** Archived Article - please check for current information. **

March 6, 2006

Freshwater Fishing Trends

Mountains Area
Lake Jocassee:Largemouth Bass: Slow, casting Carolina-rigged worms and Hopkins, Berry or flexing spoons. Also try vertical jigging 10-30 feet deep and trolling crankbaits. Trout: Good, trolling from 60 feet to surface with Doctor, Sutton, Bad Creek, Lucky Jak’s spoons or drifting with large minnows 30 to 60 feet.. Smallmouth Bass: Fair, drifting live bait on rocky points and rocky banks. Crappie: Slow. Try using small minnows. Catfish: Fair, using night crawlers or cut bait on bottom. Bream: Slow. Try earthworms around banks and brush.

Lake Keowee: Largemouth Bass: Good, casting crankbaits and spinnerbaits on points mid-lake. Crappie: Fair. Try small minnows and jigs in 10 to 15 feet of water around brush piles and bridge pilings. Catfish: Slow. Try using nightcrawlers and cut bait on bottom. Bream: Slow. Try using red worms around brush piles.

Lake Hartwell: Largemouth Bass: Fair, slow retrieves with plastic worms and casting Carolina-rigs and jigging spoons. Striped and Hybrid Bass: Good, free-lining live blueback herring up in the creeks. Crappie: Fair, using medium minnows in about 10 feet of water. Catfish: Good, using cut herring in 2 to 3 feet of water. Bream: Good, using red worms around brush piles.

Piedmont Area
Lake Russell: Largemouth Bass: Slow. Try worms, lizards and deep crank baits. Yellow Perch: Fair. Try fishing minnows deep. Striped and Hybrid Bass: Slow. Try jigging bucktails.. White Bass: Poor. Try bucktails, spinners and live bait below dam. Crappie: Fair. Try using minnows and jigs around brush piles and bridges. Catfish: Fair, using cut bait on the bottom. Bream: Slow. Try fishing deep with earthworms.

Lake Thurmond: Largemouth Bass: Good. Try casting plastic worms, Cleos and Rapalas. Also try deep-running plugs. Striped and Hybrid Bass: Good, using Cleos, Berry Spoons and KastMasters. Crappie: Good, around docks using jigs and minnows. Catfish: Fair, using worms on the bottom. Bream: Fair, using earthworms around the banks.

Lake Wylie: Largemouth Bass: Good, casting Carolina-rigged worms, plastic crawfish jigs. White Bass: Good, casting small spinners and jigs. Crappie: Excellent, jigs and minnows 15-20 feet over brush. Catfish: Good, using nightcrawlers on the bottom. Shellcrackers: Try using redworms and crickets on the bottom. Bream: Slow. Try red worms near the bottom.

Midlands Area
Lake Greenwood: Largemouth Bass: Excellent, casting crankbaits 4 - 8 feet off points and in shallow coves. Stripers: Fair, using live bait, herring or shad 20 to 25 feet deep. White Perch: Fair. Try fishing deep with minnows, spoons and earthworms. Crappie: Fair. Try small minnows in upper part of lake, a few large fish caught. Catfish: Fair. Try using cut bait and worms on the bottom. Bream: Poor. Try using crickets and red worms.

Lake Wateree: Largemouth Bass: Fair, try fishing slow with slow with pig and jigs late afternoon along sunny banks. Striped bass: Good, using live bait in the river channel fishing 15 feet deep in upper half of lake. White Bass: Slow. Try trolling shad-like baits. Crappie: Fair, using live bait 13 to 15 feet deep right off the bottom along the river channel and slow trolling Wow jigs deep at edge of old river bed. Catfish: Good, live shad, minnows or worms in the creeks. Bream: Slow. Try crickets and worms deep.

Lake Murray: Largemouth Bass: Good, using shallow-running crankbaits and Carolina rig worms in the grass. Striped Bass: Good, try dragging free lines along banks also using topwater plugs and drifting shiners. Crappie: Good, using jigs and small tuffies around bridge pilings and brush piles. White Perch: Good, using live minnows near the bottom. Catfish: Slow. Try cut herring near the bottom. Slow. Try fishing worms deep.

Santee Cooper System

* Water temperature is rising and the American shad run is increasing. Fishing has been good in the Cooper River Tailrace Canal near Moncks Corner, but varies with time of day and discharge from Pinopolis Dam. Anglers have had good success fishing from the bank on the Rediversion Canal near St. Stephen as well. Bank access is available from a parking lot at the end of Platt Road.

Lake Marion: Largemouth Bass: Slow. Try topwater lures. Striped Bass: Fair casting bucktails to schooling fish or fishing live small blueback herring, shad or shiners. White Perch: Slow. Try jigging off the bottom with Hopkins spoons. Crappie: Fair, Try using small and medium minnows over deep brush piles, bridge pilings and piers. Catfish: Good, using cut shad off the bottom in deep water. Bream and Shellcrackers: Slow. Try red-worms, wigglers and nightcrawlers.

Lake Moultrie: Largemouth Bass: Good, using plastic worms and crankbaits in shallow water in coves 2-4 feet deep. Striped Bass: Good, trolling with artificial worms. Crappie: Slow. Try minnows around fish attraction areas. Catfish: Good, using cut bait 20-35 deep. Bream: Fair. Try using crickets, redworms, and small minnows, around manmade fish attractors. Shellcrackers: Slow, try redworms along the banks along river runs and points.

REPORTERS: The S.C. Department of Natural Resources appreciates the cooperation of fishing trend reporters for South Carolina's major lakes: Jocassee - Jocassee Outdoor Center; Keowee - Fishing Hole; Hartwell - Lake Hartwell Fishing and Marine; Russell - Tony's Bait and Tackle; Thurmond - Bladon's; Wylie - Catawba Tackle; Greenwood - Sportsman's Friend; Wateree - Wateree Marina; Murray - Dooley's Sport Shop, Lake World; Marion - Randolph's Landing; and Moultrie - Atkins Boat Landing.

- Written by Brett Witt -

For South Carolina freshwater fish regulations: http://www.dnr.sc.gov/regs/pdf/freshfishing.pdf