March 17
After dropping about a foot Lake Russell water levels are back above full at 475.16 (full pool is 475.00) and the water is muddy in the backs of creeks. At least down the lake is still pretty clear on the main watever but even creeks that generally stay clean have now gotten muddy. Morning surface water temperatures are about 56 or 57 degrees.
March 10
Lake Russell water levels are above full at 475.21 (full pool is 475.00) and the water is getting muddy in the backs of creeks but still clear on the main lake. Morning surface water temperatures are about 57 degrees on the main lake but were warmer in the backs.
Proving that not all the fish are doing the same thing at the same time, Guide Jerry Kotal (706-988-0860) and Guide Wendell Wilson (706-283-3336) are on completely different patterns
March 1
Lake Russell water levels are at 474.73 (full pool is 475.00) and the water is stained in the backs of creeks but generally clear on the main lake. Morning surface water temperatures are about 55 degrees on the main lake and 60-61 degrees in the backs of creeks.
In a sure sign of spring the bass have pretty much left deep water, and Guide Jerry Kotal (706-988-0860) reports
February 18
Lake Russell water levels are at 474.62 (full pool is 475.00) and the water is clear except for the very backs of creeks where there is a slight stain. Morning surface water temperatures are about 52-53 degrees on the main lake and 54-55 degrees in the backs of creeks.
It was a good winter for striped bass fishing on Lake Russell, but Guide Jerry Kotal (706-988-0860) reports
February 10
Lake Russell water levels are at 474.13 (full pool is 475.00) and the water is clear on the main lake and at the front of creeks. Morning surface water temperatures are about 49-50 degrees, hitting 52 in the afternoon.
The striped bass fishing has been strong recently on Lake Russell, and Guide Jerry Kotal (706-988-0860) reports
February 1
Lake Russell water levels are at 474.05 (full pool is 475.00) and the water is fairly clear. Morning surface water temperatures are about 49-51 degrees.
It’s been a pretty good bite for striped bass recently on Lake Russell, and Guide Jerry Kotal (706-988-0860) reports
January 20
Lake Russell water levels are at 474.63 (full pool is 475.00) and the lake is stained with the recent rains. Morning surface water temperatures are around 50 degrees.
Water temperatures are cold but not yet in the range where there is the danger of a major shad-die off, and as a result Guide Jerry Kotal (706-988-0860) reports
January 6
Lake Russell water levels are right at full (full pool is 475.00) and the upper end is murky while the lower end is pretty clear. Morning surface water temperatures are about 57 degrees.
Once again water conditions have changed the bite on Lake Russell, and Guide Wendell Wilson (706-283-3336) reports
December 22
Lake Russell water levels are at 475.27 (full pool is 475.00) and the water is relatively clear. Morning surface water temperatures are down to about 56 degrees.
The fish are following the exact patterns they are supposed to follow in the winter on Lake Russell, and Guide Jerry Kotal (706-988-0860) reports
December 16
Lake Russell water levels are at 475.24 (full pool is 475.00) and the water is relatively clear. Morning surface water temperatures are about 58 degrees.
With water temperatures extremely stable, Guide Jerry Kotal (706-988-0860) reports
December 3
Lake Russell water levels are down to 475.09 (full pool is 475.00) and the water is clear. Morning surface water temperatures are about 60 degrees.
Almost always a fan of colder weather for Lake Russell fishing, Guide Jerry Kotal (706-988-0860) reports
December 2
Lake Russell water levels are above full at 475.39 (full pool is 475.00) and the water is clear. Morning surface water temperatures are about 60 degrees.
It’s unclear what effect the warm spell will have on the fishing, but Guide Wendell Wilson (706-283-3336) reports
November 19
Lake Russell water levels are at 474.90 (full pool is 475.00) and the water is clear. Morning surface water temperatures are still about 64 degrees.
This week Guide Jerry Kotal (706-988-0860) reports
November 11
Lake Russell water levels are at 474.66 (full pool is 475.00) and the water is clearing as the turnover winds down. Morning surface water temperatures are about 64 degrees.
Even though he usually finds the best action in the winter, Guide Jerry Kotal (706-988-0860) reports
November 4
Lake Russell water levels are right around full (full pool is 475.00) and the water has gotten much cleaner again. Morning surface water temperatures are about 67 degrees.
It’s an outstanding bass bite right now on Lake Russell, and Guide Jerry Kotal (706-988-0860) reports
October 20
After being more than 4 feet above full, Lake Russell water levels have dropped down to a few inches above full pool at 475.33 (full pool is 475.00). Pretty much the whole lake is stained but it’s much better than it was, particularly in terms of floating trash, and morning surface water temperatures are about 74 or 75 degrees.
October 6
Lake Russell water levels are well above full pool to 474.49 (full pool is 475.00) and rising fast after recent rains. They have had 5 inches of rain already and are expected to get 3-4 more inches, and so water clarity is dropping fast. In the backs of the creeks to about halfway out it’s already getting pretty bad. Morning surface water temperatures are in the mid-70s.
Monsoon conditions are unlikely to put the bass on the bottom, and so Guide Jerry Kotal (706-988-0860) reports
September 30
Lake Russell water levels are at 474.98 (full pool is 475.00) and the main lake is still clear. However, in the backs of creeks there are signs that the water is starting to turn over and you can already see brown water and bubbles on the surface. Morning surface water temperatures have dropped into the upper 70s.
Even though it would be customary to expect the bite to fall off a bit when the lake starts to turn over,Guide Jerry Kotal (706-988-0860) reports
September 17
Lake Russell water levels are at 474.54 (full pool is 475.00) and the main lake is still clear. Morning surface water temperatures have dropped to about 82 degrees.
It’ll take temperatures dropping a few more degrees before patterns really change, andGuide Jerry Kotal (706-988-0860) reports
September 2
Lake Russell water levels are at 474.35 (full pool is 475.00) and the main lake is still clear. Morning surface water temperatures are 85-87 degrees.
Even with recent rains there is very little change in the patternGuide Jerry Kotal (706-988-0860) is fishing, and he reports
August 20
Lake Russell water levels are up to 474.68 (full pool is 475.00) and morning surface water temperatures are about 85 degrees.
This weekGuide Jerry Kotal (706-988-0860) reports
August 6
Lake Russell is down to normal elevation at 474.26 (full pool is 475.00) and the main lake is clear. Morning surface water temperatures are about 84-85 degrees.
The fishing continues to drop off a bit on Lake Russell, perhaps because of the rain earlier this week, butGuide Jerry Kotal (706-988-0860) reports
July 28
Lake Russell is still just above full pool at 465.10 (full pool is 475.00) and the main lake is clear with the lake overall clearing. Morning surface water temperatures are about 86 degrees.
The fishing has slowed down just a little on Lake Russell this week, butGuide Jerry Kotal (706-988-0860) reports
July 21
With around four inches of rain two nights ago Lake Russell water levels shot up about a foot to 475.62 (full pool is 475.00). While the main lake remains clear the backs are murky even in spots that usually stay clear. Morning surface water temperatures are around 85 degrees.
The action is still very good on Lake Russell, andGuide Jerry Kotal (706-988-0860) reports