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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: 52 degrees, which is above the 38- to 46-degree water temperature reported just 10 days ago. Clarity: Stained. Stripers: Capt. Doug Nelms, with BigFishHeads Guide Service, reports on the afternoon of Feb. 5 that there is a “huge” striper bite right now from Safe Harbor Marina to River Bend. “Trolling regular Mini Macs (without any extra weight) and even umbrella rigs will bring a lot of fish into your boat,” said Doug. “Over the past week, there have been terrific numbers of fish coming in, and with the full moon coming, it should just keep getting better. With your gas motor, the trolling speed has been from 2.5 to 3 mph. If you find birds, troll right though where they are working.” Doug says if numbers of fish isn’t your thing, now is a good time to chase a trophy striper, “There is nothing more exciting than watching a…
Read MoreLake Oconee Articles
Minor League Fishing bass tournament hit Lake Oconee on Saturday, June 27, and it took 27-plus pounds and 11 bass to win the event. The unique bass tournament format allows teams to weigh every legal bass. Anglers are allowed to weigh in as often as they like to avoid crowded livewells and fish dying. In…
On the afternoon of May 12, Chris McDaniel, of Morgan County, was busy setting up a brand new cell-phone, a direct result of catching a brand-new Lake Oconee flathead catfish record that weighed 51-lbs., 12-ozs. on certified scales. “I bent over to pick the fish up out of the water, and it went right out…
If you enjoy competing in fishing tournaments on lakes Oconee or Sinclair, it may be time to shift gears and do a little yard work. In a statement released on March 30 by Putnam County Sheriff Howard Sills, he is asking fishing tournament directors to reschedule any tournaments taking place between now and at least…
Prespawn bass hitting your baits in grass and around wood cove—that simple pattern will catch largemouth this month at Lake Oconee. The bass at Oconee will move to the spawning flats and feed heavily before bedding. Lake Oconee is 19,000 acres of water near Eatonton. The Oconee River and Richland Creek make up its two…
Sixty-five folks fishing for facts gathered at The Lodge on Lake Oconee on Saturday, Feb. 1 for the first-ever “Four Seasons of Oconee Seminar” hosted by three Lake Oconee crappie-fishing experts. Capt. Doug Nelms, a regular GON Fishing Reports contributor, taught pushing techniques and shared some of his favorite GPS coordinates for fishing brushpiles and…
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 |