Clarks Hill Fishing Report – November 2007

Clarks Hill: Level: 10.3 feet low. Temp: 75 degrees. Clarity: Very clear.

Bass: Great. Tony Postell won the two-day Mr. Clarks Hill tournament with about 26 pounds. “Schooling fish were hard to find,” said Bill Crompton. “If you did find them, they were throwing flukes, Spooks and a Gunfish. Some fish were on buzzbaits early on windy points and on secondary points and pockets.” This month Bill will be having some fun catching fish in 2 and 3 feet of water. He’ll be working both a merthiolate and yellow Trick Worm around rocks and wood. He’ll also be cranking a firetiger-colored No. 5 Shad Rap. Key on secondary flats and pockets.

Linesides: Great. Look for stripers to move up the Little River to the Raysville area as they follow blueback herring. “I’ll fish along the river-channel edges,” said Capt. William Sasser. “The fish follow it like a highway. We will fish live herring on downrods 30 to 50 feet deep. We will also fish below Russell dam with freelines on planer boards through the trees. This is a great way to catch a big one. There have been a lot of fish below Russell this fall.” Capt. Dave Willard said low water levels are making fishing hazardous. “A lot of ramps are closed, and some that are still open have no docks in the water,” said Dave. “The fishing can be super this time of year, and we’re catching fish on the surface and down to 40 feet. Topwater lures have been producing on breaking fish, and the Barry Flex Spoon, as well as live bait, have been killing the deep fish. Some good locations to find fish are Horseshoe Island at Parksville and Little River out from the Fort Gordon Recreation Area.”

Crappie: William will be fishing minnows in structure in 20 to 40 of water in the Little River Georgia area of the lake. “The fish will be congregated in large numbers, so if I just fish 10 places I would expect to catch none in nine of them and 50 in the other,” said William. “So move around until you find them. With the water levels so low, I’ll also fish the treetops sticking out of the water with minnows, but I’ll take the boat paddle and bump the trees which draws in the crappie. There will be good fish in the Hawe Creek section also. For these fish, pull green, white and yellow jigs in 5 to 10 feet of water and hang on.”