February 14, 2025 – Georgia Wildlife Blog

“Fishin’ is like dating, it’s all catch and release until you find a keeper” (Earl Dibbles, Jr.). Be sure to take the loves of your life out fishing to celebrate this Valentine’s Day weekend!

NEWS TO KNOW:

• Michael Mooney is the 2024 Grand Prize Winner for the Georgia Bass Slam.

  Grand Prize Winner! In 2024, 67 anglers achieved a Georgia Bass Slam by catching at least 5 of the 10 black bass species found in our state. Out of those 67 anglers, Michael Mooney of Grovetown, Georgia was the lucky Grand Prize Winner! Mr. Mooney, who has gotten a total of 4 Bass Slams over the last few years won a cooler, camp chair, tackle box and a beautifully framed bass print. Are you working on your 2025 Slam?

• CoastFest is Coming! CoastFest is an exciting annual event hosted by the Coastal Resources Division, dedicated to celebrating and educating the public about the rich coastal heritage and natural resources of our region. The festival, scheduled for March 22, brings together a wide range of activities, exhibits, and live entertainment, offering a fun and educational experience for visitors of all ages. Find out more at coastalgadnr.org/coastfest.

This week, we have fishing reports from Southwest, North, Central and Southeast Georgia. If you “love” to fish, Let’s Go Fish Georgia!

(Fishing report courtesy of Caroline Cox, Fisheries Biologist with the Georgia DNR Wildlife Resources Division, with help from Region Staff and Local Experts) 

LAKE BLACKSHEAR

With this recent warmer weather, the Crappie seem to be moving. Because of this, reports aren’t consistent of where they are located, with some saying 5-7 feet, others saying 15-20 feet, and others even deeper. Despite the additional effort to locate the fish the Crappie are still biting with some over 2 lb ones being caught. However, since they are moving so much if you find them, they won’t likely be around the same place again if you try repeatedly. The most common types of lures and baits for Crappie are still live minnows, ATX jigs, Lite Wire jigs and Sugar Bug jigs. There are some reports of bass that are moving into the shallows to bed, though with the weather dropping again next week it’s difficult to tell if they will continue to do so at this time.

LAKE SEMINOLE 

With warming temperatures, bass fishing will be excellent as they begin feeding prior to the spawn. Spinnerbaits, swim jigs and lipless crankbaits will be productive lures to cover water. Fish spinnerbaits along grasslines. For pulling bass out of the grass or heavy cover, try using the 6^th Sense Braid Swim Jig or Spro Bronzeye Poppin’ Frog. A lipless crankbait is an exceptional lure on Lake Seminole in February. You may try the 6th Sense Quake in the slow-sink model in a crawfish pattern fished over and around the submerged grass.

FLINT RIVER

We are slowly warming up and water flows are settling out.  If the weather will continue warming, we will see fish activity increasing.  Morone species such as white and striped bass will increase feeding to prepare for the upcoming spawn.   Use live shad or any shad imitation bait.  Largemouth bass will begin to move toward spawning grounds and will be actively feeding on warm days.  Most lures will work.

CHATTAHOOCHEE RIVER

If the weather will continue warming, we will see fish activity increasing.  Morone species such as white and striped bass will increase feeding to prepare for the upcoming spawn.   Use live shad or any shad imitation bait.  Largemouth bass will begin to move toward spawning grounds and will be actively feeding on warm days.  Most lures will work.  Catches of black crappie are being reported in deep bends around brush.

LAKE WALTER F. GEORGE

According to Ken Sturdivant’s Southern Fishing Report, Bass fishing is good with a lot of bass coming from shallow water. The central lake area continues to be the best overall, mainly because of having warmer water than the rest of the lake. But some of the larger fish have come from the colder areas, although the bite is extremely slow. The Lowrance Structure Scan and Down Scan technology will work very well even in 10 feet of water. Anglers can cover 68 feet of bottom at 10 feet deep with the 455 frequency beam. Small crank baits and Rat L Traps have accounted for most good catches. Try a #5 Shad Rap or #4 Shad Rap RS in fire tiger, shad, and chrome and blue. Good limits have also come on #306 Rocket Shads, #200 Bandit, Rat L Traps in ¼ and ½ ounce sizes. Most catches are coming from main lake banks and points, and a short distance inside the mouth of coves.

Crappie fishing seems to be getting better, if that is possible. Good catches are being harvested mostly with jigs. The size of the fish remains good with most fishing being caught coming in at a half pound or large.

BIG LAZER PUBLIC FISHING AREA

The water temperature is slowly rising, and the fishing is getter better every week. There has been an uptick in the number of fishermen as well. The largemouth fishing is noticeably better. It appears that they are biting well in about 6-8 ft of water near cover. Hybrids are also being caught regularly right now. Bream are being caught near structure in 4-6 ft of water and the bite should continue to increase in the coming weeks.

SILVER LAKE PUBLIC FISHING AREA

Silver Lake surface temps are in the 60s and bass fishing is slow. Anglers are having some luck fishing plugs and frogs over grass beds.  Spinner baits are also working well along weed lines near deeper water.  Males are still fanning, and big female bass are cruising shallow.

(Fishing report courtesy of Jim Hakala, Fisheries Biologist and Region Supervisor with the Georgia DNR Wildlife Resources Division, with help from Region Staff and Local Experts) 

RESERVOIR REPORT

Allatoona Bass Report: (This report courtesy of Ken Sturdivant via www.southernfishing.com): LAKE IS DOWN 11.9 FEET, 50’S. Spotted bass are fair. Use small worms and jigs for a few slow strikes. The bigger fish are not biting due to the cold water up or down lake. Stay down lake and work baits very deep. Texas rigged worms and a 3/16-ounce weight, and an n#1 Mustad hook will be the best way to get lures deep to the fish. Green worms in a variety of shades will be the best way to draw these fish to the baits. Use a small Zoom green or black Zoom mini lizard with red flakes. Be sure to work the baits very slowly. Live night crawlers on a 1/8-ounce jig head worked vertically on and around deep docks can work. Use the vertical presentation and let the bait rest dead on the bottom. This tactic works better later each day. Spoons have been slow all week, but a few days of warm weather can get the spots active. Sit over the main lake points at depths of 20 to 45 feet.

