Walleye fishing is Georgia is becoming more popular every year. With the vast stocking efforts of the Georgia DNR these fish seem to be thriving well. Georgia’s growth season for Walleye is much longer than that of the Northern US lakes. With milder water temperatures these Walleye have an extra couple of months each year to put on the weight! Some of the two and three year old fish are hitting the two and three lbs mark. Our current Georgia Walleye record is approximately 11lbs. This record was set in 1995 on Lake Russell. The large bait population’s in these North Georgia Lakes give these fish a wide variety of forage. Walleye spawn in late February to early March. Most of these fish concentrate in the upper river and creek channels. Spawning fish can be tough to catch. Not all Walleye spawn at the exact same time. When fishing try looking for pre- spanning fish or post-spawn fish. Slow trolling freelined night crawlers and Blue- Back Herring works best. Trolling small colorful(fire tiger) crank baits is a good second choice. Early morning and late evening when the sun is not directly overhead is always best. Fishing midday is not a waste of time. Be a little more patient with the baits and they working the bottom a little slower. Most Walleye hold close to structure during peak sunlight hours , although these fish will venture away for a stash and grab meal. Working a 1/4 oz jig with a chartreuse plastic grub is a good midday technique. Be cautious of Georgia’s underwater structure or you might find yourself loosing a lot of tackle.
Fishing Reports
Lake Lanier Walleye Fishing/Lake Rabun Walleye Fishing
Lake Lanier Fishing Guides
The Striped Bass are biting good despite cool temperatures. These fish are being caught in the 30ft range. Try using small trout 5 to 6in on a down line dropped to 22 ft. Look for this pattern to continue for the next few weeks.
Lake Burton Fishing
Water level down 9 ft
Water temp 41 deg
Clarity stained
Brown Trout
The Brown trout have been biting well in the back of the creeks. Look for the color change or break. Most of the fish we are catching have been over a 16 to 20 ft bottom. Black Panther Martins have been working best. We have caught a few bigger fish on a Rapala countdown. These fish should hold this pattern for the next several weeks if the lake doesn’t freeze.
Bass
The Spotted Bass are still fairly shallow. These fish have been setting up on a 25ft bottom. The water has been a lot cooler the last few days, so getting these fish to eat has been tricky. We have had our beat luck between 9 am an 1 pm after the sun has warmed the water a little. Try using a white jerk bait or a green crank bait. Work the baits slowly these fish are not very aggressive. The Spots will be moving toward deeper water over the next few weeks. I expect to see a good spoon bite in a week or so 35 to 50 ft.
Walleye
The Walleye are biting in 28 ft of water. We have had our best success trolling deep divers around main lake points. Try using a Mann’s stretch in Sexy Shad trolled at 80 ft behind the boat. We have been varying the trolling speed from 2 mph to 3 mph. These fish are aggressive this time of year and seem to be real healthy. Look for the Walleye to start migrating toward the river channels over the next few weeks for the spawn.
Good luck
Capt. Wes Carlton
Georgia Lake Fishing
7703189777
WWW.georgialakefishing.com
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Walleye Fishing in Georgia
The Walleye bite continues to be strong on the northern lakes. Try trolling a 4 in crank bait Natural Shad color 80 to 100 ft begging the boat. Lake Lanier Walleye fishery is continuing to get better every year with some big fish showing up.
Lake Lanier Fishing/ December Report
The Lake Lanier Fishing continues to get better as we head toward winter. The Gainesville GA north end of the lake seems to be holding a lot of big Striped bass. These fish are feeding and schooling on top water. The Gainesville Marina area has been a good location to catch these top water fish. Gaineaville Creek has been seeing a good amount of large schools of Stripers. Clark’s Bridge Park and Laurel Park are good areas in Gainesville to catch a good number of fish. We have been fishing top water early to in the mornings and live bait mid day.
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Lake Burton Fishing Report October/November
Lake Level 1 ft low
Clarity : slight stain
Water Temp. 63 deg
The Black Bass bite is the best I have seen it in a couple of years. These fish are biting shallow and deep. Most of the big Spots and Large Mouth are in the 20 to 30ft water column over main lake points. Try using a white crank bait or jerk bait. Be patient sometimes it takes several casts to the same area to get these fish to rise. When they do the whole school generally shows up. We have had several 6 lbs Spots over the last few days. There are still quite a few nice Bass in the backs of the creeks feeding on young Blue-Backs. I hope this pattern holds for the next few weeks.
The Browns have started schooling over the main lake channel. These fish are an easy target right now. Try casting a small silver or gold 1/4 oz spoon to the surfacing fish. Where there is one or two there is a school below. Some of these fish are big! We have caught several in the 5 to 6 lbs range the last couple of days. Look for the Brown Trout to follow the schools of Herring over the next couple of weeks as we head toward the November spawn. The winter Lake Burton Trout bite gets better the colder the water gets. Don’t be discouraged of the cold weather. This is when the big fish are caught .
The Walleye bite has been a little slow this month, but should pick up as soon as the water temps dip below 65 deg. This is a great time to troll crawler harnesses and big crank baits. Look for these fish to set up in about 25 ft of water and feed in the shallows
Good luck!
Capt. Wes Carlton
Georgia Lake Fishing
7703189777
WWW.georgialakefishing.com