“The Southern Fishing Report” By Ken Sturdivant
106 Hickory Ridge Drive
770 889 2654
Cumming Georgia 30040
www.southernfishing.com
June 27, 2014
LAKE LANIER IS .15 FEET BELOW FULL POOL, THE MAIN LAKE AND CREEKS ARE CLEAR & 83 DEGREES
This Lake Lanier Bass report is from Jimbo Mathley. www.jimboonlanier.com 770 642 7764
Bass fishing is good. There are lots of fish getting in and around the brush in 20 to 25 feet, and they will eat. You can get them to come up for top water and swim baits very well, and that is what we have been doing. Every day is a process of figuring out how aggressive the fish are and how far they will come up. If the answer is not at all, then the jig or the Fish Head Spin around the brush is a good choice. I have the following dates open over the next couple of weeks: July 1 (afternoon), July 2, and July 3 (afternoon), 8, 9, 10. July is traditionally a good drop shot month and a great time to go spot tail minnow fishing which is great for kids and adults alike.
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 remains good. Not a lot has changed this week. The fish are moving to their summer pattern. We are focusing on deep water points but there are fish in bays off the river channel and creek mouths over a 50 to 80 foot bottom from the Chestatee to the dam. Most of the fish are hitting down rods at 30 to 50 feet over a 50 to 80 foot bottom. We use 20 pound Seaguar fluorocarbon main line with a two ounce slip egg weight, a bead and swivel with 15 pound test Seaguar fluorocarbon leader for our down rods. Lively bait is critical when fishing summer time down rods. Don’t forget to ice your herring and try to maintain bait tank water temperature under 70 degrees. Change your bait often. Your Lowrance fish finding sonar, structure scan and GPS electronics are critical tools for locating summer time stripers. If you mark a few fish in or on top of trees stop and put bait down. Often times a school of fish will show up and you will be covered up with hungry fish. There is an Umbrella rig bite with a 3 ounce. 4 arm jig with 9 one ounce buck tail jigs with white and chartreuse 4 inch shad bodies. Set your rigs at 80 to 100 ft back and pull between 2.7 to 3.5 MPH. Don’t forget your “Crazy Ivan’s” when pulling umbrella rigs. If you do not know what a “Crazy Ivan” is you can watch the movie Red October or tune in next week and we will explain. The lake temperature is in the mid 80’s. The water is lightly stained in the back of the creeks and clear on the main lake both North and South.
This Lake Lanier Crappie report is from Dan Saknini, President of the Lanier Crappie Angler’s Club. 404 425 4059
Crappie fishing is good. The water temperatures are in the low eighties and fishing patterns remain the same. Beat the boat traffic and the heat by fishing early in the morning. Fish are caught on deeper docks with below surface structure, close to creek channels, as well as in brush piles in deeper water, anywhere from 20 to thirty feet. The fish are holding tight to the structure. Soft body jigs and hair jigs are working equally well. Because the fish are so deep, the bite is harder to feel, so watch your line carefully for ANY movement. Night fishing remains good. Come to our monthly meeting to hear experienced fishermen share tips and techniques. Our next meeting is 6:00 pm Thursday, June 26 at Hammond’s Fishing Center in Cumming. Stay safe on the water, wear your life jacket! Dan Saknini is an avid fisherman and President of the Lanier Crappie Anglers Club. See our club’s website, http://www.lakelaniercrappieanglers.com/
Anglers have a new Bait Shop on Buford Dam Road at the Buford Dam Quick Stop at 2595 Buford Dam Road. Open daily from 6 to 6 they have Herring and other baits like shiners ready to go to the lake. Please call him at 706 867 5102 and say hello.
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
June 27, 2014
WEST POINT LAKE IS FULL, STAINED & MID 80’S
Bass fishing has been fair to good and several baits and patterns are working. Early and late use spinner baits and buzz baits in the shallows and shadows then get to the humps and use larger crank baits. Work the main lake humps and check out the rip rap on bridges and main lake points early morning and use a # 7 or # 5 Shad Rap in baby bass or shiner and the Leverage spinnerbait. There has been a good bite up lake in the cooler river waters. Use larger Zoom Bush Hogs and green lizards on a Texas rig. The river points down lake have been best in the middle of the day and also use a 200 all white Bandit. Use the Lowrance and fish off the points out to 50 feet away from the banks and points on the main lake.
