“The Southern Fishing Report”
By Ken Sturdivant
106 Hickory Ridge Drive
770 889 2654
Cumming Georgia 30040
April 4, 2014
LAKE LANIER IS FULL, THE MAIN LAKE IS CLEAR AND CREEKS ARE STAINED IN THE BACKS & 53 DEGREES
This Lake Lanier Bass report is from Jimbo Mathley. www.jimboonlanier.com 770 642 7764
Bass fishing is very good. The warm weather has arrived. Hooray! Fish can still be found in the back of creeks and on secondary points at the mouth of creek arms as well as pockets near the main creek channels. Fish are starting to move up, albeit very slowly, more slowly than you think given the very warm days we have been having. A Davis Shaky Head and a jerk bait have been the most productive lures still this week. The dock bite is starting to pick up as well, particularly when the sun is out. The deeper docks have been more productive for us this week. Look for the docks in the 20 to 25 feet range at the front to be the best right now, and if brush is around, even better. Also, look for the rocky areas in creek that receive all day sun to continue to produce at times also. These areas still need to be next to deep water for the most part, although you can find activity in the backs of creeks and pockets in shallower water, and this should continue to get stronger. Now is a great time to learn prespawn fishing on Lanier. I have the following dates left open in April: 15, 22, 24, 25, 29, and 30. I am also booking for May. Give me a call and let’s go fishing.
This Striper report is from Captain Ken West and Captain Mike Maddalena of Big Fish On Service 404 561 2564. www.bigfishonguide.com
Striper fishing is good and should be improving as the warming water temperatures gets the fish up and moving. The boys will be looking for girl friends and the girls will be looking to pack on the weight. Shallow water flats, long soaping points, and reef markers in the creeks will all become Gizzard and Threadfin Shad magnets and the fish will roam these areas looking for a big meal. Free lines with Herring, Trout and Gizzard Shad pulled on boards will be the primary technique. Pull you “bank side” board within a foot or two of the bank where possible. Vary your trolling speed from .75 mph to 1.5 mph which is a little faster than you have been pulling cold water. Do not hesitate to move out to deeper water as the sun gets high in the sky. Stripers will stage off deep water points and chill out after feeding. Spring is a great time to fish especially after the winter we have had this year! Don’t forget to take a DAD fishing.
This Lake Lanier Crappie report is from Dan Saknini, President of the Lanier Crappie Angler’s Club. 404 425 4059
Crappie fishing is great. The water temperature is 60 plus degrees and rising. THE SPAWN HAS BEGUN! Some of the fish have already laid their eggs and are moving out. Not all fish spawn at the same time, so anticipate the spawn to continue the next two to three weeks. Higher water temperatures will speed up the spawn. Target the blow downs. A blow down is a fallen tree partially on the bank, partially in the water. To determine the size of the tree, look at the trunk of the tree and compare it to a standing tree. That will give you an idea of the height of the tree, and therefore the length submerged. Make sure you fish all the angles, including the middle of the tree. Those fish relate to structure, and they’ve found their living room! Obviously, not all blow downs produce fish. The longer it has been in the water, the better chance of it producing fish. Target pockets in the middle to the backs of creeks. You can use crappie minnows as well as hair jigs. You may want to try using a weighted cork. Cast it into the blow down and pop it slowly as you retrieve. If you are a dock shooter, as Uncle Si says, “it’s on like Donkey Kong!” This method is working EXTREMELY well! This is the time of the year that you can put your limit in the boat. The more spots you fish, the more fish you will put in the boat. Always, when you start catching the smaller fish leave that spot and go to the next pocket, or the next dock. The fish are aggressive now, and are not picky on jig colors. Our favorite line is Mr. Crappie four pound test, high visibility line. We find that wearing polarized sunglasses is very helpful in enabling you to see your line movement. Get out and fish! It is the best time of the year! Wear your life jacket; it can save your life.
