black & Blue – Slab Dragon, VooDoo Bloo – Kic’n Chic’n, Lemonade – Kic’n Chic’n & Tannic Flo – Kic’n Chic’n
• Technique: Trolling

This past week was absolutely awesome for crappie fishing on Lake Allatoona! We are in prime time long line trolling season and as the water temps are on the rise and the crappie were extremely active this past week. The weather was perfect most every day until the rains came in early Thursday morning. It was not uncommon to have a 60+ crappie day! We caught several small crappie which is a great sign that our lake is healthy and the crappie population is strong. This time of year you will catch several 6″ to 8″ crappie as well as BIG SLABS in the 15″ to 16″ range. We had several crappie close to 2 lbs with some going 2.5 lbs. If you are reading this we urge everyone to release any crappie over 12″ as larger crappie are what keeps Lake Allatoona stocked for generations to come. We practice a self imposed “slot limit”, meaning we only keep crappie that measure 10″ to 12″. Anything smaller or larger go back in the lake for a healthy spawn. If you do catch a big crappie we ask that you practice “CPR”, Catch – Photo – Release. We know that most folks are keeping some for the freezer but when you can keep only what you can use. Remember 10 crappie equals 20 filets and is plenty for a meal or two.

The water temps are approaching the high 60’s and the water clarity is heavy stained to stained. During this time of year we troll a mix of bold bright colored jigs that show up well in the stained Allatoona waters. When the water temps are on the rise we are trolling shallow water using 1/24th and 1/32nd oz. jig heads. We generally start trolling in 12′ of water to 4′ of water from the mouth’s of creeks to the back as well as shallow flats. Our troll speeds are .9 to 1 mph as the crappie are active and chasing jigs. Keep your eye on the sun and cloud cover as we have found that certain jig colors produce better in the sun and certain jig colors produce when it is overcast and a lot of cloud cover. If the sun is high and bright in stained water, colors like Tre’s Gold, Lemonade, Mardi Gras, Contrail, Green Glimmer & Chicken Pox are working well. During low light conditions, Black & Blue, Black & Chartreuse, Tannic Flo Orange, June Bug & Pappy’s Magic work well. We just report what we experience on the water as everyone has their favorite colors at certain times but hopefully this little tid bit of color selection information helps you on your next trip. A mix of bold bright colors such as white, pink, orange and chartreuse are what we are pulling right now paired with bold jig head colors like pink, chartreuse and orange. We like to use a lot of contrasting colors to generate reaction bites when the crappie are active. The main thing is that this is a great time of the year to be on the water and the basics of trolling is to get on the water, toss a few lines out, troll at speeds of .9 to .1 mph with 1/32nd to 1/24th oz. jig heads and cover a lot of water til you get bit. Once you start catching stay in that area when you find active crappie. Like our buddy Crappieman says: “Don’t LEAVE Crappie to FIND Crappie!”. Get out and have some fun with your friends and family as there is no better time than right now to be crappie fishing! Good luck out there and we hope this report blesses you in some way and helps you catch more Allatoona crappie!

Our go to colors for muddy to heavy stained water are Lemonade, ‘Lectric Chicken, Black & Blue, Black & Chartreuse, Flo Pink Pepper & Bubble Gum. Now if the sun pops out on that muddy to stained water we switch to reflective colors like Tre’s Gold, Green Glimmer and Mardi Gras. There are other colors that we use during the month of March and you can see our article “The Best Crappie Jig Colors For Lake Allatoona In March” for the complete list. You want to use anything that is bright and will stand out when fishing this type of water during this time of year. We also believe that it helps to use a bright color jig head such as pink, chartreuse, orange and glow white. Red Rooster Custom Baits is your “Long Line Trolling Authority” for all things long line trolling for crappie. If you have questions about when, what and where give us a call or shoot us an email. Red Rooster makes custom jig heads, under spins and we can color match any jig color that you want or need. We love talking about crappie fishing so we are here to help. We also do a Facebook Live most Friday nights unless something comes up.

Lake Allatoona Fish Habitat Enhancements: (From Fisheries Biologist Chris Smith): This past weekend, WRD staff from the Armuchee Office partnered with E3 Bassmasters to plant 160 buttonbush shrubs along approximately 100 yards of shoreline. Combined with water willow installed during a previous event, these plantings should provide excellent shoreline cover and fish habitat while the lake is at or near full pool.

