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Lake Sinclair
Lake Sinclair is in central Georgia near Milledgeville directly downstream from Lake Oconee on the Oconee River. The 15,330-acre lake is operated by Georgia Power. Bass fishing and crappie fishing are very good and quite popular on Sinclair, and the lake is also home to plenty of catfish. The lake's dynamics changed in 2013 when Georgia Power ceased operation of Plant Branch, which created a warm-water discharge near the Highway 441 bridge area. Even the iconic Plant Branch smoke stacks were brought down. Lake Sinclair stretches through the counties of Baldwin, Hancock and Putnam. Lake Sinclair was created in 1953.
Lake Sinclair Resources
Sinclair: Level: 1.6 feet below 339 Temp: According to Randy Davidson on the Lake Sinclair Fishing Forum on April 29, who has a dock in Crooked Creek, the water temperature is 63-66 degrees and the water in clear in most parts of the lake. He said he’s heard no reports of muddy water on the lake. Bass: Karl Pingry reports that Ed at Lakeside Chevron said there’s a shad spawn early where a white, three-bladed spinnerbait (willowleaf blades of chrome, gold and white) is tearing them up on the rocks, seawalls and grass. “A ChatterBait in the grass where you see the shad is also a good choice. Stick with those two baits and a 1/2-oz. chrome-and-blue Rat-L-Trap or a Shad Rap for the next hour or two after the shad stop doing their morning ritual. Last, fish an Ole Monster in Sinclair colors (black emerald or junebug red) along…
Read MoreLake Sinclair Fishing Articles
Cold, muddy water didn’t bode well for the 32 boaters and their non-boater partners during Round 1 of the Lowrance Eliminator Series tournament at Lake Sinclair this morning (March 4). Somebody forgot to tell 2008 Eliminator Series champ Aaron Batson — and several other anglers who had great half-day catches under rough conditions. Batson anchored…
February is my favorite month for big bass. That is a bold statement, but it has proven true over and over during the last three decades. Bass have been growing eggs since fall, cold weather pulled them off into a winter pattern, but their instinct tells them that any day it will be time to…
SinclaMichael Reid loves the shallow bass bite on Sinclair this time of year.August bass fishing usually means dredging the depths for bass trying to escape the hot temperatures. Dragging a Carolina rig or fighting a big crankbait is often the way to catch them. Lake Sinclair offers a shallow alternative, with bass feeding around grassbeds,…
It was an overcast morning a few weeks ago as Will Sizer and I left the boat ramp in Beaverdam Creek. In short order we were fishing spinnerbaits on a rocky bank just off a main-lake point. Threadfin shad began to flicker on the surface. “Shad are spawning,” said Will. Indeed they were. One of…
Crappie-tournament anglers don’t care about taking home a cooler full of fish for the fryer. Loading the boat is not the goal. A tournament angler is looking for just seven fish. The seven fattest, heaviest slabs on the lake. That may seem silly to your average weekend slab seeker. Trolling a circuit on a February…
Lake Sinclair Record Fish
| Largemouth Bass | 13-lbs., 2-ozs. | Jimmy Edge | 02/10/90 |
| Hybrid Bass | 10-lbs., 7-ozs. | David Phillips | 11/27/98 |
| Striped Bass | 42-lbs. | Mike Wicks | - |
| White Bass | 2-lbs., 7-ozs. | James Borders Jr. | 07/12/92 |
| Black Crappie | 2-lbs., 11.5-ozs. | Brent Moye | 01/22/00 |
| Channel Catfish | 21-lbs., 5-ozs. | Kenny Durden | 05/02/07 |
| Longnosed Gar | 15-lb., 3-ozs. | Dustin Turk | 08/18/09 |
| Flathead Catfish | 39-lbs. | Tommy Spell | 07/19/22 |
| Blue Catfish | 79-lbs., 8-ozs. | Guy Covington | 04/27/2024 |
| Yellow Perch | 15.04-ozs. | Eric Phillips | 02/09/22 |
| Spotted Bass | 3-lbs., 9.76-ozs. | Larry Cason | 05/10/21 |
| Warmouth | 12-ozs. | Christopher Leverette | 02/22/23 |
Oconee River Below Sinclair Record Fish
| Largemouth Bass | 10-lbs., 3.2-ozs. | Tracey Jackson | 03/26/17 |
| Channel Catfish | 32-lbs., 6-ozs. | Rick Leitheiser | 04/07/96 |
| Flathead Catfish | 62-lbs. | Brian Estes | 06/13/99 |
| Striped Bass | 63-lbs.* | Kelly Ward | 05/30/67 |
| Black Crappie | 1-lb., 9-ozs. | Duke Campbell Jr. | 04/01/06 |
| Bluegill | 1-lb., 8-ozs. | Duke Campbell Jr. | 03/31/15 |
| Shellcracker | 1-lb., 13-ozs. | Ben Bell | 05/29/22 |
| Blue Catfish | 50-lbs., 6.4-ozs. | Eli Carey | 04/06/24 |
| Bowfin | 7-lbs., 6.016-ozs. | Benjamin Hammock | 07/24/23 |