January 7

Lake Hartwell water levels are down to 652.96 (full pool is 660.00) and most of the lake is clear. Morning surface water temperatures are about 50 degrees.  

The hybrid and striped bass are still biting really well on Lake Hartwell, and Captain Chip Hamilton with Lake Hartwell Fishing Charters (864-304-9011) reports that in particular the jigging spoon bite has been very good. Some boats are going out without bait and getting impressive mixed bags with a bunch of striped fish, black bass (mostly spots) and white perch. Down-rods with herring are also working. 

Locations have not changed much, and while the rivers do have fish, the better concentrations of fish (perhaps because of the size of the water) are in the creeks right now. They are mostly fishing the front quarter of smaller creeks and roughly the front half of bigger creeks. About 30-40 and even now 45 feet is the ideal depth range, with ridges, humps, and long tapering points with clean spots near the creek channel all productive. 

In striper tournaments there is a different pattern, however, and anglers looking for a few big fish are almost exclusively running planers boards with big baits. They are generally looking a little shallower in 20-25 feet of water, especially when the sun gets up and the water warms, for fish that are more of loners.  

The best black bass bite is certainly still out deep, and Guide Lane Clark (864-254-8614) reports that fish are highly grouped up in deep water. They are oriented to ditches and channels, and 35-50 feet has been the best depth range. Some are on the bottom while others are roaming and chasing bait. Basically they are around bait schools and timber, and spoons, underspins, jigs, and minnow-type swimbaits have been the best ways to target them. 

Amazingly for this late (now early) in the year, Captain Rodney Donald (864-356-0143) reports that he is still catching crappie shockingly shallow. Today on the water he was catching them casting swimbaits to fish just over the top of brush that extends to 6 feet below the surface in 10 feet of water. Again, the area he is fishing has a little stain. 

He also has friends catching them around standing timber in 30-40 feet of water.

Meanwhile, Captain Bill Plumley reports that he is catching crappie as well as perch and a few spots around brush in 27 feet of water on minnows. He plans to use the heads for catfish, which he expects to still be very deep. The last big fish he caught was in 70 plus feet of water while smaller channel catfish are still occasionally coming in about 40-45 feet of water. 

December 23

Lake Hartwell water levels are down to 653.15 (full pool is 660.00) and the lake is relatively clear. Morning surface water temperatures are about 51 degrees.  

There is now a very good black bass bite out deep, and Guide Lane Clark (864-254-8614) reports that fish are highly grouped up in deep water. They are oriented to ditches and channels, and 35-50 feet has been the best depth range. Some are on the bottom while others are roaming and chasing bait. Basically they are around bait schools and timber, and spoons, drop shots, and minnow-type swimbaits have been the best ways to target them. 

The hybrid and striped bass are still biting really well on Lake Hartwell, and Captain Chip Hamilton with Lake Hartwell Fishing Charters (864-304-9011) reports that really the only change from last week is that they are getting more and more fish on jigging spoons. They are still catching a mix of hybrids, striper, spotted bass, and white perch as the fish are still all mixed together around bait.

While the rivers do have fish, the better concentrations of fish (perhaps because of the size of the water) are in the creeks right now, and they are mostly fishing the front quarter of smaller creeks and perhaps the front half of bigger creeks. About 30-40 feet is the ideal depth range, with ridges, humps, and long tapering points with clean spots near the creek channel all productive. 

As expected the catfish continue to be deep, and Captain Bill Plumley reports that he caught his last big fish – a 28-pound blue cat – in 72 feet of water in the river channel. It came on cut perch. He is also catching a few smaller channel catfish on minnows fished in about 40-45 feet while he is catching perch. 

Finally, it looks like warm weather is going to extend the shallow crappie pattern Captain Rodney Donald (864-356-0143) has been fishing for weeks at least a little while longer, and today he was back to catching fish a couple of feet under the surface over brush in less than ten feet in the creeks. Again, the water needs some stain for this pattern to produce but in those conditions it is very effective. Additionally, he is also catching fish today casting jigs to brush in about 20 feet of water and there are still good reports on fishing minnows vertically around standing timber 30-40 feet down. 

December 17

Lake Hartwell water levels are down to 653.28 (full pool is 660.00) and the lake has cleared significantly. Morning surface water temperatures were 52 degrees this morning.  