Allatoona Mixed Bag Report (This report courtesy of angler Matt Driver): Water temperatures have risen greatly and are in the mid to upper 50s. Fish have moved shallow, and the striper and hybrids have been schooling around the Galts Ferry area of the lake. For bass, a jerk bait, and chatter bait have been working really good. Things will change slightly with the massive amount of rain we received earlier this week. I expect water levels to rise to near full pool, but I also expect the Corps of Engineers to continue to pull water to make sure the level of the lake stays where it should be for this time of year.

Allatoona Crappie (This report courtesy of Red Rooster Custom Baits):

• Current Water Level
• Water Temp: 48 – 52
• Water Clarity: Stained with a brownish/green tinge
• Area Fished: Little River, S-Turns, Victoria, Kellogg/Owl Creek
• Jigs Used: Sour Grape – Kic’n Chic’n, Lemonade – Slab Dragon, BlueGrass – Slab Dragon, BlueGrass – Small Fry, ‘Lectric Chicken – Slab Dragon, ‘Lectric Chicken – Small Fry and Tannic Flo Orange – Talon 2.0.
• Technique: Trolling

The first week of February was PHENOMENAL for Allatoona crappie! The warming trend in the weather changed the water temperature from 38 degrees two weeks ago to the low 50’s! The crappie have schooled up and can be found in depths of 4′ – 8′. Next week looks like a cool front and rain will come in but if you can make it out to the lake this would be a good time to catch a limit of shallow schooling crappie. We were on the water most every day this week and the crappie did not disappoint. We caught several crappie of all sizes from 8″ crappie to straight up 15″ slabs! One thing that we are really excited about is how our new test bait performed! Our new test bait will soon be in production, but it is a 2.3″ version of the Kic’n Chic’n. Some folks said “it’s too big! That will never work!”, well not only did it work it caught some big-time slabs! Our theory is that if you want bigger crappie then you need to troll a big profile bait. We couldn’t be more thrilled with the results, and it will soon be available for purchase on the website. If you want more information, give us a call and we will get you some samples. Our trolling process this week due to the warm water temp was to stay in water depths of 4′ to 12′ of water as the fish are suspended between 4′ to 8′. We trolled using 1/32nd and 1/24th oz. jig heads at .7 to 1 mph to keep our jigs in the 2′ to 6′ range. Several colors were working well but our top producers were Sour Grape, Lemonade (Glow White/Chart Tail), BlueGrass, ‘Lectric Chicken & Tannic Flo Orange. We should be rocking and rolling for the next few weeks UNLESS this cold front and rain changes things…which is not uncommon this time of year because it is fast and furious when the water warms up. If you don’t know what colors to choose check out our Combo Packs, this will save you a lot of time with proven stained and clear water colors. Lord willing, we will have another report for you next week. Be sure to check out the archives for February 2024 and see what we were doing this time last year!

Allatoona Fish Attractors: Find locations of DNR fish attractors and much more information for a variety of water bodies, including Allatoona, at GeorgiaWildlife.com/fishing-forecasts.

Allatoona News Nugget – Did you know that largemouth bass are stocked at Lake Allatoona annually?  Last year the lake received over 13,000, five to six inch largemouth.  Now you know!

Lake Hartwell Striper Report: (This report courtesy of Ken Sturdivant, www.southernfishing.com): Lake Hartwell Striper Fishing Report by Capt. Cefus McRae — The past week of warmer weather has Hartwell’s water temperatures starting to rise. I’ve seen it as low as 43 degrees and heard reports of even lower temps a few weeks ago. Even though stripers are naturally accustomed to cold water, when it drops into the low 40’s, they tend to get a little sluggish. But the good news is we are getting closer to the spring spawn when everything gets crazy. Right now, they are beginning their move toward the spawning grounds in the upper reaches of the rivers. So, fishing the creeks in the mid sections of the lake is producing good numbers of fish. Live baits that match the size of the natural forage is what they are after. A baitwell full of smaller, to mid-size blueback herring is a valuable asset. Remember the old saying… “Elephants eat peanuts”. But having an eight-inch trout or medium gizzard shad freelining under a balloon is likely to put a monster in the boat too. Downlining smaller baits close to the bottom will produce spotted bass, catfish, perch and even crappie. So, you could easily wind up with a variety of species by the end of the day. Start in the backs of the creeks, looking for bait on your Simrad. Diving gulls are a great indicator as well. Many of these fish will be in less than 10 feet of water. When you’re this shallow, rig a spinning rod with fluoro leader, a split shot and a #1 Daiichi Bleeding Bait hook, then cast live baits near the bank or around shoal markers. Allow the baits to find their own way, and that is usually directly into a striper or hybrid’s mouth. Around mid-morning, start checking out creek channels with sharp bends, and deep water that rises to a flat or shoal which are easily identifiable on your chart. Look for the confluence of old roadbeds with creek beds that have humps close by. Early morning and late afternoon, linesides will push baits up on shallow humps, so having a MirroLure Top Dog on standby will give you some fun top water action. Pulling Project X X Rigs or Capt Mack’s Umbrellas is a great search tool as well. Pull them mid channel at 2 to 3 mph. Just be sure to have a U Rig retriever on board because you will definitely find some trees in these creeks. And a retriever will pay for itself in rescued rigs. It’s about to be game on! And if you’d like to spend a fun day on the water, give me a call at 404 402 8329 or drop an email to Cefus@NutsAndBoltsFishing.com Tight Lines and Smooth Seas.