Anglers have GPS Bass fishing locations and a “BASS FISHING WEST POINT LAKE” book IS for sale. Ask ken for a sample. This book is $39.00. Sample just e mail ken@southernfishing.com
June 27, 2014
LAKE ALLATOONA IS FULL, STAINED & LOW 80’S
This bass fishing report is by Matt Driver, www.proanglerradio.com 404 456 6094
Bass fishing is slow (but typical) and not a lot of size but it seems to be picking up. The bass are not fully settled to a full summertime pattern and being scattered is the hard part right now. Most fish can be found in mid depth brush and numbers are on the rise. The rain has helped a little in my opinion. Fish can be found on the ends of points new the river channel. The medium to deep crank bait like the Spro big papa, the little john DD and Little John tiny DD are good search bait. The 3/8 or 3/16 ounce green pumpkin jig and jig head are a pretty solid plan to put fish in the boat right now. The drop shot with a sunrise colored big bite shaky squirrel has been productive as well. The 1 ounce spoon is putting a few in the boat but you have the filter thought the white bass and hybrid to catch the bass.
This Lake Allatoona Fishing Guides for striper and hybrid report fishing report has been brought to you exclusively by Robert Eidson of First Bite Guide Service, 770 827 6282 Lake Allatoona Fishing Guides Allatoona First Bite Guide Service Lake Allatoona Fishing Guide Lake Allatoona, email: eidson6260@att.net
Line side fishing is good. The summer bite is in full swing, and we are catching a ton of fish down lining and pulling umbrella rigs on the south end of the lake. The dissolved oxygen levels have plummeted up north, and the fish have all moved south to between Bartow Carver and the dam. Check Clear, Stamp Creek, McKaskey Creek and Cooper Branch on up to the Bethany Bridge area and into the Allatoona Creek Arm. The thermocline is starting to set up at about 28 feet, and we are catching all of our fish either down lining or trolling u rigs between 18 28 feet. Down lining a threadfin shad is absolutely the best bite on the lake and trolling running a close second. But remember we are in the dog ” Days ” of summer and shad will die quickly on the line so take a lot of bait or keep a bucket of shiners as a back up. They’re biting shiners about 25 percent as well as they’re hitting the threadfins, but you’ll need to match the size of your hook to the size of your bait or the fish won’t hit. Use a size 6 Gamakatsu octopus on a medium shiner. When using smaller hooks, be sure to use quality hooks so the fish don’t straighten them out. The top water bite is gone.
Anglers, we have a book on BASS FISHING LAKE ALLATOONA that has 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 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
June 27, 2014
LAKE HARTWELL IS AT FULL POOL & MID 80’S
Bass fishing is good and fish are being caught on the main lake points and up in the larger creeks. Some of the larger bass are still being caught on crank baits over stumps in seven to fifteen feet of water. A slow moving retrieve with an occasional twitch of the rod tip will usually trigger a strike. The crank baits are only working from safe light until mid morning and then it’s off to the boat docks and steep rock ledges. Worms and jigs seem to be the favorite here. Catching one good bass while fishing ten boat docks will be a good day during the heat. Trick worms rigged with a light sinker Texas style or on a short Carolina rig are excellent this time of the year. Use the Rapala DT10, #5 Shad Raps and Rapala 13S stick baits.
Anglers, 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.
June 27, 2014
CLARKS HILL IS FULL, MID 80’S DEGREES & STAINED
Bass fishing is fair. Cooler water can be found up in the narrow rivers. Fishing the Little River area is a good starting area and most of the bass will be less than three pounds. An occasional top water bite is still happening along with an early crank bait bite. Best fishing times still seem to be early until about 10:00 a.m. Then pick apart bottom structure with an assortment of plastic and various forms of jigs. Slowing down your presentation will be a must as the daytime highs climb into the 90’s. Take along sunscreen and plenty of liquids if you plan to fish all day. Good baits to use this week include Skitter Walks, 1/4 ounce Rat L Trap, Bandits, and 1/4 ounce jigs. The book, BASS FISHING CLARKS HILL LAKE is on sale. Get 52 weeks of bass fishing reports and over 40 bass fishing locations for this popular lake. Ask for a free sample of the BASS FISHING LAKE CLARKS HILL book. Ask for a sample: ken@southernfishing.com
June 27, 2014
LAKE RUSSELL IS DOWN 1.6 FEET, CLEAR & MID 80’S
Bass fishing is fair. There is a fair top water bite is still occurring early in the morning off the points on the main lake. Even if bait fish aren’t breaking the surface use the smaller Zara Spook Jr. is bone and baby bass fast in five to ten feet of water just off rocky main lake points. The rapid actions sometimes trigger a feeding frenzy and quality spotted and largemouth bass can be caught. Fishing small sections of rip rap early in the morning with crank baits or 1/4 ounce spinnerbaits is another good place to start. Fish these patterns only until the sun comes up over the tree tops then look for areas of shade along the main lake banks. Over hanging brush and submerged wood or rocks are producing some bass during the mid-day period. Use the jigs, Skitter Walks, Shad Raps and X-Raps.