There is a pretty good black bass bite out deep, and Guide Lane Clark (864-254-8614) reports that most of the fish are close to the bottom in the drains and ditches. 30-35 feet has been the best depth range, and while some fish are on brush more are just close to timber. Small minnow-type swimbaits, shaky heads, and underspins have all been catching fish. 

The hybrid and striped bass are biting really well on Lake Hartwell, and Captain Chip Hamilton with Lake Hartwell Fishing Charters (864-304-9011) reports that on his last trip they had an excellent day for numbers catching 22 hybrids and stripers, 27 white perch (about half on spoons), and 10 spotted bass. The fish are all mixed together around bait, and they have not moved in the last ten days. 

While the rivers do have fish, the better concentrations of fish (perhaps because of the size of the water) are in the creeks right now, and they are mostly fishing the front quarter of smaller creeks and perhaps the front half of bigger creeks. About 30-40 feet is the ideal depth range, with ridges, humps, and long tapering points with clean spots near the creek channel all productive. On his last two trips the fish were concentrated at 36 then 38 feet, respectively. 

The catfish have certainly not gone shallower as temperatures have dropped, and Captain Bill Plumley reports he is still finding fish mostly in about 70-80 feet on the bottom. He is having to fish the dead middle of the channel most of the time to avoid trees and using large chunks of cut bait to target blues.     

Finally, the shallow crappie pattern Captain Rodney Donald (864-356-0143) has been on may be playing out, even though amazingly he is still marking a lot of fish a couple of feet under the surface over brush in less than ten feet. They are not biting as well as a week or two ago, though, and so it may be time start fishing deeper water. There are still good reports on fishing minnows vertically around standing timber 30-40 feet down. 

December 4

Lake Hartwell water levels are down to 654.21 (full pool is 660.00) and there are even more stained areas after recent rains.  Morning surface water temperatures are about 56-59 degrees.  

It’s a good early winter bite for hybrid and striped bass on Lake Hartwell, and Captain Chip Hamilton with Lake Hartwell Fishing Charters (864-304-9011) reports that the overall key to catching fish right now is being around bait. There are a very few areas his boat will fish (where they have had historical success every year at this time) even without marking bait, but they will always fish areas with bait even if they are not marking fish. In most cases the hybrids and stripers have been targeted since at least March at this point and so these pressured fish can be pretty good at evading detection until there is a herring bait in front of them.

While the rivers do have fish, the better concentrations of fish (perhaps because of the size of the water) are in the creeks right now, and they are mostly fishing the front quarter of smaller creeks and perhaps the front half of bigger creeks. About 30-35 or 40 feet is the ideal depth range, with ridges, humps, and long tapering points with clean spots near the creek channel all productive. 

They are schooling randomly, and when that happens you can catch a lot of fish on free-lines very fast if you follow them. When they are not schooling they are generally on the bottom where the bait is.

  

We will have a more complete black bass report next week after our regular correspondent completes his championship tournament on Hartwell this week, but Guide Wendell Wilson of Wilson’s Guide Service (706-283-3336) reports that with a jigging spoon and minnows on a drop shot they caught 51 fish – mostly spotted bass – a couple of days ago. As with the striper and hybrids, the fish were stacked up in a creek in 35-40 feet. 

It's still hard to believe the pattern Captain Rodney Donald (864-356-0143) is on, but yesterday in two hours he caught 40 crappie in eight feet of water fishing a hair jig two feet under a cork over brush that rises to about three feet of the surface. It’s a spring bite in a stained creek that has been going on for over two weeks now!  

There are certainly fish to be caught deeper, and he also has friends catching them fishing minnows vertically around standing timber 30-40 feet down. 

As it has gotten colder, Captain Bill Plumley reports that he has been managing some big catfish up to 44 pounds (blues) as well as some decent flatheads. They are also picking up occasional channels. The fish are deep, and he has been catching them mostly in about 70-80 feet although the flathead came at 36 feet. He is having to fish the dead middle of the channel most of the time to avoid trees.   

November 19

Lake Hartwell water levels are down to 654.91 (full pool is 660.00) and morning surface water temperatures are about 61-63 degrees.  The water has cleared and they are not seeing signs of a turnover. 