Lake Hartwell Mixed Bag Report (This report courtesy of www.anglersheadquarters.com/ ): Black Bass: Guide Scott Allgood (864-364-1733) reports that in February the best bet is to target points, brush or rocks in deep water with drop shot rigs, underspins, or football jigs, particularly early in the day. As temperatures warm this month, especially in the afternoons, fish can also be found sliding up shallower.

Hartwell Striper and Hybrids: Captain Chip Hamilton (864-304-9011) reports that the February bite will start off similar to January with fish part-way up the rivers in 35-50 feet on the bottom. However, later in the month if the water temperatures reach the low to mid-50s then on warm afternoons fish will move up onto wind-blown red clay points and banks to feed. Artificial lures like small swimbaits and flukes on a Scrounger head will often out-fish herring, and if there is a weak morning bite it’s often a sign of a strong afternoon bite.

Hartwell Crappie: Captain Rodney Donald (864-356-0143) reports that at the beginning of February fish are most likely to be found around deeper docks on jigs and minnows, but if temperatures warm then later in the month they should be caught shallower in open water as well as on brush as they start to move up.

Hartwell Catfish: Captain Bill Plumley reports that February patterns are almost entirely dependent on the weather, and if it gets warm later in the month fish should move shallower into the creek channels. If it stays cold, then they will stay deeper. A variety of cut baits can work. January mostly saw a slow but steady bite for big blue cats until the lake got extremely cold.

Lake Lanier Bass Report: (This report courtesy of Phil Johnson, 770-366-8845 via www.southernfishing.com): Bass fishing on Lake Lanier is good. The lake is currently a little over one foot below full pool with the temperature running around forty-six degrees in the middle lake area and slightly cooler up the rivers. The main lake is clear with the backs of some creeks and up the river having slight to moderate stain. The deep bite is still the most productive bite, but the shallower bite is beginning to show up. There are good bass to be caught in the forty-five to sixty foot range but you have to search to find them as they are not in every ditch. Once you locate them you can catch both size and numbers with a white half ounce spoon, a Damiki rig or a three eights ounce Spot Choker rigged with a two eight or three five Cast or Keitech paddle tail. Electronics are critical in finding these bass as they are often very tight to the bottom and not giving off strong return signals. Structure is helpful but not critical to the location of these fish. Look both in the ditches and along the sides to find where they are positioned for the day. Once you can get one to bite you will often see numerous fish show up on your screen. The worm and jig bite are producing on the steeper banks, ends of long points and deeper docks. Use a three sixteenths shaky head with either a green pumpkin trick worm or Senko. Working these baits very slowly just like the other baits is key to getting strikes. The water is cold which makes the bass sluggish so be sure to slow down your presentations. Look for the water temperature to rise some over the next week to ten days and the shallower bite to improve. They are still biting but it takes some work to find them right now, but you can still Go Catch ‘Em!

Lanier Stripers (This report courtesy of Buck Cannon, Buck Tails Guide Service 404 510 1778): Lake Lanier stripers are still setting up for the spring run and are waiting for the weather to stabilize, be patient they will be under the birds and around the bait. Using your electronics and the mapping system of your electronics find the ditches and contour layout of the lake bottom. Trolling the Mini Macs and the full-size umbrella rigs to search the water for fish once you find them the downlines using blue back herring seems to be most productive. Depth of 40 to 60 putting your bait just above the fish will trigger a bite. Top water could happen at any moment so be prepared. Remember to wear your life jacket.

Lanier Stripers Too (This report courtesy of The Striper Experience): Lake Lanier is at 1069.64 (-1.36 feet below full pool), with water temps between 44 and 47 degrees. These temps in the mid-40s, hopefully will stick around for a few weeks and are a welcome sight as we should have a bait die off that the lake needs in my meager opinion. Lanier has a tremendous amount of bait, and it is great for the stripers and every other game fish on the lake, but it keeps the fish from moving around very much and makes it more difficult on fishing.  It’s tough getting a striper to want to eat a herring in the midst of thousands of other ones. The old mantra of find the bait and you will find the fish just isn’t true on Lanier, because there will be tons of bait just around the next corner.

The main lake is clear and gets a slight stain as you get to the backs of the creeks. The winter schools of stripers are getting larger and larger as the water cools into the mid-40s and the bait gets pushed father into the back of the creeks. The creeks on the north end of the lake like Ada, Gainesville, and Little River have more fish than the southern creeks like Bald Ridge, Six Mile, Shoal, and Big, but don’t count those southern creeks out because there is nowhere near the amount of pressure on them.  First thing in the morning look for huge schools of bait in 60-90 feet of water half way to quarter of the way back in the creek channel. Most of this bait will be within 15-20 feet of the bottom and you will see fish on your Humminbird SOLIX either mixed in with the fish or even slightly higher.  Start your day off pulling a mix of herring, trout, and shad on flat lines and Capt Mack’s Perfect Planer Boards with a ¼-1/2 oz StriperTackle.com swivel weight about 4 feet in front of the bait over these scattered fish at .8-1 mph. Pull these baits 25-75 feet back depending on the depth of water you are fishing. Also keep a Capt Mack’s Mini Mack out the back of the boat, or behind a board, about 25-35 feet down in your spread. This speed seems to be the best to get those blades spinning and putting off a great shimmer and vibration. StriperTackle.com also has ¼-1/2 oz Pro Ultra spin heads that will add some more flash and weight to your Mini Mack to keep them down easier at those speeds. The trusty white is a staple, but the blue with a chartreuse 3-inch shad body is awesome in places there is a bit more stain to the water. Once you start seeing the fish group up, go ahead and pull the boards in and put out your down lines with the same baits. Most of the suspended fish will be slower, as the sun comes up, to take your bait up in the water column, but there will be fish below that will eat that trout when you get him down within the last 10 feet of water you are in.  StriperTackle.com Jigging Spoons will be another artificial to use in February when you get around big groups of fish. Fish these spoons vertically around stripers and spots that are close to the bottom. Drop and lift these 5/8-1 oz white/silver or chrome spoons in a sweeping motion up and then let them flutter back down to the bottom.  Lots of times the fish will eat it on the fall, so pay lots of attention to any change in the look and feel of your line. See full report at thestriperexperience.com/lake-lanier-fishing-reports/.

