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Lake Oconee
Lake Oconee is an excellent fishing lake located in central Georgia on the Oconee River near Greensboro, the real Buckhead and Eatonton. Oconee is known for very good bass fishing, great crappie fishing for huge slabs, and very good fishing for linesides and catfish. The lake was created in 1979 when Georgia Power completed the construction of the Wallace Dam on the Oconee River. Lake Oconee runs through Georgia's Morgan, Greene, and Putnam counties and is separated from its sister lake, Sinclair, by Wallace Dam. Lake Oconee is home to a number of golf communities, including Reynolds Plantation, Cuscawilla, and Harbor Club.
Lake Oconee Resources
Oconee: Level: Full at 435. Temp: High 70s to low 80s. Clarity: Clear. Bass: Guide Nick Knapp, with Elite Guide Service, reports, “During the month of June, it is transition month. I look for the fish to move from the banks on the periodic shad spawn that has been going on. Docks this month are going to be great. I like to flip docks with a D Bomb with a 1/2-oz. weight pegged. As the month continues on, I like to get off the points with a Carolina-rigged green-pumpkin Trick Worm and work it slow on tapering points in Richland Creek. As the water warms, it’s time to slow down a little bit.” Stripers: Capt. Doug Nelms, with BigFishHeads Guide Service, reports, “June will put us in the middle of the summertime striper and crappie bites, and us guides are pretty excited about it. Yep, I said striper! Stripers used to…
Read MoreLake Oconee Articles
If you’re anything like me, you’ve been slowly losing your ever-loving mind for the past few months. This winter’s bass-fishing action has been subpar at best, and Mother Nature has been throwing us one John Smoltz-esque curveball after another. We saw 80-degree temperatures the week before Christmas and just recently battled vicious statewide ice storms…
After a long summer, fall is finally here, and with the dropping temperatures, the crappie action is heating up in reservoirs all across the state. Lake Oconee is no exception. This impoundment between Atlanta and Augusta on Interstate 20 is well-known as an excellent fishery, and the crappie population is responsible for a good portion…
There are few things better than the bass fishing Lake Oconee offers throughout the fall months. Not only are the thousands of summer pleasure boaters a thing of the past, but there’s something special happening at this very moment. As you’re reading this article, millions of shad are making their annual migration to the backs…
James McClain, of Watkinsville, his son Dylan, 13, and nephew Brandon, 10, of Athens, were jugging at Lake Oconee on May 18 when they hooked a giant flathead catfish. “On this particular morning, we had set about 20 jugs, and when we pulled up next to one of them, the jug went under,” said James.…
Lake Oconee is renowned for having large quantities of big bass. With its abundance of timber, chunk rock and offshore structure, Oconee is a prime destination for many Georgia anglers. Unfortunately, this year’s strange weather patterns have made catching Oconee bass downright tough. As the chill of early fall begins to bring us a much-welcomed…
Lake Oconee Record Fish
| Largemouth Bass | 12-lbs., 14-ozs. | Bill Brantley | 05/14/12 |
| Hybrid Bass | 14-lbs., 4-ozs. | Jan Allen Ward | 04/03/91 |
| Striped Bass | 29-lbs., 14.9-ozs. | Fred Worthy | 05/10/96 |
| Black Crappie | 3-lbs., 12-ozs. | Edward Rhodes | 02/10/97 |
| Channel Catfish | 34-lbs., 8-ozs. | Jonathan Clifton | 05/31/98 |
| Blue Catfish | 70-lbs., 2-ozs. | Koob Moua | 03/22/23 |
| Flathead Catfish | 62-lbs., 10.4-ozs. | Rob Allgood | 03/11/23 |
| White Bass | 3-lbs., 6-ozs. | Tony Couch | 04/02/93 |
| Longnose Gar | 20-lbs., 13-ozs. | Dustin Turk | 10/05/19 |
| Chain Pickerel | 1-lb., 2-ozs. | Terry Brice | 03/05/17 |
| Spotted Bass | 5-lbs., 3.2-ozs. | Austin Skinner | 03/19/22 |
| Shellcracker | 1-lb., 14.56-ozs. | Randy Smith | 04/23/22 |
| Yellow Perch | 11-ozs. | John Moore | 02/16/23 |