LAKE HARTWELL

Lake Hartwell Bass (Courtesy of Ken Sturdivant, The Southern Fishing Report ) — Lake Hartwell is down 7.2 feet, and in the 50s. Bass fishing is good. The bass are staging up shallow first thing in the morning. The fish that have committed shallow for the spawn soon will stay in those general areas. The front will definitely negatively affect those fish that were close to spawning or fish that were just starting to move up. The fish may move back out deeper but will rebound quickly after these cold fronts pass. Bass spawning areas need to have shad, and this bait is still key to finding these fish. If there is wind use a Chatterbait and jerk bait both in a white or pearl color to mimic the shad. Start off in the same areas using ether a Rapala DT6, #5 or Rapala #6 Shad Rap focusing on rock and clay or just rock depending on what area of the lake we are on. Look for the banks that the sun is hitting first as this water will warm up first thing. If there are high bright blue-sky days use one of the crank baits mentioned above and find active fish slow down and start using a jig or Shakey head around brush and docks to catch some fish. Continue to move throughout the day if they are not biting within 10 minutes of fishing an area. Get some bites and slow down and work the area with several baits before moving on to the next area. Continue to work these areas throughout the pre and post spawn. With the warmer weather coming in the long-range forecast look for these fish to move up again quickly and be right back where they were.

Lake Hartwell Surprise Bass Report: (From Fisheries Supervisor John Lee Thomson): Nickie Davis from Cleveland Georgia got a nice surprise while crappie fishing on Lake Hartwell. She landed this 6-pound spotted bass on light tackle while floating a minnow. Congrats Nickie and with water temperatures on the rise now is the time to hit the water. Go Fish Georgia!

LAKE LANIER

Lake Lanier Bass: (Via Phil Johnson, Pjohnson15@hotmail.com (770) 366 8845 via The Southern Fishing Report) — Lake Lanier is down 5.1 feet, and in the 50s. Bass fishing on Lake Lanier is good. Currently, the lake is five feet below full pool, and the water temperature is running from fifty to fifty-five degrees. The main lake is clear with some staining in the backs of the creeks and up the rivers. The cold front slowed the bass for a couple of days but the warming trend we have now has them back in action. This is the time of year that both the Spots and Largemouth begin moving up to prepare for the spawn and the key areas become the shallower flats and secondary points. Most of the fish we caught this week were in less than fifteen feet of water. A Shakey Head with a green pumpkin Senko has caught a lot of bass on the secondary rocky points and around docks. On the docks in less than ten feet of water either a Wacky rig or a Neko rig have been very effective for numbers. In the stained water a three eights spinnerbait in the white and chartreuse color with a gold and silver blade has been very effective in the stained water up the river and in the creeks. Look for the rocky points and flats next to deeper water. As the water temperature keeps going up work farther back in the pockets to follow the bass movement. There is also a crankbait bite currently in the same areas as the spinnerbait with crankbaits that run less than ten feet deep. Work the crankbaits with red, green or chartreuse color combinations. One bait not often talked about is the Alabama rig, but this bait will produce bass right now also. As you can see there are a lot of ways and baits to work with right now so the keep is finding the right areas. The Largemouth are going to be moving to the shallow areas in the backs of the pockets in less than five feet while the Spots will be moving to deeper bedding areas in the ten-to-fifteen-foot range. Key areas to keep in mind for the Spots will be reef poles and sandy areas. The fishing is only going to improve over the next few weeks with some very nice fish caught so Go Catch ‘Em!

Stripers: (Courtesy of Buck Cannon, Buck Tales Guide Service (404-510-1778) via The Southern Fishing Report ) — Lake Lanier stripers are putting on the feedbag and growing, the best time of the year to catch a trophy is now! The weather is changing fast and it’s time to go. The methods for getting the best results are still planer boards, weighted and unweighted flat lines, vary the distances behind the boat, 80’ on one side and 100’ on the other. Downlines and your favorite lure should also be ready. Bait is importance fresh and lively blue backs, trout, and gizzards. Mid lake is the best place from 369 bridge to laurel park and the creeks. Daylight savings is approaching, and the safelight bite could still be dangerous. Make sure your boat lights are functioning properly. Remember to wear your life jacket.