Lake Lanier Fish Attractors: Find locations of DNR fish attractors and much more information for a variety of water bodies, including Lake Lanier, at GeorgiaWildlife.com/fishing-forecasts.

Lake Weiss Bass: (This report courtesy of Ken Sturdivant, www.southernfishing.com): Bass are being caught on several different patterns. Try fishing rip rap around bridges with spinnerbaits, small crankbaits and Zoom Super Flukes. Use the unweighted Zoom trick worm or an unweighted Senko. One other pattern is to look for fresh blowdowns with the leaves still on them. Try a McStick jerk bait or Zoom Super Fluke worked around the outer limbs. Lots of spotted bass are caught by casting Spot Remover heads loaded with Ultravibe Speed Craws or just dragging a Carolina rigged Zoom Finesse worm or Mini lizard around sloping gravel banks on the side of main lake points.

West Point Bass Report (This report courtesy of Ken Sturdivant, www.southernfishing.com): WEST POINT LAKE IS DOWN 6.4 FEET, 50’S — Bass fishing is good. Schools of both spotted bass and largemouth can be caught on jigging spoons and drop shot rigs on deeper offshore structures. But as the water warms suspending jerkbaits, unweighted flukes, Senko’s and the Mooch Minnow on a lead head are moving shallow. Try to fish these baits in or near any shallow cover or around schools of baitfish in the back of pockets. Fish the open water in the pockets with a 1/2-ounce Rat L Trap, a Strike King Lucky Shad crankbait or an A rig. Crankbaits on rip rap or chunk rock is also a good pattern. The shallow bite will only get better as the water warms. The creeks seem to always warm first. The pre-spawn is just around the corner.

West Point Fish Attractors: Find locations of DNR fish attractors and much more information for a variety of water bodies, including West Point, at GeorgiaWildlife.com/fishing-forecasts.

RIVER REPORT

Upper Chattahoochee River Bass / Walleye (This report courtesy of fisheries biologist Josh Stafford):  Water temps mid 50’s F and stained.  WRD survey crews conducting walleye electrofishing surveys earlier this week encountered very few spawn-run walleye, but they did observe good numbers of black bass to include this nice shoal bass.  In addition to good number of black bass, the crew also caught and released a nice sized striped bass that had migrated out of Lake Lanier.  We expect walleye numbers to build in the river throughout the month – likely peaking in early March.

Middle Chattahoochee River White Bass (This report courtesy of angler Dustin Pate): Things are about to get right in the world of white bass. You can always count on the week of Valentine’s for some white bass to start poking around up-river (above Lake West Point) and last week’s warm weather kicked that into gear for sure. Water temps have shot up into the upper 50’s to as high as 61-62.  If this past Saturday’s fishing is any indication, we may be in for a really, really good run. We caught 75+ fish with most being huge males. The size is way above average for early in the run. We usually tend of get a lot of tiny males first, but with the massive amount of bait fish in the lake, every species seems to be at peak weight.  We caught the majority on the Berkley Flicker Shad (size 4) and the rest of my hand tied bucktail’s. We stayed with more natural shad colors with the clean water.  The rain this week will probably set things back, but it should be wide open once the mud clears!

Coosa River White Bass Report (This report courtesy of Fisheries Biologist John Damer):  White Bass are pound-for-pound one of the hardest fighting fish you can catch, and the Coosa River near Rome has one of the most prolific white bass runs in the state.  Local intel says these mini-linesides are starting to show up from Mayo Lock and Dam Park downstream to the old Plant Hammond site.  If you are limited to bank fishing, the Lock and Dam is a favorite spot to try.  However, you can cover more water with a boat, and there are ramps at the Lock and Dam or at Old River Road.  Fish current breaks and creek mouths for your best chance at success.  White or chartreuse curly-tail jigs, small shad imitating crankbaits, inline spinners, or live minnows under a float are all great ways to catch a load of white bass.  It is very early in the run right now, but 50-100 fish days should be in the cards as we approach March and water temps warm.

Lower Etowah River Report (This report courtesy of Fisheries Biologist John Damer): Our crew sampled the Etowah River immediately below Allatoona Dam this week, and we found exceptional numbers of hand-sized bream and a few monster yellow perch in the mix.  These fish were all out of the main current in the section closest to the Dam.  We also saw great numbers of largemouth and Alabama bass, though few of them were more than 2-3 pounds.  We suggest hitting either riverbank using inline spinners, beetle spins, crickets, or worms to target the bream.  Topwater lures like rubber frogs or whopper ploppers, or shallow diving crankbaits and jerkbaits might get a strike from the bass.  Access to this river section is very good, either from Riverside Park Day Use Area or Coopers Furnace Day Use Area.  There is a boat launch at Riverside Park but be extremely careful if you go upstream from the ramp due to shallow, rocky shoals.  Pay attention to the water release schedule by calling the US Army Corps of Engineers at 706-334-7213 and by watching the USGS River gauge at waterdata.usgs.gov/monitoring-location/02394000/.

SMALL LAKES REPORT

Rocky PFA Largemouth Bass (This report courtesy of Fisheries Technician James Roberts): Thirteen-year-old Tucker Ray of Ringold caught this chunky 7+ pound largemouth bass out of Antioch West last week.  Tucker’s catch was weighed on a certified scale and easily qualified him for a Youth Angler Award.  Congrats Tucker on starting 2025 out with a fantastic public waters’ catch!  Find out more about Rocky Mountain Public Fishing Area at georgiawildlife.com/rocky-mountain-pfa.

