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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
Russell: Level: Full at 475. Temp: 68-73 degrees. Clarity: Clear. Bass: Tournament angler Kerry Partain reports, “The fishing has been good and should continue to get better as more bass are finishing the spawn and starting to feed back up. The majority of the bass we are catching are relating to the shad and herring spawns around points, humps and shoals. There has been a little bit of schooling activity in these areas, so I like to start out with a topwater and a Zoom Super Fluke to catch them during the early morning flurry. Depending on the weather, this bite could last all day, but if not, I slow down with a small swimbait, spinnerbait or a shaky head if it gets real tough. As we get further into May, some of the bass will begin moving out a little deeper, and I will start targeting brush or timber near…
Read MoreLake Russell Articles
During the early winter months as water temperatures drop into the low 50s on Georgia reservoirs, large schools of baitfish, like threadfin shad, move off the main lake and into the coves and creeks. This massive migration of bait is followed closely by concentrations of larger fish that move along under the schools and feed…
Jerry Craft is a crappie-fishing fanatic. He doesn’t hunt deer much anymore; he doesn’t fish for bass; what he likes best is catching crappie at Lake Russell. In March when the crappie are on the move, coming up from deep structure out on the main lake and moving into the creeks ahead of the spawn,…
The look exchanged by my fishing partner and I was one of surprise, almost shock… a “can you believe that” kind of look. It was late afternoon on a beautiful mid-October day on Lake Russell. What could we possibly have seen that was so surprising? It was another boat, the first and only boat we…
Each time I go to Lake Russell, I am impressed with its beautiful, clear green water, and good bass fishing. With undeveloped, tree-covered shorelines, steep banks and abundance of cover, it looks like bass-fishing heaven. And it is. Filled in 1994, Russell’s 26,650 acres sit between the upper end of Clarks Hill and the Hartwell…
December is a great month for bass fishing. The fish are still active, and there are few other boats on the water. And if you choose Lake Russell, you will find a pristine lake with no shoreline development, low fishing pressure and lots of largemouth and spotted bass ready to hit. Russell is a 26,650-acre…
Lake Russell Record Fish
| Largemouth Bass | 13-lbs., 4-ozs. | Eddy Propes | 03/04/90 |
| Spotted Bass | 6-lbs., 8-ozs. | Mike Strickland | 04/06/13 |
| Striped Bass | 63-lbs. * | Terry McConnell | 04/03/09 |
| White Bass | 4-lbs., 4-ozs. | James L. Payne | 04/12/94 |
| Walleye | 11-lbs., 6-ozs. | Neal Watson | 09/11/95 |
| Brown Trout | 10-lbs., 8-ozs. | Tim Harris | 07/04/93 |
| Black Crappie | 3-lbs., 6.08-ozs. | Aaron Jenkins | 02/23/24 |
| White Crappie | 3-lbs. | Tony Baker | 04/03/03 |
| Hybrid Bass | 14-lbs., 9-ozs. | Wayne McCollum | 01/11/04 |
| Yellow Perch | 1-lb., 5-ozs. | Vern Fulmer | 09/27/23 |
| White Perch | 1-lb., 4-ozs. | Eric Young | 01/02/21 |