For a sample of the BASS FISHING LAKE RUSSELL book e mail ken@southernfishing.com
June 27, 2014
LAKE SEMINOLE IS FULL, STAINED & MIDDLE 80’S
Bass fishing is awesome. There are several different ways to catch bass. The big bass are being caught on frogs near the bank. You can either fish lily pads, pepper grass, or scum as bream are hanging around these areas either bedding or eating willow flies. You need to make really long casts so a good reel such as a Lew’s Speed Spool is a must. You also need good braid that cast well such as Sunline FX2 in 60 pound test. If you are fishing pepper grass, use a Spro Bronzeye Popper in Natural Green. If you are fishing pads or scum, use a regular Spro Bronzeye 65 in Natural Green. Power Poles come in really handy when fishing this technique because the fish are actually schooled up in places like this so if you catch one there is usually another in that same area. Another good pattern that is working well is to fish submerged coontail grass. Seminole is really different this year from all of the spring rains and cold weather killing most of the vegetation. So you have to really search to find good grass. The down imaging from Lowrance is really a neat tool to find areas where grass is present. When you find good grass, a Texas Rigged Big Bite Baits Finesse worm in Tilapia or Green Pumpkin with a 1/4 Fish Catchin Fool Tungsten Weight is hard to beat, but if the wind is blowing you can also catch them on a spinnerbait. Buddha Bait Company makes a new spinnerbait with a 6/0 hook that is really long so you don’t have to use a trailer. It comes through the grass really well. Learn how to use the Lowrance Structure Scan and Down Scan technology with Southern Fishing on the Water fishing schools. ken@southernfishing.com
June 27, 2014
LAKE GEORGE IS DOWN 1.4 FEET, HIGH 80’S
Bass fishing is good. A Sizmic Toad across the tops of that thick vegetation on overcast mornings can extend the bite on into the day. Like the ledges, finding the right stretch of grass is key and you’ll be on the trolling motor a while hunting. The ledge bite has been great at times, but with the high water the fish are roaming a lot making them hard to keep up with. Anglers have been catching fish on a mixture of shallow grass and ledges. Some are using the same patterns ranging from cranking creek ledges to frogs run over the grass. The river north of Lake Point has some decent stain to it. Below Creek town is clearer. As long as the lake stays stable, the grass bite will remain strong, early morning and late evenings seeing the most activity. Tie on a Sizmic Toad or Zoom Horny toad and kick the trolling motor in high gear. The fish are active so chasing fast moving bait doesn’t bother them. If the ledge bite is your game, cover more water than ever. The fish are moving around day to day but when you do find some the will bite a crank bait pretty well. Learn how to use the Lowrance Structure Scan and Down Scan technology with Southern Fishing On the Water fishing schools. ken@southernfishing.com
June 27, 2014
WEISS LAKE IS AT 0.20 FEET BELOW FULL POOL AND CLEAR TO LIGHT STAINED AND 85 87 DEGREES
Bass fishing is good and most of our bass have moved to deeper water, on brush, around and under deeper docks in 10 15 feet of water. The river and creek channel ledges, submerged, road beds, points and humps are producing fish also. Pitching a pig and Jig, under and around, deeper dock with brush is producing some quality bass. Casting a medium to deep running crank bait in front of deeper docks with brush is producing some quality fish also. Some smaller Bass are still being caught shallow, under and around docks and weed beds.