Yesterday was fair (excellent for spots) but today was a very good bite for hybrid and striped bass on Lake Hartwell. Captain Chip Hamilton with Lake Hartwell Fishing Charters (864-304-9011) reports that a little breeze seems to make a huge difference, and even though they didn’t see single fish popping the surface like in the calm yesterday they bit much better today. Basically there are two places they are catching fish, with one being the sides of the rivers over humps. The other place is slightly up feeder creeks or even major coves that come off the rivers. The key depth is about 32-34 feet, although sometimes they are catching them as deep as 39 feet. Fish are right on the bottom and so naturally they are picking up other species including black bass, white perch, and catfish.

But the crappie fishing may be even better, and Captain Rodney Donald (864-356-0143) reports that they are smoking them – on an unusual pattern reminiscent of spring. The fish he is catching are in the back of a creek run on brush in about 10 feet of water, and they are just 2-3 feet below the surface. They are catching them with a jig fished under a cork. Interestingly he can find fish on the same pattern in multiple creeks but the only ones where they are biting have a little color to the water.

With water temperatures mild there are fish in lots of other places, including 20 feet down in standing timber, but these are the most fun to target.  

While the lake is off-limits to Guide Lane Clark (864-254-8614) with the Bassmaster Team Championship coming up, with the weather still hot he expects that there is probably some schooling activity for bass going on. Bait should be oriented to the creeks, and with topwater season winding down he would target fish around bait schools with subsurface baits like a jerkbait or squarebill. It’s also worth skipping a jig or shaky head around docks or brush in the creeks.

There is also probably some action down-lake with a jig. 

Back on the water, Captain Bill Plumley reports that his last catfish trip he targeted 35-75 feet of water in the channel itself but only got pecks from small catfish. Before long he expects the bigger blues to turn on in deeper water, either the old river channels or on clean places which used to be farmland or whatnot. With so much standing timber on Hartwell you can’t just fish any deep water for catfish.   

November 5

Lake Hartwell water levels are at 655.39 (full pool is 660.00) and morning surface water temperatures are down to about 64 degrees.  While the water is overall clear the turnover still has it stained in places. 

You know the hybrid and striped bass are biting again on Lake Hartwell because Captain Chip Hamilton with Lake Hartwell Fishing Charters (864-304-9011) is back on the lake after a period on Keowee, and Tuesday they had a really good day. Unlike Monday the fish didn’t school, but even when there were acres of fish schooling they only caught a few that way – perhaps because they were on small bait. The bulk of the fish came setting up deep near the schooling fish and waiting for them to settle down.  

Typical for November they are catching a mixed bag including striper, hybrids, black bass (spots), and white perch. Captain Chip’s boat is fishing at the mouths of both rivers over humps and long tapering points adjacent to very deep water. They are fishing in 32-38 feet near the bottom, and while you could catch fish a bit shallower or deeper generally the 30s are best this time of year. 

The bass bite has also improved, and Guide Lane Clark (864-254-8614) reports finding fish schooling over the main lake on shallow humps and other depth changes. Yesterday he caught them on topwater lures and particularly Spooks. 

The shallow bite is still good, and with temperatures essentially stabilized there continues to be a fair topwater bite. Fishing jigs and worms around laydowns and docks is also effective, and it’s also worth cranking around rock.

The crappie fishing is still good, and Captain Rodney Donald (864-356-0143) reports that they are still over brush in about 15 feet of water at the mouths of creeks, holding about 8 feet down. Docks at the same depth are also holding fish, again about 8 feet down, but he can’t catch them on docks any shallower. He has also caught a lot of fish on standing timber in open water 6-8 feet down in 50 or more feet of water.

Bites are still coming almost exclusively on down-sized jigs, and the crappie continue to not show much interest in baits with a larger profile. 

Of late Captain Bill Plumley has spent more time in the woods than targeting catfish, but he believes the best depth for blues and channels is 40-50 feet. There should also be a fair number of channel catfish in about 20 feet. Again, he expects the fishing to improve once the turnover finishes. 

October 29

Lake Hartwell water levels are at 655.61 (full pool is 660.00) and morning surface water temperatures are down to the upper 60s.  The lake is turning over.  

The turnover has significantly affected the hybrid and striped bass bite on Lake Hartwell, and Captain Chip Hamilton with Lake Hartwell Fishing Charters (864-304-9011) reports that the last time they went out just before the rain they caught fish but not a single striper or hybrid. They marked plenty of striped fish, saw a school briefly pop up on the surface then submerge, and another captain caught three or four fish that were schooling. But that was it. It’s so tough that they are now taking parties over to Lake Keowee.

