Lake Lanier Fishing Report January 2015

Lanier: Level: 3.9 feet low. Temp: Low 50s. Clarity: The water is clear on the main lake and lightly stained in the creeks and rivers.

Stripers: Big Fish On Lake Lanier Guide Service reports, “Striper fishing is good, and the shallow-water bite is picking up. The key on the south end has been sea gulls and loons. There is a significant difference this year with feeding loons. In years past, you never saw a loon feeding in the backs of the creeks and in water less than 10 feet. This year, we are seeing a lot of loons while fishing shallow water in the creeks. Consequently, there are more stripers feeding on the bait pushed up by the loons. You may want to check areas where shallow-water loons are feeding. One way is to move into the area and cast a 1/2-oz. Capt. Mack’s bucktail jig with a small fluke trailer. You may also want to check these areas for stripers with your Lowrance HDS. Better yet, do both. Keep your eye on your Lowrance, and cast a Capt. Mack’s bucktail. On the north end of the lake, your best bet is to fish the creeks with the highest concentration of bait. Herring and trout pulled on freelines and planer boards halfway back in the creeks is your best bet. Most of the stripers are relating to points, but do not overlook the bays and flats. The umbrella rig is working all over the lake. Pull points and flats 80 to 100 feet back in 20 to 30 feet of water. There are fish in all of the creeks, but mid lake has been a little better than extreme north or south.” Guide Clay Cunningham reports, “Over the past month, the larger stripers have been shallow, and they are eating trout on freelines behind the boat with nothing but a hook and a trout. The smaller stripers have been deep and are being caught on downlines with herring and small trout. Some of these stripers have been 70 feet deep. So far it looks like this pattern of big fish shallow and small fish deep will continue through January. The birds will let you know where the concentrations of baitfish are located. Be sure to keep an eye out for any surfacing fish. The surfacing fish have been few and far between, but that can change any day. Be sure to keep a small white bucktail tied on a spinning rod like a Fenwick 7-foot medium spinning rod spooled with 10-lb. Trilene Big Game line. You need the light line for the casting distance of the small bucktails. Some of these fish will be in 2 feet of water, so be sure to look hard in the backs of the coves for any activity. Even one fish busting can give away a honey hole. If the weather turns extremely cold in the coming weeks, don’t count out the umbrella rig either. Many times in January, the umbrella rig tipped with 4-inch chartreuse Hyper Tails can outcatch live bait due to the rig being a reaction bite. This pattern will most likely come into play if the water temperature drops below 46 degrees. If you have never pulled the umbrella rig, be sure to talk to the guys at the local bait shops for some pointers. The rigs are expensive, and an umbrella-rig retriever is very important. Be sure to purchase one. Use the retriever one time, and it will pay for itself.”