Dan Saknini is an avid fisherman and President of the Lanier Crappie Anglers Club. See our club’s website, http://www.lakelaniercrappieanglers.com/
Call Ken Sturdivant about the ON THE WATER SCHOOLS for Sonar or the Rods, Reels and Lures for Bass or a full day STRIPERS School. Call 770 889 2654 for details. Send an e mail to ken@southernfishing.com
April 4, 2014
WEST POINT LAKE IS DOWN 3.4 FEET, STAINED & MID TO UPPER 60 DEGREES
Bass fishing is good and the fish have begun spawning. This has been a week for the soft plastics like a Zoom lizard on a lightCarolinarig and the trick worms or creature baits. Work the isolated cover and depressions. These fish are most likely relating to small ditches waiting to pull up for the spawn. A light Carolina Rig can also be effective in these same areas. The best areas have been from Wehadkee creek north to the 109 bridge. Use the Lowrance Structure Scan and Down Scan technology to help find the concentrations of bait and the bass will be there too. We have GPS Bass fishing locations and aBASSFISHINGWESTPOINTLAKEbook for sale. Ask ken for a sample. This book is $39.00. If you would like a sample, send us an e mail to
April 4, 2014
LAKE ALLATOONA IS DOWN 4.6 FEET, STAINED & MID 50 DEGREES
This Lake Allatoona bass fishing guides report is from Matt Driver, wwww.proanglerradio.com
Bass fishing is great. Water temperatures are rising into the high 50’s to low 60’s. Fish are active and vastly on the move to spawning areas. Fish are being caught several different was. Soft plastic jerk baits Big bite jerk minnow, hard Jerk baits Spro Mcstick, jigs like the Kustom Kicker freak, Carolina rig tipped with lizards and much more. We are seeing 30 fish a day as common. Fish are in 6 to 10 feet and moving shallower quick. We believe we will see a good top water bite real soon! Watch for schooling activity. The spots will start to “wolf pack” any day now.
This Lake Allatoona fishing guides report for Striper and Hybrids has been brought to you exclusively by Robert Eidson of First Bite Guide Service, 770 827 6282.
www.firstbiteguideservice.com Lake Allatoona, Georgia email: eidson6260@comcast.net
Line side fishing is good. We have caught most of our fish this week on jumbo thread fins and small gizzard shad fished on free lines and planner boards. Both the north end and south end are holding good numbers of hybrids and stripers. And the best part of it is these fish are willing to eat. It has been a very long time since we seen a decent bite on Lake Allatoona. The shad kill we had earlier this winter is fixing to pay off for us big time. The only down side to it is bait is really hard to net right now. A stop by (Striper Soup) may be in order for those of you that don’t like getting on the pond at 3am. The numbers are getting better every week. The fish are feasting themselves getting ready for the spawn run up the rivers. Now is the time to take the cover off your boat and get on the pond. The bite on Allatoona is only going to get better in the upcoming weeks. Give us a call and book your trip today.
We have a book on BASS FISHING LAKE ALATOONA and we have GPS 50 coordinates also. Ask for samples of the book and the coordinates from ken@southernfishing.com Try these two N 34 10 846 W 84 43 128 Good spawning pockets in McCaskey Creek. Use a Sammy 100 and Big swim baits around the schooling fish. N 34 10 294 W 84 43 092 Good spawning area around Bartow County ramp with a Sammy 100 and big swim bait area.
Call Ken about the Southern Fishing Schools exclusive ON THE WATER SCHOOLS for SONAR or Rods Reels and Lures for Bass. Call for 770 889 2654 or ken@southernfishing.com for more info
April 4, 2014
LAKE HARTWELL IS FULL, THE MAIN LAKE IS CLEAR, MID 50 DEGREES, THE BACKS OF CREEKS ARE SLIGHTLY STAINED
From Jimbo’s Guide Service on Lake Hartwell. Guide Rick Steckelberg.
Bass fishing is good. The fish can be found in main lake pockets and ditches and have been shallow on some days, but the recent cold front has pushed them back deeper, 25 to 28 feet in some cases. We have been using a weedless Fish Head Spin in Pearl White and Albino colors trailed with a super fluke jr. The shad rap has continued to be reliable in the creek pockets, and a 3/16 oz shaky head around docks has also been productive. Look for the fish to make a big move shallower in the next couple of weeks.
Come fish with Rick on Lake Hartwell and learn his top secret approaches and strategies that will be used by the pros in next year’s Bass Master Classic. The Classic is coming to Hartwell in February 2015. Contact Jimbo on Lanier at 770 542 7764 to book a trip with Rick. The book BASS FISHING LAKE HARTWELL is available. We have opened this lake up to avid bass anglers with over 100 key bass fishing holes. ken@southernfishing.com for a sample. See our web site for Rods Reels and Lures for Bass DVD on sale.