In the long run this will be a boon, though, as the rain and cooler weather should accelerate the turnover and get us through this tough period faster. November should be a very good time on Hartwell, as usual. 

The black bass fishing has also fallen off due to the turnover, and Guide Lane Clark (864-254-8614) reports that the most significant change is that the offshore topwater bite is going away. You can still catch some fish offshore on the main lake, but you need to target brush on humps, points, and other depth changes in 20-30 feet of water. Jigs are the best bait. 

The shallow bite is probably least affected by the turnover, although cooling temperatures have caused the topwater bite around the banks to also fade. Fishing jigs and worms around laydowns is probably the best approach, and it’s also worth cranking around rock.

While the rain has kept Captain Bill Plumley from targeting catfish this week, they have been very slow and he expects the fishing to improve only once the turnover finishes. 

So all in all the best thing going is definitely the crappie, and Captain Rodney Donald (864-356-0143) reports that they are still over brush in about 15 feet of water at the mouths of creeks, holding about 8 feet down. Docks at the same depth are also holding fish, again about 8 feet down, but he can’t catch them on docks any shallower. However, he has also caught a lot of fish on standing timber in open water 6-8 feet down in 50 or more feet of water.

Bites are still coming almost exclusively on down-sized jigs, and they still aren’t showing much interest in baits with a larger profile. 

October 23

Lake Hartwell water levels are down to 655.57 (full pool is 660.00) and water clarity is still high. Morning surface water temperatures are down to 71-72 degrees. 

Except for the fact that there are 300 college bass fishing team boats racing around the lake there’s no change with the black bass or catfish this week on Lake Hartwell, but Captain Chip Hamilton with Lake Hartwell Fishing Charters (864-304-9011) reports that that the hybrid and striped bass are still in the same patterns and depths but fish are starting to move up a bit. The fish that have been in the vicinity of the dam are leaving and making their way up the rivers, and more fish are being caught in the front third of creeks. There continues to usually be decent schooling activity and sometimes it has been outstanding this week. 

But the biggest change is with the crappie, and Captain Rodney Donald (864-356-0143) reports that they are catching many more this week. They are over brush in about 15 feet of water at the mouths of creeks but not way back, and they are holding about 8 feet down. Docks at the same depth are also holding fish, again about 8 feet down, but he can’t catch them on docks any shallower. However, he has also caught a lot of fish on standing timber in open water 6-8 feet down in 50 or more feet of water.

The biggest revelation is that he needs to down-size his jigs, and they still aren’t showing much interest in swimbaits. Perhaps they have not gotten less finicky and Captain Rodney has just figured out the need for a finesse presentation. 

October 15

Lake Hartwell water levels are down to 655.99 (full pool is 660.00) and water clarity is still high. Water temperatures are mostly in the mid-70s on the main water and the lake is turning over in most areas. 

Once again the shallow bite is the best thing going on Lake Hartwell for black bass, and Guide Lane Clark (864-254-8614) reports that fishing around the banks in the creeks and rivers is very productive. Throwing a buzzbait or skipping a jig under docks are the go-to patterns. 

At the same time there is a lot of school during the day, essentially across the entire main lake. Most of this activity is taking place over deep water, and sometimes the fish are holding around points that lead into creek or river channels and sometimes they are just in open water. While they can be tricky to catch there are some good fish out there and small topwater lures and flukes are both working. 

The hybrid and striped bass fishing continues to improve on Lake Hartwell, and Captain Chip Hamilton with Lake Hartwell Fishing Charters (864-304-9011) reports that it seems like the fish have adapted to the northeast winds. Although there are some off-days they are schooling most days. 

A bump downward of just a couple more degrees will put the fish on the move, but for now the majority of the fish are still in a five-mile stretch above the dam. They are still at the mouths of major creeks, on the flatter sides of the channel, and over the deepest part of the channel. The fish are still shallower, and now they are generally about 30-45 feet down in 90-170 feet.

It’s a weird crappie situation this week, and Captain Rodney Donald (864-356-0143) reports that he is seeing giant schools of thousands of crappie but (outside of a small window very early) they are finicky about eating pretty much everything. Fish are stacked up on brush in the creek runs in about 15 feet, and there are also fish that under docks as shallow as 5 feet out to 20 feet. However, outside of that early window it’s hard to catch many fish on either jigs or minnows. 