Striper fishing is good and they are being caught in the lower Chattooga River, the Cave Hole and Little Spring Creek on live Shad down lined about 8 to 10 feet deep and flat lined live shad. A lot of quality fish have been caught this past week.
Crappie fishing is fair and they are thru spawning and most have moved back to deeper water. Spider rigging with live minnows on the creek and river channel ledges and deep brush in the flats is the way to catch these post spawn crappie. Shooting docks is producing a few fish also.
Now available for sale 50 of my proven GPS waypoints for off shore structure for Bass and Crappie fishing on Lake Weiss Alabama contact Ken Sturdivant at ken@havefunfishing.com.
June 27, 2014
LAKE SINCLAIR IS FULL, 86 DEGREES, STAINED UP RIVER, MAIN LAKE CLEAR, BY MATT HENRY, CALL 770 361 4210 (cell) or 478 451 0167 (SINCLAIR MARINA)
WWW.SINCLAIRMARINA.COM MATT@SINCLAIRMARINA.COM
Bass fishing is good. The shallow bite has been good on Lake Sinclair this week. The mayflies have been hatching every few days over the past week making for great fishing for all species. Bream imitating lures are best right now as the bass are gorging on bream that are eating the mayflies. A Bass Hound prop bait in a bream or mayfly color pattern will catch fish all day long around mayfly covered banks. A Spro Fat John square bill crank bait in a chartreuse color fished around the backside of docks and around sea walls will produce fish throughout the day. During the middle of the day on sunny days, skip a Buckeye Lures mop jig under overhanging limbs and dock walkways where mayflies are present. Green pumpkin or a brown and orange combination will be the colors of choice. As always, a Buckeye Spot Remover shaky head with a green pumpkin Zoom trick worm will produce bites around docks and brush piles throughout the entire lake. Even though there is a strong shallow bite, there are still some fish schooled up out on deep structure. A Carolina rigged Zoom baby brush hog or a Strike King 6XD crank bait will catch some of these fish. Guide trips are booking fast for the upcoming holiday week. Give me a call to reserve your trip.
Make sure to stop by our boat showroom and see the 2014 inventory of Nitro, Tracker, Sun Tracker, Tahoe, Regency and Mako boats. For more information, go to www.sinclairmarina.com or call 478 451 0167
June 27, 2014
LAKE OCONEE IS FULL, 81 TO 85 DEGREES
Bass fishing is good. The lake is full, stained up the rivers, clear on the south end. Water temperature is 84 to 89 degrees. Start the day with a white Old Nelly buzz bait. Fish it around mid lake docks sea walls and bridge rip raps. As the sun gets up, switch to deep water docks with a worm. Fish a Zoom u tail worm with some green in it. A Texas rig has been out producing the shaky head over the past week, but both have been good producers. Deep running crank baits fished off of the deep water humps and deep water points on the south end of the lake have been producing some larger fish. This bite is best when Georgia Power is pulling water.
Striper report by Mark Smith of Reel Time guide service, call 404 803 0741 reeltime@bellsouth.net
Line side fishing is good. Humps in the middle of the lake have been holding large schools of line sides. Use the umbrella rig fish over these humps has been very productive when Georgia Power is pulling water. Because of the water heating up the fish are only feeding when the water is moving. The white bass are schooling on the humps on the north end of the lake from Sugar Creek north. Use your Lowrance to find the schools on the humps and then drop a spoon down to the school.
Crappie fishing is good. The fish are staging in the timber from 10 to 20 feet deep. Find the schools on your Lowrance and drop a live minnow down to the school. You can also use a small black/blue 1/32 jig dropped into the schools.
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 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
June 27, 2014
JACKSON LAKE IS FULL, STAINED & LOW 80’S
Bass fishing has been fair early and late and the bass are mostly small spots. With this fish in the lake, forget seasonal black bass patterns now that are taking over. Fish for spots with smaller baits and anything green in a soft plastic of a spotted bass favorite. Fish the dam are and work the shallow ledges. Use DT6 crank bait and shad raps on points in the middle of the lake. After dark, larger worms work and keep the smaller fish out of the way. Jitterbugs in black after dark as well as a 10 inch red shad Culprit on a Texas rig will work for largemouth. Black and other dark colors are working and add some red dye with crawfish scent on the tail end of the worm. Night fishing around lighted docks down lake with a June bug Zoom trick worm is fair and use a tiny weight.
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.
Anglers 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.