Lake Lanier Striper Report:  (This report courtesy of Captain Ron Mullins from The Striper Experience):

• Lake level: 1066.02 (4.98 feet below full pool)
• Water temps: 51-55°F
• Water clarity: stained in river systems and backs of major creeks; clear on the main lake

March is a true transition month on Lake Lanier. Early in the month, much of the bite still looks like winter. As water temperatures rise, fish begin to slide shallower, spreads open up, and the planer board bite takes over – sometimes even leading to early topwater opportunities late in the month. Fish locations will shift throughout March depending on rain, runoff, and water temperature. Early March Pattern – Fish holding halfway back in creeks out toward river channels. Strong concentrations in the Northern creeks on the Chattahoochee arm and mid-lake creeks on the Chestatee arm. Late March Pattern – As water warms and clarity improves, expect fish to move shallower and spread out into both north and south lake creeks, including Flat Creek, Four Mile, Six Mile, and Bald Ridge on the South end, and Thompson, Taylor, Latham, Gainesville, Wahoo, and Limestone on the North end. Early month: fish primarily in 35–90 feet of water. Late month: shallow fish feeding over points, humps, and flats in 15–30 feet. Rainfall plays a big role this month. Heavy runoff/cold muddy water will push river fish south. Lighter rainfall allows fish to move upriver systems earlier as they stage for the spawn. (Editor’s Note: The full version of this awesome fishing report was too extensive to include here.  For the full report and all the details, click HERE )

WEISS LAKE

Bass (Courtesy of Ken Sturdivant, The Southern Fishing Report) — Weiss Lake is down 3 feet, clear, and in the 50s. Bass Fishing is fair. Bass are moving shallow to secondary points, roadbeds, and shallow stump flats near the spawning areas. Rat L Traps, Chatter Baits and Alabama Rigs are catching a lot of fish right now.

Crappie (Courtesy of Ken Sturdivant, The Southern Fishing Report) — Crappie fishing is fair. Another brief cold snap coming will slow them a few days. Then a warming trend and light winds coming should really turn the Crappie back on over the next few days. Look for the deeper Crappie suspended 10 to 14 feet deep in the creek channels, the cold front does not affect the deeper fish as bad as it does the shallow fish. Long line trolling with 1/16th and 1/24th ounce Jiffy Jigs is the best way to catch these suspended fish.

WEST POINT LAKE

West Point Hybrid Bass Report: (From Fisheries Biologist Brent Hess): Hybrid striped bass are a great target for beginners and young anglers, and their abundance and aggressive feeding behavior make them a fun and accessible species to catch. March can be an excellent time to target hybrids on West Point Lake. As water temperatures begin to rise into the low to mid-60s, hybrids become more active after several months of reduced feeding during the colder winter period. During this time of year, many hybrids begin moving upstream into the upper portions of the lake and into the Chattahoochee River. These fish are often found holding around 6 feet deep as they search for schooling baitfish that are also drawn to warmer water temperatures and increased feeding opportunities. Red-colored crankbaits are an excellent lure choice during this period. Using crankbaits instead of live or cut bait allows anglers to cover more water quickly, which is especially helpful when trying to locate actively feeding schools of hybrids.

West Point Linesides: (Report courtesy of angler Dustin Pate via GON Forum): I figured it was time to hop back into making some posts on the fishing down here at West Point. The river run this year has been extremely delayed versus past years. I’ve had a couple zero’s the last two weeks which is unbelievable. All of the conditions are there, so it should literally be any day that the fishing bust wide open. That said, the lake bite has been incredible going back to the start of the year. The fishing has been good from one end of the lake to the other. Tons of fish are being caught trolling, and I did a good bit of that back in January. Since then, I’ve been pulling live bait and having great success. I had the honor of once again helping out with the 30-30 Ministries fishing trip this past weekend. We had an awesome day of catching both size and numbers. I’ll be mainly concentrating on the river going forward unless for some reason things don’t decide to turn on asap!

West Point Lake Bass Report: (Courtesy of Ken Sturdivant, The Southern Fishing Report): West Point Lake is down 3 feet, clear, and in the 60s. Bass fishing is fair. Another set of cold fronts rolled over the south and the shallow fish retreated to the points in the coves. The fish that have committed shallow for the spawn will stay in those general areas, they just may be much less active. The front will definitely negatively affect those fish that were close to spawning or fish that were just starting to move up. It is truly hard to say exactly what the prevailing pattern will be post front. Look on these points as well in the lower lake deeper creeks for any warm water. Look for them in 4 to 10 feet of water on gravel points and throw Shad Raps, Rat L Traps, and other small crank baits. The point’s right off the main river at the railroad bridge are good early season areas and look for the gravel on the banks. Right across from the Yellow Jacket access point is an old roadbed that runs up and down the bank about 50 feet off the bank. Run the Lowrance on and over this area and the roadbed will show up. Vertical jigging is still another good pattern for large mouths and spots. Some are still deep and holding on the flats and roadbeds off the main lake. Best baits are buck tails and 1/2 once spoons such as a Hopkins spoon. The roadbed in Whitewater Creek is a great deep-water area. Just run out on the roadbed, watch for the fish and the bait and that is where to drop the spoons and old Little George.

