Lake Oconee Fishing Report July 2015

Oconee: Level: Full pool. Temp: Upper 80s. Clarity: Clear down the lake; light stain up the lake.

Crappie: Guide Al Bassett reports, “Crappie fishing currently is excellent. Fish are holding in deeper water over brushpiles, standing timber and deep drop-offs. Use your Lowrance HDS and LSS-2 to find the fish on the brushpiles or the deep drop-offs before you start fishing. You may have to check many areas before you find the crappie, but when you locate them, you have found a school and should be able to limit out within just a few hours. There are two ways that I use to catch the fish. Use live minnows, and fish directly on top of where you find the fish. Or use a buoy marker to mark the fish, and cast a Jiffy Jig curly tail to the area. Tie two 1/16-oz. jig heads on 6-lb. test line about 8 to 10 inches apart. Put a different color on each jig head to see what color they want. Make sure to take care of your live bait during the hot weather. Use a bait saver and also put a handful of ice in the bait take every hour to keep water cool. Come by the Lowrance both during the GON Outdoor Blast July 24-26 at the Gwinnett Center, and let’s talk fishing and how to get the most out of your electronics.” Guide Jody Stephens said, “Oconee water temps have jumped up radically with this heat wave—87 to 89 degrees by afternoon most days. That is up from low 80s two weeks ago. Crappie are still being caught trolling the submerged timber and on ledges. They seem to be at depths of 15 feet or deeper as the sun gets higher. Go out and get ’em early by pushing minnows into concentrations of fish holding on brush or troll using 3/32-oz. jig heads with Jiffy Jigs Super Grubs in acid rain or other light colors. Fish still seem to want the bait moving, so don’t be afraid to push bait at speeds up to 0.6 mph. Trolling jigs is best at 1.0 mph. This pattern should stay consistent the rest of the summer.”