Lake Oconee Fishing Report – September 2022

Oconee: Level: 0.2 feet below 435. Temp: Mid to high 80s. Clarity: It is stained up the rivers and fairly clear from Sugar Creek south to the dam.

Bass: Tournament angler Karl Pingry reports, “I’m working with Donald Peppers again. He’s been competitive on the summer bass tournaments, despite only fishing the weekends. In order to be competitive, he’s having to put together a winning pattern without the advantage of being on the water prior to tournament day. Donald starts his day fishing main-lake points and seawalls that are near deep water. He’ll alternate with a spinnerbait, Zara Spook, buzzbait and a Pop-R. He is fishing fast, alternating baits often, and if he doesn’t see bait or get bit in 100 yards, he will move locations. He will use this pattern until the sun is high or the bite slows. For the rest of August and most of September, this same plan will be utilized. Near the end of September, or if the water cools significantly, Donald will start near a main-lake point and then start to work his way into the pocket. He expects the baitfish to start moving into the pockets, and he knows the bass will follow. He will add a squarebill to his arsenal of baits. He’s still fishing fast but paying attention to where he gets bit. If his first two bites are on shallow rock one-third of the way back in the pocket, that is what he will target as he moves throughout the lake. He will also note the water color and the size of the baitfish if a hooked bass throws up bait while being reeled in. He’ll try to match the size of his baits to the size bait the bass are feeding on. Once the bite has slowed or the sun has gotten up in the sky, Donald focuses on docks the rest of the day. Early in September, Donald will target docks near deep water. Later in September as he starts to fish into the pockets, he will abandon his deep-water dock pattern if his pattern has changed. If he’s catching bass on shallow rock one-third of the way back in the pockets, he’s going to focus his attention on docks that meet that criteria. His next task will be to narrow the target area by figuring out what part of the docks the fish are holding on. In the scenario I’m using, Donald would start by targeting the walkways and first part of a dock as it splits since his bite was shallow. He will still fish the entire dock, but he’s looking to narrow his target area so he doesn’t have to fish each dock in its entirety. If the bite slows, Donald will take the time to fish more of the dock to see if the bass have moved to a different part of the dock during the day. He’s fishing the docks with a shaky-head worm in either green pumpkin, redbug or junebug. He will change colors often until the bass tell him what color they like that day. He’ll also have a jig tied on, as well. If the bass are coughing up parts of a crawfish, the jig will be his first choice, but he’ll still have a shaky-head worm in a color matching the crawfish in case the bass get a little finicky. As I mentioned last month, the hard part for most fishermen is moving a lot and changing lures often. For Donald, five minutes with one lure as he starts his day is about his maximum time before changing baits. Once he starts to get bit, his lure selection will narrow quickly. Special thanks to Donald for allowing GON readers to get an insight to just being a weekend angler and what he does to have a successful day on the water.”

Crappie: Capt. Doug Nelms with BigFishHeads Guide Service reports, “School is back in session, most of the recreational boaters have returned to their normal lives, which leaves us fishing guides on Lake Oconee all by ourselves with plenty of fish to catch. September is the unofficial fiscal end of my fishing season. The lake is hot, hunting season has started, and I look forward to the slow down… if you want to call it that. The crappie fishing is still great in the treetops and brushpiles, but by now you really need to find some secret spots or most of the fish can be small. A lot of crappie fishermen will start live scoping in open water, and we will also be trying out the longline trolling. During the past few years, our trolling bite hasn’t really taken off until October, but there have been several years where we find them roaming around in open water and channels during this month. I pull an eight-rod spread, all loaded up with 8-foot ACC Crappie Stixs and 6-lb. Mr. Crappie line. I will still be dropping minnows over the brushpiles for the next few weeks. It seems that Richland Creek has supported a lot of nice fish this year, but the mid-lake trees (Highway 44 down to Tornado Point) just haven’t caught fire for some reason. I don’t know if it’s because so many people know where the structure is on that part of the lake, but it just hasn’t been what it should be this year. The Sugar Creek area is producing a lot of big fish right now and don’t be afraid to go north of I-20 and look for standing timber and brush.”

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Linesides: Capt. Doug Nelms with BigFishHeads Guide Service reports, “They finally showed up the beginning of August and for about three weeks we just caught the fire out of them. Popping corks, Mini Mack’s, crankbaits, you name it, they bit it. We caught them from Great Waters boat house all the way to the dam on most mornings. Now you will find them blowing up on the surface. If you get lucky enough to fish on a nasty, cloudy day, you will be able to stay on the fish for hours. If it’s going to be sunny, you need to be out early because as soon as the sun hits the water, they will go deep and become hard to catch. I’ve been taking my spoon rods after the morning breaks and scraping up 15 or 20 before we end the trip. If you feel like the bite just isn’t what it should be, don’t give up. There are cooler days ahead, and the fish will respond better and better as fall approaches.”