April 4, 2014
CLARKS HILL IS FULL, UPPER 60 DEGREES & STAINED
Bass fishing is very good. The grass is starting to grow and the bass are using these mats as a staging point before moving to the beds. With some of the bass headed shallow o bed, soma anglers are still searching the edges of the grass to the bigger fish. Husky Jerks and Strike King spinnerbaits are the baits of choice. Some anglers are still catching fish on Rapala Shad Raps and Rapala DT10 in shad and baby bass patterns. These baits will work all during the spawn and post spawn. With the majority of the bass being caught appearing to be males, expect this to change during the next two weeks. Ask for a free sample of the BASS FISHING LAKE CLARKS HILL book. Ask for a sample at Send a sample request to ken@southernfishing.com
April 4, 2014
LAKE RUSSELL IS FULL, CLEAR & MID 60 DEGREES
Bass fishing is good. The lake is full and the bass are headed to the in some of the smaller creeks. The water is a little warmer there and good sized bass are on the bed. This will only be the first wave of bass to hit the beds. Some good quantity of bass remain on the channel ledges in about five to seven feet of water just waiting to be caught. Rapala DT6 and Rapala Glass Shad Raps are working. Green tiger and crawdad colors are the best to use under the stained water conditions this week. Top water baits will be working soon and use the Chug Bugs and Skitter Pops Throw these baits into the very backs of the coves in water no more than one foot deep. Start off by working the bait fast and then try a slow retrieve. Ask Ken for a sample of the BASS FISHING LAKE RUSSELL book @ ken@southernfishing.com
April 4, 2014
LAKE SEMINOLE IS .09 FEET ABOVE FULL, STAINED & 62 DEGREES BY MATT BATY 229 726 0513
Bass fishing is good. The bass are in two stages right now, either prespawn or spawn. The prespawn fish are still staging near spawning flats and mouths of spawning coves. These pre spawners can be picked off with shallow running crank baits such as a Spro Fat John in citrus shad or either a bladed jig in black/blue with a Big Bite Baits 5 inch Cane Thumper in hematoma as the trailer. Use 16 lb. Sunline FC Sniper fluorocarbon for either of these techniques. Beating the banks really seemed to pay off for the Elite Series guys, and you can use these same to lures to fish banks on the main lake. These areas are holding fish because of the sand near the bank where the fish are either spawning or moving up to spawn. With the muddy water, sight fishing is tough on the lake but can still be done in backwater ponds where the water is clear. If you are not familiar with the lake, use your Lowrance Electronics with Insight mapping to see them on the map. Most of the ponds off of Spring Creek and Fish Pond Drain stay clear year round. When searching for spawning fish, use a good pair of polarized glasses, and cast around as you are looking. A good bait to fish while searching is a 7 inch Big Bite Baits Sugar Cane worm in green pumpkin. Rig this on a Fish Catchin Fool Bobber Stopper, FCF 3/16 ounce tungsten and a 4/0 Gamakatsu Offset Worm Hook. This bait is deadly around bass that are cruising
Learn how to use the Lowrance Structure Scan and Down Scan technology with Southern Fishing on the Water fishing schools.
April 4, 2014
LAKE GEORGE IS DOWN 2.1 FEET, LOW 60 DEGREES
Bass fishing is god and the fish are shallow. Fish up in Cowikee and there are lots of small keeper fish in brush piles. Many anglers are using several patterns including a mixture of sight fishing and shallow water brush with plastics. With the lake ready to break lose with the spawn; some are bedding and others getting ready to bed. There are pre spawners toward the southern end of the lake. Use the flat sided crank baits and the Bomber Flat A or a Thundershad coffin bill. For the spawners, mid lake is best. The fish will be on bed in the backs of coves and pockets. Make sure you have a good pair of sunglasses, and look for those light colored beds. Learn how to use the Lowrance Structure Scan and Down Scan technology with Southern Fishing on the Water fishing schools. ken@southernfishing.com
April 4, 2014
LAKE WEISS IS AT 1.38 FEET BELOW FULL POOL AND STAINED AND 58/60 DEGREE’S
Bass fishing is great and they are being caught shallow in 2 to 5 feet of water on spinner baits, Chatter baits and shallow running crank baits. Pig and jigs under docks is also producing some good bass. Tournament weights have been 24 to 28 pounds to win over the last month. Lot of big largemouth are being caught.
Crappie fishing is awesome and they are being caught shallow in 3 to 6 feet of water, a few fish are still staged out deep. They are being caught long line trolling with 1/24 ounce Jiffy Jigs in colors JJ01, JJ06, JJ13, JJ17 JJ20, JJ37 and Marks Special Blue. Shooting docks is starting to produce a lot of Crappie also. A lot of fish are also being caught casting jigs and minnows to the banks
Now available for sale 50 of my proven GPS waypoints for off shore structure for Bass and Crappie fishing on Weiss Lake, Alabama contact Ken Sturdivant at ken@havefunfishing.com.
