Lake Hartwell Fishing Report – May 2024

Hartwell: Level: 0.4 feet above 660. Temp: 71-75 degrees. Clarity: Clear.

Bass: Trent Gober, with Fish Hartwell Guide Service, reports that the herring spawn is about to bust wide open. It’s late this year, so the first week of May should be excellent. Get out on main-lake points, blow-throughs and humps, and fish topwater on gravel and rock 4 to 10 feet deep. Early in the month, fish a wake bait or a topwater hard bait slowly, and work a fluke just under the surface. The bass are still somewhat weak from the spawn. Later in the month, work a Gunfish or fluke over brush 15 to 25 feet deep as fast as you can fish them. Run and gun, hitting as many places as you can. Trent said that on a milk run, catch a couple of fish, then move on to the next spot. Then you can come back and catch a couple more where you caught them earlier.

Linesides: Trent Gober, with Fish Hartwell Guide Service, reports that the stripers and hybrids are running herring in on flats and points and feeding wildly right now. Some schools cover half an acre. Look for them from Anderson to the dam. Always have a topwater bait ready to get a lineside to stretch your string. They will continue to hit all month long, just over a little deeper water as it warms.

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