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Lake Russell

Lake Russell is one of Georgia's youngest reservoirs, completed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 1983 with construction of the Richard B. Russell Dam on the Savannah River bordering Elbert County, Georgia and Abbeville and Anderson counties in South Carolina. Lake Russell is 26,650 acres and sits between Lake Hartwell to the north and Clarks Hill Lake to the south. As a newer reservoir, environmental laws impacted construction, one factor being that thousands of acres of standing timber were left. Lake levels don't fluctuate much more than 5 feet. Pumpback features at Russell Dam can both pull and release water into and from the tailrace. In addition to the Savannah River, major tributaries include Beaverdam Creek on the Georgia side and Rocky River in South Carolina.

Lake Russell Resources

Lake Russell Fishing Report – March 2025

By GON Staff | February 26, 2025

Russell: Level: Full at 475. Temp: 50-52 degrees. Clarity: Clear on the main lake and stained in the creeks. Bass: Tournament angler Kerry Partain reports, “The bass fishing has been good the last few weeks and should continue to get better with warmer weather on the way. Most of the bass are being caught on main-lake points and pockets or in ditches toward the mouths of the creeks. The best baits right now have been a jig head with a Zoom Winged Fluke, Blade Runners with a Zoom Fluke and jigs. It has been taking 19 pounds to win just about every tournament, and the big prespawn females are biting. Once the water warms up in March and temperatures get above 55 degrees, fish will move up shallower on secondary points and into spawning areas. The creeks will also start to heat up in March, and I will be fishing…

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Lake Russell Articles

Hog Hunters, Bass Angler Incident Leads To Boat Collision, 9 Dead Dogs And Charges

A group of five young hunters from North Carolina and more than a dozen dogs trained to find, chase and bay wild hogs were in a boat on Lake Russell Sunday afternoon, Feb. 9, hunting the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers property that borders the Savannah River reservoir between Hartwell and Clarks Hill. Meanwhile, a…

Youth Waterfowl Hunts At Lake Russell

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Savannah District will host youth waterfowl hunts at the Richard B. Russell Project during the months of December and January for youth participants ages 9 to 16. Hunters will be selected by random drawing, and those selected to participate will be contacted with tentative hunt dates. All hunters must…

Lake Russell November Bass Hotspots

November can be a spot-fest at Lake Russell as spotted bass move into coves and ditches feeding on shad. You can load the boat with spots—and a few largemouth, too—by fishing ledges in ditches and coves. Typically in November, the bass will be from the mouths of coves to halfway back. As the days shorten…

Corps To Host Dove Hunts At Lake Russell

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Savannah District, Richard B. Russell Project, will host dove hunts for youth and the general public on Sept. 28 and Oct. 5, 2024, at two fields in Elbert County, and one field in Abbeville County, South Carolina. Youth and public hunts will begin at 2 p.m. The youth hunts start…

Lake Russell Black Crappie Sets New Record

Aaron Jenkins calls Canton, N.C. home now, but his heart will forever be in east Georgia. He makes the three-hour trip home to crappie fish with his dad, Keith, whenever he can. As far as Aaron is concerned, there’s only one Georgia lake in which to fish for crappie. The 31-year-old grew up fishing on…

Lake Russell Record Fish

Largemouth Bass13-lbs., 4-ozs.Eddy Propes03/04/90
Spotted Bass6-lbs., 8-ozs.Mike Strickland04/06/13
Striped Bass63-lbs. *Terry McConnell04/03/09
White Bass4-lbs., 4-ozs.James L. Payne04/12/94
Walleye11-lbs., 6-ozs.Neal Watson09/11/95
Brown Trout10-lbs., 8-ozs.Tim Harris07/04/93
Black Crappie3-lbs., 6.08-ozs.Aaron Jenkins02/23/24
White Crappie3-lbs.Tony Baker04/03/03
Hybrid Bass14-lbs., 9-ozs.Wayne McCollum01/11/04
Yellow Perch1-lb., 5-ozs.Vern Fulmer09/27/23
White Perch1-lb., 4-ozs.Eric Young01/02/21