Advertisement
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: 1.1 feet below 340. Temp: 62-64 degrees. Clarity: Up the creeks and rivers the water is stained to muddy. It’s a little clearer near the dam. Bass: Karl Pingry reports, “Big Ed at Lakeside Chevron reports that the ABA tournament took 20 pounds to win. The winning baits were black frogs and black buzzbaits fished in the backs of the pockets. Other baits used for the bigger bags were swim jigs and merthiolate Trick Worms for bedding bass. The recent Mid Georgia tournament took 20 pounds for first and second place. One primary bait used was a turtleback-bladed spinnerbait with a chartreuse-and-white skirt up the Oconee and Little River arms. Ed commented that all the big bags were caught in extremely muddy water. Other notable baits to have tied on are a squarebill in crawfish pattern, a Bandit 200 series and an Ol’ Monster worm in junebug red.…
Read MoreLake Sinclair Fishing Articles
When she has the chance, Rachel Brown, 25, of Dallas, Ga., accompanies her dad at their family’s Lake Sinclair vacation home. On Thursday, April 9, they had the chance to go fishing together like they have many times before. “We fished some that afternoon and caught some bass and bream, which is our normal,” said…
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…
The bass spawn, shad spawn, seawalls and grassbeds—March Madness didn’t happen this year, but pay attention to these “Final Four” at Sinclair this month, and you can have a personal best catch of bass. Sinclair had been on fire this year for quality fish, with five-bass limits in the low 20s just placing, not even…
$13,791 was raised during the 4th annual Brandon Key Catfishing Tournament June 1-2 on Lake Sinclair. The money raised through sponsorships go directly to 30-30 Ministries, an organization that uses hunting and fishing as a platform to share Christ. They’ve hosted weekend Camps in Georgia, Alabama, Texas and South Africa. The ministry caters to kids…
I bass fish—and write about bass fishing—for a living. I’m normally the ding dong you’ll see on the lake in the rain, sleet and snow. I’ve had some strange looks over the years. But I’ll be flat-out honest with you: You’d be hard pressed to find me bass fishing in the heat of the summer.…
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 | 73-lbs., 12.16-ozs. | Brandon Pitts | 01/26/24 |
| 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 |