April 4, 2014
LAKE SINCLAIR IS FULL, 66 DEGREES, MUDDY UP RIVER, MAIN LAKE STAINED, BY MATT HENRY, CALL 770 361 4210 (cell) or 478 451 0167 (SINCLAIR MARINA)
Bass fishing is good. Spring weather has finally moved in and warm water temperatures have triggered the bass to start spawning. Pre spawn and spawning patterns are both working right now lake wide. Focus on the protected spawning pockets for both of these patterns. A spinner bait and a jig will be the baits of choice for the pre spawn bite. Flip a black/blue Buckeye Mop Jig around dock walkways and any shallow visible cover you can find. Chartreuse Tru Trac Lures spinner bait with gold Colorado blades will catch many of these pre spawn fish as well casting to the sea walls. Even though some pre spawn fish can still be caught, changing conditions are making this bite a dying pattern. The emerging pattern right now is fishing for the spawning bass. This pattern will require fishing much slower with soft plastic baits in the back half of pockets. A Texas rigged June bug 6” lizard will get the job done by fishing dock walk ways and stump flats in the back ends of the spawning pockets. This is the best time of year to catch that fish of a lifetime! Give us a call to book your guide trip so you don’t miss out on the fun. Trips are booking fast. Make sure to stop by our boat showroom and see the 2013 and 2014 inventory of Nitro, Tracker, Sun Tracker, Tahoe, and Mako boats. We only have a few 2013 models left! Don’t miss out on some great deals! For more information, swing by the marina or give us a call at 478 451 0167.
April 4, 2014
LAKE OCONEE IS FULL, MID 50 DEGREES
Bass fishing is good. The lake is full, light stain over most of the lake and the lake is clearing and the water temperature is 57 to 64 degrees. Rat L traps, Shad Raps and small square bill crank bait with rattles fished on sea walls and around docks. Shaky heads fished under docks will also produce fish. Start in the middle of the main lake creeks like Sugar and Lick along with the large coves and work your way to the back. Spinner baits fished along any rock bank will also draw a strike. Georgia Power has been moving water at first light and this is the best time to work the rock banks.
Striper report by Mark Smith of Reel Time guide service. Call 404 803 0741 or
Striper fishing is good. The fish are at the dam for the spring run. Live bait fished on down lines along with flat lines and plainer boards will pick up fish. The water is clearing up and the umbrella rig bite will improve and start to produce fish. Take shiners and shad, one day they will like one the nest the other.
Crappie fishing is good. The fish are moving into the major creeks. Use a dark jig tipped with a minnow. Spider rigs and trolling have been the best producers over the past week. Use your Lowrance to located the depth and location of the schools and adjust your depth to put the jig on top of the fish. Over the next few weeks the largest fish will be moving into the coves and creeks to spawn so now it the time to fill a cooler with big slabs.
Make sure you stop by Sugar Creek Marina and pick up your spoons and all your tackle needs. You can also book your crappie and striper trips with Reel Time Guide Service at 404 803 0741 or reeltime@bellsouth.net Learn how to use the Lowrance technology with Ken Sturdivant. Free sonar set up ken@southernfishing.com
April 4, 2014
JACKSON LAKE IS DOWN 1.1 FEET, STAINED & MID SIXTIES
Bass fishing is good. Use baits that have a lot of vibration like a spinnerbait or one that emits a lot of noise like a Rattlin’ Rap. Both baits will work on Jackson and have a good track record for many years during the spring. Rapala crawdad and red crawdad crank baits are working best up the rivers. Bass are headed to the bedding areas. A local favorite in the spring is up the Yellow River. This river has produced quality bass for many years. Fish all the little nooks and creek that feed out to the main river. Wood and rock are always a good combination during the spawn.
SONAR WITH KEN STURDIVANT at Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World in the Outdoor Skills Workshop. Lowrance Pro Staff Member Ken Sturdivant will go over the settings for the sonar @ 2pm the last Saturday of the month.
If you would like to have a free set up sheet for your sonar, send me an e mail to kensturdivant@earthlink.net and ask for the Sonar Setup Quick List.
We have these books for sale BASS FISHING ON WEST POINT LAKE, BASS FISHING LAKE RUSSELL, BASS FISHING WEST POINT LAKE and BASS FISHING LAKE HARTWELL. These books are written by Tim White and Ken Sturdivant and each one has over 65 locations exclusively for bass and covers every week of the year. Each book $39.00. If you would like a sample of any book, send us an e mail to kensturdivant@earthlink.net. Our mailing address is Southern Fishing Schools Inc. 106 Hickory Ridge, Cumming Georgia 30040.