State Park Lakes: Want to enjoy some winter fishing potentially close to home?  Georgia State Parks has got you covered. Small lakes can offer great winter fishing opportunities close to home.  Here are a few north Georgia State Parks with small lakes you may consider fishing this weekend:

TROUT REPORT

Trout and More (This report courtesy of Unicoi Outfitters): Check out Unicoi Outfitter’s regular “Angler Management” fishing reports at blog.angler.management.

Georgia Trout Slam:  If you have the skill to successfully catch all three species of trout (brook, brown, rainbow) in Georgia within a calendar year, consider giving the Georgia Trout Slam a try.  All successful submissions will receive the coveted Georgia Trout Slam Sticker and be entered into a drawing for an annual grand prize.  Program details can be found at georgiawildlife.com/trout-slam.  Slammer intel for the week: brown trout were stocked in Smith Creek DH last week.  Look for holdover brookies from previous stockings in both the Amicalola and Smith Creek’s DH sections.

Trout Fishing Opportunities for Those With Disabilities: Check out these sites that are open to the public and offer specific amenities for anglers with disabilities. Find the list at GeorgiaWildlife.com/Fishing/Trout.

Parting Trout Note: Want to do more to support trout fishing in Georgia?  Consider upgrading to a Trout Unlimited license plate this year. Aside from being a great looking tag, each purchase or renewal of a Trout Unlimited license plate directly supports Georgia’s trout conservation and management programs. Hatcheries and wild trout efforts both benefit from the trout tag. Find out more license plate information at GeorgiaWildlife.com/licenseplates.

(Fishing report courtesy of Hunter Roop, Fisheries Biologist and Region Supervisor with the Georgia DNR Wildlife Resources Division, with help from Region Staff and Local Experts) 

The reservoir reports below are brought to you by Ken Sturdivant’s Southern Fishing Report, with contributions from Region 3 WRD Fisheries staff, local guides, and anglers.

RESERVOIR REPORT

LAKE RUSSELL IS DOWN 0.5 FEET, 50’S

Bass (courtesy of Ken Sturdivant’s Southern Fishing Report): Bass fishing is fair and secondary points seem to be the pattern. Be sure to get to the backs of the coves that have the highest concentration of bait. Use shallow to medium diving crank baits on the secondary points lake wide. The best ones to fish will be the ones with rock and sand in combinations. The #5 Shad Raps along with a Rapala DT6 has been the best baits. Some fish are after Chatter Baits in all white with a little chartreuse on the skirt. The bigger bass last week want the small cranks and hit any rip rap. The sun should shine this weekend, and the rip rap might be worth checking out with the Rapala RS Shad Raps and the Rapala DT10’s. The suspending jerk baits, unweighted flukes, Senko’s and the Mooch Minnow on a lead head are moving shallow.

Bass 2 (courtesy of SC DNR Fishing Reports): Guide Jerry Kotal (706-988-0860) reports that early in February bass should still be caught deeper in the main lake and at the mouths of creeks around the bait schools where other species including perch are feeding. They will be caught on jigging spoons, drop shots, and jigs. However, later this month anglers will notice bass start to move shallower regardless of weather conditions are they prepare to stage for the spawn.

Striped Bass (courtesy of SC DNR Fishing Reports): Guide Wendell Wilson (706-283-3336) reports it was a decent January for striper, but they are hopeful for a better February. This month some striped bass will be caught around the same deep bait schools where other species are feeding, but other striper will be roaming. Following the birds and covering water with free-lines or planer boards is usually the best pattern – even though the birds were not especially helpful in January.

Crappie (courtesy of SC DNR Fishing Reports): Guide Wendell Wilson reports that in late January a few crappie started to show up again around deep bait schools, and this month they will get more and more common. Early in the month they will take minnows fished around deeper schools of bait, while later in the month they will be caught trolling in the creeks as they begin to stage for the spawn.

Catfish (courtesy of SC DNR Fishing Reports): Guide Jerry Kotal reports that February is still not a month when very many people will be targeting catfish, but if you concentrate on deep water you can pick up a few channel catfish.

CLARKS HILL IS DOWN 3.5 FEET, 50’S

Bass (courtesy of Ken Sturdivant’s Southern Fishing Report): Bass fishing is good. Warm weather sent some fish shallow. Dead sticking a fluke might not be as effective as last week. Start off by checking out the ledges and drop offs and slowly work back up to the shallow water. Use the Down Deep Husky Jerks and Rapala DT14 on the ledges and switch to the Rapala DT10 and #5 and #7 RS Shad Raps later in the day. Fish the wind-blown points and banks. Go to the Weedless wonder lead head and a Zoom green pumpkin trick worm and pick apart the heavy cover. Lowrance Structure Scan technology can make the search a lot faster. Scan five times the depth of the water with the Structure Scan Side imagining technology and fined the bait and the bass will there close by.

Bass 2 (courtesy of SC DNR Fishing Reports): Guide Josh Rockefeller (706-513-6152) reports that in early February fish will still be related to deep brush or rock in the creeks and ditches, although very early in the morning they will often be found shallow – and even schooling – in the very backs of ditches. Fishing swimbaits and jigs will be effective all month, and of course increasing numbers of anglers will be out deep throwing a minnow-style bait in open water. As temperatures warm this month then fish will move towards their pre-spawn and then spawning locations and stay shallower more of the time.

Striper and hybrids (courtesy of SC DNR Fishing Reports): Little River Guide Service (706-210-3474) reports that during February fish will still move around a lot, and one day you could find a big school in one area but then overnight it could be 5 or even 10 miles away. Continue to look for the birds and bait to locate fish. Free-lines, planer boards and down-lines could all work depending on where and how deep the fish set up.

Crappie (courtesy of SC DNR Fishing Reports): Little River Guide Service reports that February is one of the best months of the year for catching big fish. As the weather warms, they will begin to stage for the spawn and can be caught trolling in the backs of creeks.

Catfish (courtesy of SC DNR Fishing Reports): Captain Chris Simpson (864-992-2352) reports that February should again be a very good month for catfish on Clarks Hill. Anchoring on creek channel ledges and fan-casting cut gizzard shad, white perch and herring will be the best way to target big blue catfish. So far this season the creeks have out-fished the main lake.

