Lake Lanier Fishing Report August 2014

Lanier: Level: 0.3 feet below full pool. Temp: Low 80s. Clarity: Lightly stained in the backs of the creeks, and clear on the main lake both north and south.

Spotted Bass: Good Guide Ryan Coleman reports, “The water came up some last week when we got the big rains, but it is starting to drop again. Hopefully, we can get the water level down a little, which will really improve fishing. It has really been a typical bite out there. Basically, the deep brushpile bite has been our best bet. This is what you would expect, and the fish have been right on schedule. Summer reports on Lanier sound redundant, but it’s pretty much what it is. There are a few fish scattered around on windy banks, docks and rocks, but the only concentrations of fish are out on the 20- to 30-foot-deep man-made brushpiles. I have been doing pretty well on topwater out over the brush. I have been sticking with walking baits like a Vixen but have also done well on a Chug Bug on the calmer days. Just fan casting these over the humps and points early in the day, then concentrating on the brushpiles as the sun comes out. Our jig bite has been pretty good as well. I have been fishing the jig more than anything, and it has been producing my best fish. I have been doing two techniques with the jig depending on the weather. On sunny days, I have been working a 3/8-oz. SpotSticker casting jig in either green craw, root beer or cinnamon pepper, tipped with a 5-inch Yamamoto twin tail around the brush and on the humps and points. On cloudy and windy days, I have been swimming a 3/8-oz. green-pearl SpotSticker jig tipped with a small swim bait trailer or white twin tail out over the brush. This has been a great technique all summer. We have had some very big spotted bass caught swimming our jig out over the brush. We are basically fishing this jig like a Fish Head Spin out over the brush very slowly on 12- to 15-lb. fluorocarbon line. Give this a try on unstable weather days. If we can finally get some heat in August, look for the drop-shot bite to really be our main deal. As we roll in to August every year, our moving-bait bite really slows, and the drop shot becomes a major weapon for us.”

Stripers: Guide Mike Maddalena reports, “Striper fishing remains very good. The cold front and rain dropped the surface temperature to below 80 degrees, which sent most of the fish into the trees. The key has been trees in 70 to 100 feet of water just off the creek channel. The single 30-foot fish are difficult to catch with bait, but the fish at 50 to 80 feet will bite if you can find a bald spot void of trees. Trolling Captain Mack’s bucktail jig with a 4-inch shad body will trigger a reaction bite if you can stay out of the trees and get your jig down to the fish. Lead core at eight to nine colors and umbrella rigs at 140 to 160 feet back are your best bets. I use a 3-oz. four-arm jig with nine 1-oz. Captain Mack’s bucktail jigs with white and chartreuse 4-inch shad bodies for my umbrella rigs. If you have downriggers, drop them down to 2 feet above the fish. Your Lowrance fish-finding sonar, structure scan and GPS electronics are critical tools for locating summertime stripers. Pay special attention to your down scan, and look into the trees for deeper fish. Look for the fish to become a little more active with the increase in water temperature, and look for them to start to school up off the river channel from Browns Bridge to the dam. Flat Creek, Two Mile Creek, Six Mile Creek, Big Creek and Flowery Branch are good places to start.” Guide Shane Watson reports, “The striper fishing has been great on Lake Lanier most mornings and afternoons. Downlined bluebacks fished 40 to 100 feet deep over a 100- to 120-foot bottom have worked well when the fish have been loaded up on your screen. Lead-core line fished nine colors out at 3 mph with a 1-oz, chartreuse-blue jig with a curly tail has also worked very well. Mid-lake and south creeks from the mouths to the middle of the creeks have been good. We are also catching a good many quality stripers on lead core out over the main river channel.”