Lake Lanier Fishing Report – May 2024

Lanier: Level: 0.4 feet over 1071. Temp: 68-71 degrees. Clarity: Varies from clear on the main lake to stained the farther north in the river systems.

Bass: Guide Jimbo Mathley with Jimbo’s Lake Lanier Spotted Bass Guide Service reports, “Lake Lanier is arguably at its very best during the late spring and early summer due to the consistent availability of an aggressive topwater and swimbait bite during this time.  This is an excellent opportunity for anglers to catch spotted bass and watch the action as wolf-packs of monster spotted bass chase your topwater plugs. In this month’s installment, you will learn the necessary tackle, equipment, locations and resources to catch topwater fish on Lanier. Now—at the end of April and heading into May 2024—the lake appears to be behind schedule by a couple weeks compared to previous years. Still, most of the spotted bass on Lake Lanier will finish the spawn in May, and in doing so, will begin aggressively feeding to recover from the spawning process. After a short period of inactivity, the larger female spots will begin their migration from their spawning haunts (both in creeks as well as on the main lake) to key features at the mouths of the major creeks, as well as main-lake areas. They can be found on or around long-running points, rocky shoals and underwater humps/islands throughout the lake. Locating these areas and the man-made cover that is often found on them, which will often concentrate the fish, will be important to your success. Trust your Humminbird units to find these brushpiles around the features mentioned above. Focus in the 20- to 25-foot-depth range. For topwater action, you should utilize either a medium or medium-heavy baitcasting or spincasting outfit, rigged with 12- to 17-lb. monofilament line. Monofilament fishing line floats, whereas fluorocarbon line sinks, which makes either monofilament or braided line the best option for presenting topwater baits correctly. Also, Seaguar Smackdown braid floats and is also a good option for topwater if you prefer. As far as choosing a rig for fishing these topwater baits, consider the weight of the bait as your deciding factor. Lighter poppers and smaller walking baits are often better presented on spinning gear, which allows for easier casting of smaller baits. For swimbaits, I like to present the larger, heavier, mechanical-type swimbaits, like a Sweet Baits herring swimbait, on a heavy-action rod that is at least 7 feet long. My big swimbait rod is an IMX Pro from G-Loomis and is a beef stick. It can handle the biggest of swimbaits or A-rigs. I appreciate the extra rod strength to cast these big baits and manage the big fish I catch on them.  As far as the many other soft and hard swimbait options, you can scale back to a medium-heavy rod if you prefer, but I recommend keeping the length at 7 feet or more. Now that we have explored the location that the spots can be found in May, as well as the tackle necessary to fish them, let’s examine some of the techniques and lures that can be used to catch these fish. Remember that even though we are discussing topwater and swimbait presentations in this report, when the females first come off the bed, they are lethargic, so the use of more subtle techniques, such as a fluke or a Georgia Blade jig head and a Berkley MaxScent worm combo, can be the ticket. As the postspawn period progresses, the fish will become much more active and aggressive as eating becomes a major part of their recovery process from the spawn. The fish at times will feed voraciously, and it is at these times that you should focus on fast-moving baits, such as the topwater and swimbait presentations we have focused on through the course of this report. Nothing beats being able to watch a fish crush your topwater bait! There are many choices of baits here—poppers, walkers, waking baits, etc.  The preference of the fish will change day to day, so make sure to experiment daily to identify the mood of the fish, as well as their preference in presentation. Excellent topwater baits for Lake Lanier include a great line-up of Berkley Baits: Surge Shad, J-Walker, Highjacker, Cane Walker, and of course, the Choppo. All of these lures, as well as all the G-Loomis rods and Shimano reels you will need to present them, can be purchased at local tackle shops, such as Hammond’s Fishing in Cumming. Swimbaits offer great versatility, as they can, based on the model, be fished at any depth you wish. Once the postspawn has advanced, this becomes a great bait to throw around points and humps in both creeks and on the main lake. Popular hard and soft swimbaits are made by a number of different tackle vendors, to include many local options. As far as the mechanical-type swimbaits, I am a huge fan of the Lanier Baits Hard Swimmers. They are the perfect representation of a herring. In the soft-bodied swimbaits, I prefer the Lanier Baits Swimmer and Keitech Swimbait offerings. When the topwater/swimbait bite is tough, pick up your Georgia Blade Shad Spin and go to work. Fish the same areas you would normally present your topwater baits and experiment with different depths of the water column. Also, work these lures over brush for big spots. Try a Lanier Baits Jerk Shad, a Lanier Baits Swimmer or a Keitech swimbait as a trailer. I still have some dates available in June 2024 so call me to book a trip today and reserve your opportunity to come experience some of the best spotted bass topwater action in the country! See you on the water!”