LAKE OCONEE IS FULL, 50’S

Bass (courtesy of Ken Sturdivant’s Southern Fishing Report): Bass fishing is fair. Fish in an area with lots of sand on the banks. The shad are spawning in these and other pockets on ditches on the flats leading to the pockets. Rat L Traps are good search baits and can allow anglers to cover lots of water. Also, out on the ledges there are a few sweet spots and Lowrance Side Scan technology along with the C Maps can show anglers the best locations on the ledges. In the pockets, try spinnerbaits and jigs both swimming jigs and working a jig slow across the spawning flats. Some are still transitional, and patterns change from day to day. Bass are being taken in brush piles in 6 to 12 feet of water using jigs Carolina rigs with lizards or frogs and with Texas rigged worms. Green and red flakes in a Zoom mini lizard on a very light Texas rig on the shady side of docks is a good all day tactic.

Upcoming Event (courtesy of ABA news): The next AFT D72 tournament is scheduled for February 22, 2025, at Lake Oconee, launching from Sugar Creek Marina. For more information, contact Division Director Benny Howell at (770) 365-4795.

LAKE SINCLAIR IS DOWN 1.2 FEET, 50’S 

Bass (courtesy of Ken Sturdivant’s Southern Fishing Report): Bass fishing is fair. Keep an eye on the water temperature when fishing new water and try to stay around the warmest water. With Lowrance HDS machines turn on Heat Map on the Map screen and watch it all day for the warmest waters. Crank baits, big, bladed spinner baits and jigs have been best this week when fishing for shallow fish. The Spro Little John MD 50 in the fire craw color will get a bite when fished extremely slowly over primary and secondary points in the rivers, as well as short pockets located near deep water. A chartreuse and white spinner bait with a large gold #7 willow leaf blade slow rolled around laydown trees on the main riverbank will get fewer bites but look for them to be big fish. A black and blue ¼ ounce jig is great for flipping docks in short pockets or docks that have brush around them. Many fish can be caught deep right now as well with most of the deep fish being in 28 to 40 feet of water. A gold spoon will catch these fish that are relating to bait schools in deep water. Try to find some kind of structure in the same depth the fish are holding. The Lowrance HDS Structure Scan system is very helpful for finding the fish and the fish holding structure.

Tournament Update (courtesy of ABA news):  Sam Montgomery of Milledgeville, Georgia, claimed victory at the American Fishing Tour (AFT) Division 72 tournament held on February 8, 2025, at Lake Sinclair. Montgomery brought a five-bass limit to the scales, weighing in at an impressive 18.53 pounds, which earned him the first-place trophy. Sam also secured the tournament’s Big Bass trophy and purse with a 6.64-pound largemouth. Josh George of Loganville, Georgia, finished in second place with a five-bass limit totaling 17.85 pounds. George caught a notable 6.41-pound bass.

LAKE JACKSON IS 1.0 FOOT OVER FULL, 50’S

Bass (courtesy of Ken Sturdivant’s Southern Fishing Report): Bass fishing is fair. The spotted bass are on the long rocky points. Pick a #5 and #7 Shad Rap in crawfish and shad patterns. Try the new premium balsa wood Rapala Ott’s Garage Series Slim crank bait. Great wobble and side to side action for realistic movement, attracting large predators for deep set bites. This silent, flat sided body with VMC Black Nickel 1X Treble hooks. These are super sharp, and they will hold on better than most stock hooks. Use the crank baits on 8-pound Sufix clear line and bump the bait off the rocks. The rocks are slightly warmer bringing bait p shallow after mid-day. If the bass won’t eat the crankbait take a 3/8-to-1/2-ounce jig and work the same areas. Watch the Lowrance and fid the bait and deeper schools of fish in the mouths of coves. A Fish Head Spin or Flex It 5/8 ounce white and blue jigging spoon will catch these fish.

PUBLIC FISHING AREA REPORT

McDUFFIE PUBLIC FISHING AREA (courtesy of Fisheries Technician Nick Brewer)

The warming air and water temperatures have beckoned anglers back to the PFA, and they are reporting successful fishing trips! We’ll see what the current cold snap and forecasted freezing weather does for the bite over the weekend. Campground renovations have begun, with a projected completion date in 2026.  Bathrooms in the West Valley of the McDuffie Public Fishing Area are open; bathrooms in the East Valley (on the campground) remain closed.  Lime has been delivered to the PFA and will be added to our public fishing lakes later in February.

Bass: As water temperatures rise to the 60’s, bass will begin spawning.  During this time, bass will be much more aggressive and in shallow waters.  Using live worms will produce catches, but also consider using lures that mimic shad or bream in and around structure.

Striped and Hybrid Bass:  As with largemouth bass, hybrids and striped bass will begin moving towards shallower waters to feed in tandem with the rising water temperatures.  Live worms will be excellent for catching hybrids, but anglers should also consider using lures that mimic shad or bream when they need to cover more water.  Anglers may also have success using crankbaits, topwater lures, or plastics in and around the shallows.

Channel Catfish: Channel Catfish are being caught frequently on the PFA. Anglers should consider using chicken livers and fishing near the bottoms of the lakes.  Crankbait or lures that mimic bait fish may also produce angler success. Check out this awesome albino channel catfish caught recently at the PFA!

Bream: Bluegill and redear are starting to become more active, and the bite will continue to get hot as water temperatures begin to reach 70 degrees.  Anglers targeting bream should use live worms and target shallow areas with structure.  Anglers may also seem some success using rooster tail lures and small jigs.

Reminder: Live fish/minnows are not allowed on our PFA!

FLAT CREEK PUBLIC FISHING AREA (courtesy of Fisheries Technicians Amory Cook and Deven Thompson)

Bass: The bass fishing has been moderate with occasional big fish being caught. Most fish have averaged 2 to 5 pounds. Your best bets on lures are jerk baits, jigs, and crank baits around structures.