The catfish fishing seems to have slowed down again, and Captain Bill Plumley reports that today on the water he didn’t have a single bite. This was probably anomalous, and there should still be some channel cats in about 20 feet of water, but it really won’t pick up significantly until the lake turns over. 

October 9

Lake Hartwell water levels are down to 656.33 (full pool is 660.00) and water clarity is still high. Morning surface water temperatures are down to about 75-79 degrees depending on location. Higher temperatures are in the bigger, deeper water that holds heat better. 

The black bass fishing on Lake Hartwell is significantly better than last week, and Guide Lane Clark (864-254-8614) (coming off a tournament win last weekend with 19 and then 17.5 pounds) reports that everything is firing off right now. He fished again yesterday and reports that the shallow bite around the banks continues to be very good fishing a buzzbait and a jig.  At the same time, the schooling activity (with striper and hybrids mixed in, as reported yesterday) has come on strong. Fish can be found schooling literally anywhere there is bait, and you just have to keep moving. Often it is over very deep water. 

Lane expects the fishing to be off for a couple of days with the weather rolling in but then to get very good again. 

The catfish fishing has picked up with cooler temperatures, and Captain Bill Plumley reports from the water today that he is finding hungry channel cats in about 20 feet of water. He is targeting sandy bottoms with dip baits and worms, and has picked up a few shellcracker on the worms. After a really, really slow late summer bite cooler temperatures have kick-started the action again.      

Finally, the crappie don’t seem to have moved much and Captain Rodney Donald (864-356-0143) reports that fish are still on main lake brush piles in about 20 feet of water. They should go shallower soon once water temperatures fall a few more degrees.   

October 8

Lake Hartwell water levels are at 656.52 (full pool is 660.00) and water clarity is still high. Morning surface water temperatures are down to about 80 degrees. 

The hybrid and striped bass fishing continues to improve on Lake Hartwell, and Captain Chip Hamilton with Lake Hartwell Fishing Charters (864-304-9011) reports that patterns are similar but the bite has really picked up. In particular schooling activity is getting more and more widespread, but you have to approach the fish quietly. If a boat runs up on them with the big motor it ruins the action for everyone.

There are more fish spreading out, but the majority of the fish are still in a five mile stretch above the dam. They are still at the mouths of major creeks, on the flatter sides of the channel, and over the deepest part of the channel. The fish have moved shallower, and now they are generally only 30-45 feet down in 90-170 feet.

There are some fish up the rivers but there will be more as it cools – today is the last 80-degree day in the extended forecast. 

October 1

Lake Hartwell water levels are at 656.88 (full pool is 660.00) and visibility is high. Morning surface water temperatures are still about 80 degrees. 

The hybrid and striped bass fishing has started to turn around on Lake Hartwell, and Captain Chip Hamilton with Lake Hartwell Fishing Charters (864-304-9011) reports that they are now catching 15-25 fish per day instead of 8-10. It’s not as good as it will get, but much better. Schooling activity has also picked up, and most days it is going off. 

While some smaller fish (usually the first to go) have moved up the rivers, 75 plus percent of the better fish are still grouped up in a five-mile stretch in the extreme lower lake. They are at the mouths of all the major creeks, on the flatter sides of the channel, and over the deepest part of the channel. The vast majority are 45-60 feet down in 90-170 feet.

Some fish will take free-lines, and always fish free-lines when they are schooling, but overall down-rods 45-50 feet deep are most effective for putting fish in the boat. 

The offshore black bass fishing on Lake Hartwell has picked up a hair, but Guide Lane Clark (864-254-8614) reports that temperatures have just not changed enough for the topwater bite to really come on.  There is still a bit of schooling activity going on, but the good fishing is still upcoming and for now it’s pretty mediocre.

The shallow bite continues to be the best thing going, and most of all that means fishing a buzzbait around the banks. You can also catch fish skipping a wacky-rigged worm around docks. The shallow action is actually pretty stout. 

The catfish fishing remains slow, and Captain Bill Plumley reports that he doesn’t expect dramatic improvement until water temperatures drop into the low 70s.  Fish are still stressed after a long summer and still-hot water temperatures, even as they want to be able to transition into cooler weather patterns. You can scratch out a few small channels in 25-35 feet, but it’s slow going.   

Finally, the crappie don’t seem to have moved much and Captain Rodney Donald (864-356-0143) reports that fish are still on main lake brush piles in about 20 feet of water. They should go shallower soon once water temperatures cool off.