Lake Lanier Page: Archived Articles, News & Fishing Reports

Stripers: Capt. Ron Mullins with The Striper Experience reports, “The striped bass spawn is over, and the fish are moving back south out of the river systems and the backs of the main, free-flowing creeks on the south end of the lake. May fishing will be the time to catch these fish on rocky points and humps that the herring and shad will be spawning on through mid May. Flatlines and Captain Mack’s Perfect Planer boards will be the ticket as you pull over these areas. Run your flatlines out the back of the boat between 75 and 125 feet, and place your lines between 30 and 60 feet behind your planer boards. Best bets on bait this time of year are herring or small- to medium-size shad. On the north end of the lake, you should be able to find fish in Wahoo, Little River, Gainesville and Ada on the Chattahoochee side and Thompson, Taylor and Latham on the Chestatee side. Down south, the fish will be on secondary points in Bald Ridge, Young Deer, Two Mile and Big Creek.  The topwater bite will also crank up this month, so make sure you have a Spro Shashimmy or Zero Minnow tied on to throw up to these spots as you drag your baits over them. Best color bets are a white/bone color when it is cloudy and a chrome color when it is sunny. Another great lure to throw over these areas is a Captain Mack’s Mini Mack. May is a great month for fishing on Lanier. Peter denied Jesus (as we often do in our lives) three times in one evening, and when he realized what he had done, he wept in embarrassment and guilt.  We all have something in our lives that should keep us from being in God’s presence, but Christ died so that we could be free in our future. In Acts 2, during Pentecost, Peter tells of how Christ died for our sins and how we are now free and 3,000 people came to know Him. He became the rock on who the church of this world was built. Be that person and confess what He has done for you and become the rock on which freedom is built in your own world with your family, friends and acquaintances.”

Capt. Clay Cunningham, of Catching Not Fishing Lake Lanier Fishing Guides, reports, “Topwater time is here, and the Lake Lanier striped bass are looking to eat. Spool up a 7-foot, medium-heavy Abu Garcia Veritas spinning rod, paired with a Penn 3000 Clash with 12-lb. Trilene Big Game line, and you are ready for action. The Penn Battle is also a great choice. If you want a longer cast, spool up with 10-lb. line. Several baits will be needed for casting to the stripers. You will need a wake bait, like the Berkley Surge Shad, and a walking bait, like the Berkley Cane Walker. Look for the bone color and the chrome color, and you have the two primary colors in the Cane Walker and Surge Shad. If the fish are wanting a subsurface lure, the Berkley Magic Swimmer is the bait. They are hard to find right now, so plan ahead. Another choice is the Berkley Jerk Shad. Cast these baits to points and humps across the lake, and be prepared for some explosive action. If you need a more subtle presentation, rig up a 3/8-oz. Berkley Fusion swimbait head tipped with a white paddletail. Every day is different in the spring. Just because it worked yesterday does not mean it will work the next day. Live herring on a freeline across these same points and humps will also be a great tactic. This is the old-reliable technique. Spool up a Penn Fathom II Linecounter 15 series reel with 15-lb. Trilene Big Game and a Shakespeare Striper Series rod and you are ready for live-bait fishing. Be sure to pick up some Gamakatsu size 1/0 Octopus hooks, some Trilene 100% Fluorocarbon and some Spro Power Swivels for your leaders, and you are all set. Pull these freelines across these areas at about 1 mph. As the water temperature increases, do not be afraid to add a little weight to the freeline to get down a little deeper. Look for the fish to go deeper. May should be great weather and great fishing. It is a great month to be on the water before the summer heat. We are already catching some good fish on the Berkley Cane Walker, so always have one ready to cast. Stay safe.”

Crappie: Capt. Josh Thornton reports, “Crappie are 4 to 10 feet deep under docks, and I’m starting to see some crappie on deeper brush. This week I caught fish in 4 feet of water, and I caught fish in 30 foot of water. They’re kind of scattered right now. I’m still finding a few with eggs, but most of them have already dropped their eggs. Look for creeks or coves near a main channel for roaming fish. They are suspended shallow in 2 to 4 feet of water. Cast to them or troll for them. Try translucent jig color combinations. The gear I recommend for crappie fishing is an ACC Crappie Stix one-piece rod and reel with 6-lb. test K9 line, along with Garmin Livescope and Power-Pole. For more information and tips, please visit my websites www.crappieonlanier.com and www.fishingwitheverydayheroes.org.”