Bream: The bream fishing has continued to be good despite the weather, most catches are bluegill, but the occasional redear will be mixed in. Your best bet is to use red wigglers or cut up nightcrawlers on the bottom in 4-10 feet of water. 

Crappie: The crappie bite has been extremely slow after the winter storm. A few fish have been caught–all on jigs. Your best bet is to target them extremely deep and in open water, preferably around schools of shad. 

Catfish: Catfish have been extremely slow since the turn of the year, but the occasional fish may still be caught. Chicken livers and cut bait fish on the bottom and deep water will produce some bites. 

Boaters Note: Due to the extremely low lake level, please use caution when unloading/loading your vessels.

ATTENTION ANGLERS: Flat Creek PFA staff are conducting an annual angler (creel) survey on the lake this year. If you are approached by a PFA staff member after your fishing trip, please take a moment to answer their questions and share information about your fishing success (or, lack of success, whichever may be the case). These surveys are a valuable management tool that can improve our understanding of the fishery and ultimately improve fishing quality on the reservoir.

MARBEN PFA FISHING REPORT (Courtesy of Fisheries Technician Jacob Landry) –

• Marben Public Fishing Area
• Water level: Several of the smaller bodies of water are slightly low but the larger lakes are full pool. Margery is under renovation and closed until further notice.
• Water clarity: Clarity varies but most water bodies have up to 24-48” visibility.
• Surface temperature: 48 -55 F.
• Marben PFA Fishing Guide

Bass: During the colder temperatures largemouth bass have been feeding on lethargic shad.  These feeding frenzies are often against or near a windblown shoreline.  A good lure choice would be a rattle trap, jerk bait, or any crank bait that closely resembles a threadfin shad.  Look for gulls feeding.  Take advantage of the warmer weather while it lasts.

Crappie: A few crappie have moved in to more shallow water and the numbers should increase as the temperatures stay mild.  Using a jig tipped with a minnow is your best bet.  Try different depths until you find them.

Bream: Bluegill and some shellcracker bite is slow but a few are being caught on or near the bottom. Bottom fishing with red wigglers and wax worms is your best bet.

Hybrid Bass: Bennett, Fox, Greenhouse and Otter have all been stocked with hybrid bass. Most lures work but fishing with liver on the bottom seems to work best.

Management Note: Marben Fisheries staff have been applying lime to select lakes on the area this week to increase the alkalinity of the water, which will make pond fertilization more effective later on this year. By fertilizing these impoundments, the base of the food chain can be significantly increased in order to support greater numbers, growth, and size of fish for anglers to pursue at Marben PFA. 

(Fishing report courtesy of Capt. Bert Deener, Retired Georgia WRD Fisheries Supervisor, with help from Region Staff and Local Experts)

The warmup that is coming to an end as I write this has been great for most bites. A few trips this week were a bust because of what I call the “it’s just too pretty” factor. Sometimes the fish don’t know whether they’re in a winter or spring pattern, and they are hard to find when it’s abnormally nice weather. It appears that winter weather will return over this next week, so we are going to be back to figuring out what the fish are doing every single day. The Piedmont got a bunch of rain out of Thursday’s system, so expect the Altamaha system rivers to rise this week.

River gages on February 13th were:

• Clyo on the Savannah River – 6.2 feet and rising
• Abbeville on the Ocmulgee – 4.8 feet and rising
• Doctortown on the Altamaha – 8.3 feet and rising
• Waycross on the Satilla – 9.7 feet and rising
• Atkinson on the Satilla – 8.8 feet and rising
• Statenville on the Alapaha – 5.5 feet and rising
• Macclenny on the St Marys – 4.5 feet and falling
• Fargo on the Suwannee – 5.0 feet and falling

Last quarter moon is February 20th. To monitor all the Georgia river levels, visit the USGS website. For the latest marine forecast, check out weather.gov/jax/.

ALTAMAHA RIVER

Seth Carter and a buddy had a great trip this week on the lower river. Seth caught his personal best bass – 5 and change – on a crankbait. He caught a 4-pounder just a few casts later. They had a bunch of smaller fish during the trip, as well. Teddy Elrod fished with me on Friday on the lower Altamaha. We missed a great bite by 2 days, as the river had started rising and flowing through the woods the day we fished. We had a total of 12 fish (8 bass, 2 big warmouth, and 2 bowfin), and each of us caught a 4-pound bass as our biggest. Teddy fooled his biggest with a spinnerbait, and I coaxed mine with a green pumpkin Keitech Mad Wag Worm (TX-rigged). Bubblegum floating worms produced most of our bass, and Texas-rigged worms produced the warmouth and bowfin. I talked with a catfish angler on the river, and he had done great for 3 to 6-pound channel catfish by running limb lines. The rising water helped his cause and hurt our bass fishing. The first Catfish Legends Tournament of the year is Feb.15th at Balls Ferry on the Oconee River. If interested, check them out on Facebook.

SAVANNAH RIVER

Mark Vick and Daniel Rhodes fished the river on Friday and spanked them in the warmer water. They caught 47 fish (kept 29 slabs) – mostly crappie. They had quite a few 13 to 14-inchers in their catch. Fish were in the 10 to 12-foot depth range. They caught all of their fish on 1/16-oz. Tennessee shad Specktacular Jigs without tipping it with a minnow.

ST MARYS RIVER

An angler reported fishing minnows on Sunday on the river and catching just over 20 crappie and 15 big warmouth. Note: The Temple Landing is currently closed while the GA Wildlife Resources Division boat ramp crew rebuilds the ramp. It will be a much-improved facility when they finish the project. The projects typically take a few months to complete, but it is always weather and river level dependent.

