Lake Hartwell Fishing Report – August 2010

Hartwell: Level: 1.7 feet below full pool. Temp: 87 degrees. Clarity: Clear.

Bass: Fair. Josh Fowler reports, “The bass are set up on points, humps and ledges all over the lake. The topwater run-and-gun bite is still the key to catching the quality fish during the daylight hours, but the high water temps have made things a little tougher than it should be. The best bite is happening during the mid morning, and as the day goes along it begins to slow down. You can still catch a few fish on top once the heat sets in, but the quality of the bite really falls off. If you’re going to have any weight to your bag, you have to catch them during the mid morning. The typical baits will produce when you hit an active school. The weightless Zoom Super Fluke, a Lucky Craft Sammy 100, a Lucky Craft Pointer 125 and a Buckeye Lures 3/16-oz. Pulse Jig rigged with a Zoom Swimming Fluke Jr. will all do a great job of matching the bluebacks. When the heat of the day sets in, you can concentrate on the deep brushpiles. We have been catching plenty of fish by fishing vertical with drop shots or Spot Remover jig heads rigged with Zoom watermelon finesse worms. These fish are holding around the brush in 27 to 32 feet of water. Occasionally you will run across some fish shallower than this, but these depths seem to be the most productive. This same approach will hold true as we move into August.”

Stripers: Good. Preston Harden reports, “Stripers are in their summer pattern and should remain deep till the water cools. Last year the pattern held until mid October. Look in water depths of at least 40 to 50 feet deep. The fish have been in the bigger creeks and coves from mid-lake to the dam. There are still some fish farther up, but the herring die quickly in the upper lake. The best bite for me has been in 70 to 90 feet of water. Fish may be suspended in the trees or on the bottom between trees. A good sonar is very important now. A good GPS with detailed topography helps locate channels, flats, points, humps and other bottom contours. Fish a live herring on a Carolina rig at the depth where you mark the fish on your graph. When it gets really hot in August and the fish don’t want to eat, try power reeling through the fish. Then lower it back below with a jigging spoon or butterfly jig if you don’t want to use herring. A soft-plastic fluke on a drop-shot rig is another option if the fish are on the bottom. If they come up, work a topwater plug fast.”