Lake Oconee Fishing Report March 2011

Oconee: Level: Full pool. Temp: Mid 50s, rising to 60 by the end of the day. Clarity: Stained.

Bass: Aaron Batson reports, “Cover a lot of water to find fish stacked up with a search bait like a 1/2-oz. Ol Nelle spinnerbait or 1/2-oz. Rat-L-Trap. Once you find a few fish, slow down and work these locations slower with a Texas-rigged lizard or 3/8-oz. Net Boy Baits jig. Don’t be afraid to get very shallow in the very backs of the coves late in the month. Some shad spawn could happen early this year with warmer than normal temps. A Pop-R would be a good bait if it breaks open this month.”

Crappie: Excellent. Doug Nelms said the crappie fishing has taken off. The big fish are in 5 to 7 feet of water and moving up the Apalachee. “The water has hit temps of 60 degrees over the past few days, and it has caused the fish to move up into the shallows. I don’t remember a time when we have caught big, shallow crappie so early. No 3-pounders yet, but we have caught many fish that will go over 2 pounds,” Doug said. “There are a million small crappie hanging out around the flagpole at Richland Creek, and I have heard about anglers limiting out every time they fish. These fish are not the size of the Apalachee fish, but they’re still fun to catch. The bite is coming on black/blue/black Jiffy Jigs tipped with minnows fished under spider rigs.” Al Bassett confirmed the excellent crappie bite on Oconee. “Currently and for the upcoming month, fishing is and should continue to be very good. You are catching bigger fish now. The size will go down, and the number of fish you catch should go up. Troll in 3 to 10 feet of water in the backs of the coves and up the rivers. If you are not in an area with a lot of other boats, then you most likely are in the wrong place. Up the Apalachee River, Oconee River, Sandy Creek, Rocky Creek and in the back of Sugar Creek are good places to spend time over the next month. The best baits have been Jiffy Jigs tipped with a live minnow. Currently the black/blue/black is a hot bait. Other good colors are the red/dark-green/yellow or black/bubblegum/chartreuse. You can pick up all your crappie needs and the best live bait on the lake at Sugar Creek Marina,” Al said.