OKEFENOKEE SWAMP

Brentz McGhin and Joseph Mitchell fished the east side over the weekend and caught a handful of bowfin and pickerel. Brentz’s biggest bowfin (a 7-pounder) ate a jackfish-colored Dura-Spin, but they caught most of their fish on black/chartreuse-chartreuse blade Dura-Spins. The most recent water level (Folkston side) was 120.94 feet.

BANKS LAKE

Tim Bonvechio fished the lake over the weekend. He didn’t catch his target bass, but he ended up catching the lake record bowfin. It weighed 10-lb., 1-oz. and was right at 30 inches long.

LOCAL PONDS

Chad Lee got back on the water on Thursday morning at an Alma area pond. He fished from a dock and wore them out. He flung electric chicken Assassin Tiny Shads rigged on 1/16-oz. pink Zombie Eye Jigheads and floated a minnow while casting. He ended up catching 30 crappie (kept 20 of them) and 10 bass. The biggest bass he landed was 3 1/2 pounds, but he also had a 5-pound class fish break him off. His biggest crappie was 1 3/4 pounds, and he had a couple 2-pounders pull off as he tried to swing them onto the dock. He had a blast! Cooper and Jackson fished a Bacon County pond with several family members this weekend and put it on the crappie. They caught almost 50 crappie and a couple of bass and fliers. The used a variety of Creme plastics, and color or style didn’t matter. They will be posting the trip on their YouTube channel HeyCuz Outdoors in the near future. A Blackshear angler fished an area pond Sunday afternoon and landed 14 bass by flinging stick worms to shallow vegetation and cover. His best 5 bass weighed 18.75 pounds. Miles Zachary has been hitting some ponds in the Hazlehurst area and has caught bass on crawfish-colored crankbaits and spinnerbaits. Joshua Barber fished a couple ponds this week. On Saturday he fished a large pond and fooled 7 bass on plastics (he Texas-rigged them with a light weight). His biggest was 4-lb., 5-oz. That one he fooled with a stick worm rigged on a Capt. Bert’s Swimbait Head (has a spring lock on the nose). He fished a swampy lake on Monday evening and fooled a few fliers, a warmouth, 2 pickerel (one was a 2-lb., 8-oz. monster!), and a bowfin. The bowfin ate cut bait on the bottom, but everything else ate a chartreuse 2-inch Keitech rigged on a 1/16-oz. Mirage Jig. David Montgomery sent me photos of several really nice bass he caught Friday while fishing a pond with jigs. A crawfish colored jig with a pumpkin plastic craw trailer fooled a half-dozen bass up to 3 pounds for him. Jimmy Zinker caught a 7-lb., 7-oz. bass on a 12-inch Mann’s worm (purple) and a 6-lb., 12-oz. bass on a Shad Rap 9 this week. He also caught some smaller fish, but those were his two biggest. He’s starting to get a few sniffs at his topwaters, so it won’t be too long before he starts catching some monsters. Matt took his grandson Noah to a pond on Wednesday afternoon, and they had a blast catching and releasing 50 bluegills in a couple hours.

SALTWATER (GEORGIA COAST)

The bite was great for most folks, but I had a buddy zero on Saturday, so not everyone figured them out. The fish can’t decide if they should be in their winter holes or moving to spring areas. Tommy and Pam Sweeney fished around docks in the Brunswick area over the weekend and whacked trout and weakfish. They set their floats 8-ft. deep and floated live shrimp for 65 trout-weakfish in 3 hours of fishing. Most were throwbacks, but they had a blast setting the hook! Capt. Chris Ruff of Ruff’s Coastal Adventures (rccaga.com) had a great trip on Sunday. He caught 27 fish (trout up to 20 inches and redfish up to 23 inches). Over half of the trout were keepers. The high ebb tide and low flood tides were best for him. He caught them on both live shrimp fished under a float and Keitech swimbaits on Zombie Eye Jigheads. Capt. Scott Owens (southeasternangling.com) reported that the nearshore reef sheepshead bite has fired off recently. Inshore, trout were caught in good numbers in the 15 to 20-ft. depths. Redfishing improved this week with the warmup. Capt. Duane Harris fished with friends on Wednesday in the Brunswick area and put them on 20 redfish and 2 trout. All the reds were caught within an hour (about half-ebb tide). Most were slot fish, but a few were oversized. Mona Mounts and Lucy Thomas fished with him on Saurday and caught a bunch of trout. Capt. Tim Cutting (fishthegeorgiacoast.com) had some good trips this week. On Friday Jay and Ann McDaniel fished with him, and they had over 20 trout on Fourseven plastics rigged on Zombie Eye Jigheads, but most were short. They switched to sheepshead and had some dock monsters (four between 4 and 6 pounds apiece). They finished the trip redfishing and had 3 slot reds and a couple oversized reds. On Monday, his charter fished with both shrimp and plastics. They stayed hooked up, but most were small trout. They fished hard for sheepshead and caught a dozen, but only half were keepers. They finished the trip with 4 keeper redfish. On both days they had lots of action, but they had to work for keepers. On Wednesday, they caught 15 trout with 3 keepers. They had to crawl their bayou brownie shrimp (Fourseven plastics) to get bites. After your next trip to the Georgia coast, drop off your fish carcasses in the freezer at the GA Wildlife Resources Division Waycross Fisheries Office  at 108 Darling Avenue.  The Coastal Resources Division collects most inshore saltwater species so that they can determine age and growth for each species. All the supplies and information cards are in the freezer. Filet your fish then drop off the carcasses in the freezer. Wat-a-melon Bait and Tackle in Brunswick is open Friday through Tuesday each week (closed Wednesday and Thursday) They have plenty of lively shrimp and also have live worms and crickets for freshwater. For the latest information and their hours, contact them at 912-223-1379.

Blog Contributer Capt. Bert Deener guides fishing trips in southeast Georgia and makes a variety of both fresh and saltwater fishing lures. Check his lures out at Bert’s Jigs and Things on Facebook. For a copy of his latest catalog, call or text him at 912-288-3022 or e-mail him (bertdeener@yahoo.com).

Related