Lake Sinclair Fishing Report – September 2023

Sinclair: Level: 0.3 feet below full pool. Temp: The lake is clear from Nancy Creek to the dam with a slight tint to the water elsewhere. Clarity: Low 90s.

Bass: Karl Pingry spoke with Ed at Lakeside Chevron who said it is definitely the dog days of summer. The fishing has slowed as the water temps have climbed. There’s a short morning bite in the hydrilla up the Oconee River.  Ed said your best bets are a black frog or a Chatterbait. The mayflies have returned, as well. Ed recommends a black buzzbait or Pop-R for topwater followed up with a shaky-head worm. There are a few bass being caught on a Shad Rap No. 7 in natural shad or chartreuse and pearl. A Bandit 200 in similar colors will work, also. Ed’s No. 1 recommendation to catch bass right now is a monster worm in black emerald or a shaky head with a magnum shaky head worm fishing docks that are in 10 to 14 feet of water. For September, everyone knows the dock bite will remain, but the part you will have to figure out is what depths are holding fish when the afternoon thunderstorms return. Ed and this writer also agree the shallow bass bite will pick up as soon as the water temps go back in the 80s and there is stained water in the pockets or creeks. Try squarebills, buzzbaits, shallow cranks and Rat-L-Traps to cover a lot of water. Watch for shad activity as you cover water. When you get a bite, pay attention to the depth and the type of bottom (rock, sand, red clay) to try to find a pattern, but expect the pattern to change as the water conditions change. Docks and laydowns will always be in play with plastic worms, creature baits and a shaky head (a jig later in the month, too). Finally, Ed says find the grass and there will be bass, but look for something extra within that grass, like a big rock or laydown. Those bass will use that “little extra” as an ambush spot. Expect the bite to be tough for most of September until Sinclair temps get to the mid to low 80s. For the latest fishing reports and to launch your boat, come see Ed at 1065 Milledgeville Road in Milledgeville.

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