SMALL LAKE REPORT 

Commerce Lake Report: (From Fisheries Supervisor John Lee Thomson): Our office received the following report from angler Anthony Tate: “I was fishing for crappie all day and hadn’t caught much of anything and realized I was about to be late to a family dinner and if I was late, my wife wasn’t gonna be happy (I was late)….So I started heading back to the ramp when I was about 20-30 yards away from the ramp my drag started screaming which didn’t take much cause I have it set low in case I hook a log.  I was only running 6-pound test line on a micro ultralight rod I realized I needed to turn my kayak around cause whatever it was wasn’t slowing down. I fought with the fish for over 20 mins hoping that the 1/16 once jig head I had tied on wouldn’t straighten out under the pressure and finally once it came up I was shocked at what it was. I had no idea hybrids were even in there….my son loved seeing the fish and wanted it mounted so he can hang it in his room.” The rest of the story… Commerce Lake has received sporadic fish stockings in the past when fish production has exceeded the needs for our large public reservoirs. The last stocking of Hybrid Stiped Bass was in 2015 and this is likely a product of that stocking effort. Great fish Anthony.

Rocky Mountain Public Fishing Area Report: (From PFA Manager Dennis Shiley):

• Rocky Mountain PFA Information

This week’s warm weather had the bass and crappie really on fire at both East and West Antioch Lakes.  We were hearing great reports from anglers catching high numbers of both species, plus some real monsters.  The highlight was a 3+ pound black crappie that is the new record for the PFA.

SMALL RIVER REPORT 

Chattahoochee River Sampling Report: (From Fisheries Biologist Josh Stafford): Our Gainesville-based team electro-fished the Chattahoochee River above Lanier a couple times this week. We got some very nice shoal bass above Mossy Creek. Also, the striped and white bass are moving up the Chattahoochee around Belton Bridge.

Coosa River White Bass: (From Fisheries Biologist John Damer): Our Armuchee Team continues to see extraordinary numbers of white bass this year on the Coosa River during our monitoring efforts.  Pick a warm day and fish anywhere from Mayo Lock and Dam Park down to Old River Road boat Ramp, using any small shad imitating lures.  With the low water we’ve seen lately, fish are spread along the banks of almost the entire river section.  Few fish are found in the creek mouths during these conditions, so your best bet is to drift along the bank, throwing as close to shore as you can get.

TROUT REPORT 

North Georgia Trout Streams Report: (This report courtesy of Tad Murdock from Georgia Wild Trout): Spring has arrived really early this year and the trout and striper activity has picked up considerably. The warmer days we have had for the last two weeks in February have warmed the creeks and lake. Still seeing plenty of midges and winter stoneflies across North Georgia with BWOs and black caddis joining in on the festivity. A couple species of small caddis (size 16 or smaller)  have begun emerging leading to a productive dry fly bite on the small mountain creeks. Both Brook trout and wild rainbows have joined in on the action. The tandem dry fly rig is having the best luck for these wild trout. I have been leading with a size 14 or bulky size 16 caddis and stimulator pattern, then trailing with a thin size 18 or 20 caddis, mayfly or midge pattern in the rear. On days when the activity is slower, a dropper will clean up what doesn’t fall for the dries.

Chattahoochee River Tailwater Fishing Report: (This report courtesy of Tad Murdock from Georgia Wild Trout): The lower Chattahoochee River has been a rollercoaster as fish activity has been sporadic with the intermittent rainfall. If you can dodge around the generation schedule, there are plenty of trout to be had. Junk flies and midge patterns are still the tickets with some modest midge hatches popping off on warmer days following generation. Don’t overlook the mouths of the feeder creeks as they begin to warm much quicker this time of year. Larger browns will be on the move looking for easy meals as their spawn has wrapped up and they recoup their energy while heading back to their normal haunts.

Summerville Trout Ready for Stocking: (From Hatchery Manager Josh Tannehill): Summerville Fish Hatchery just completed an inventory of the trout set aside for early season stocking.  We’re happy to report that we have plenty of 10+ inch trout ready to hit the water, just in time for the start of stocking season near the end of this month.

The Dredger’s Weekly Report: (This report courtesy Jeff “Dredger” Durniak at Unicoi Outfitters ): Unicoi Outfitters puts out a full fishing report every Friday.  Although this week’s report was not yet posted as of this writing, you should be able to find it HERE later today.

Parting Trout Note: Want to do more to support trout fishing in Georgia?  Consider upgrading to a Trout Unlimited license plate this year (https://georgiawildlife.com/licenseplates).  Aside from being a great looking tag, each purchase or renewal of a Trout Unlimited license plate directly supports Georgia’s trout conservation and management programs. Hatcheries and wild trout efforts both benefit from the trout tag.