Prospective GA Fish Hunter Needs Some Help

[ChidJ]

So I'm new to GA and I had a great time hunting deer but now that deer season is over I still wanna be out getting fresh air and food on the table so I suppose fishing is my next activity to tackle.

I plan to fish, primarily, at Strom Thurmond/Clarks Hill Lake but I may try fishing Lake Oconee as well. I'll be on my tiny boat so probably won't be able to fish too far from shore especially as it heats up and folks start putting more big boats out on the water.

My problem is, I don't know/can't remember the first thing about fishing. I fished as a teenager in the pacific northwest for rainbow trout but that was a long time ago. So here are my questions:

What bait/lures should I be filling the tacklebox with?

Who makes a quality telescopic rod suitable for fishing the aforementioned areas?

What types of reels are appropriate for GA lake fishing?

As always, thank you for any input. Folks on this forum have probably been the single most useful source of knowledge as I've stumbled my way through the GA outdoors

 

[Bobby Linton]

Start by focusing on sunfish with live bait. Shell cracker are one of my favorite. Look in coves with rocky bottoms and some structure like stumps or a tree top. You dont need expensive tackle. Get a bream pole, 10lb line, sinkers, and #6 cricket hooks with worms for bait. Give it a try and learn as you go!

 

[LittleDrummerBoy]

Style of fishing and target species tends to dictate rod and reel choices. Never owned or used a telescopic rod that I liked. All my rods have been Ugly Stiks for the past several years - paired with Shimano spinning reels or Daiwa or Okuma level wind reels. But I'm more of a soak bait or trolling lure guy. Each lake is different for best lures since you are more matching the prey species than picking lures for the target species. Lakes with blueback herring fish much differently than lakes without them. Turbid waters also fish differently from clear waters.

Oconee is one of the best lakes in N Ga for catfish. Of the possibilities you mentioned, that may be the easiest way to get your rod bending. Keep an eye open here in this forum. I'll be offering to take people fishing (no charge) often in 2020 in Lake Lanier and Lake Oconee. You're welcome to jump in my boat and I'll show you first hand what I know. I'm not the best angler in N Ga by any stretch, but by the grace of God I usually catch fish.

 

[lampern]

A two piece ugly stick spinning rod paired with a shimano spinning reel should work well for most species.

I have a Shimano saros 4000 reel I like a lot.

 

[Knothead71]

ChidJ
Sounds like you are pretty local to me. Next week I'm on my long break from work so I'll have 7 days off. If you want I'll meet you somewhere, maybe for lunch and show you some gear. I'm no KVD but I can get you headed in the right direction. And I agree with the posts above. Start with panfish and maybe catfish. Let me know if I can help.

 

[Snichols1]

Another great place to start is joining a local fishing club if one is available. I moved to GA about a year ago and just found a wonderful crappie club. The members are very welcoming and willing to take new members, experienced and non-experienced, on fishing trips. It is really helping me learn the lake as well as technique specifics for here.

 

[Mike Davis]

As far as telescopic rods, I just bought a couple of these and I really like them. They have nice guides and a locking reel seat. Different lengths and price is right

https://www.grizzlyjig.com/p-383-shooting-star-telescopic-series-w-reel-seat.aspx

 

[ChidJ]

Thanks for all the responses. I really appreciate it.
@LittleDrummerBoy I will definitely be watching. I'm always keen to learn from anybody.
@Knothead71 Sent you a PM

 

[NCHillbilly]

Clark's Hill has great fishing for catfish, bass, bream, crappie, stripers, and other species. There are also a lot of river and creek arms with good fishing which don't require getting out on the open water.
You can catch lots of fish of several kinds bait fishing with nightcrawlers or shiner minnows, that might be a good starting point. Cut bait will catch plenty of catfish, too. Casting around fallen treetops, logs, stickups, and other cover near deeper water in the early spring with small jigs or minnows will catch crappie. Bass are usually easy to catch on a variety of lures, it just takes a little practice to learn where to find them, but going around the banks casting to likely cover and rocks will get you some. A medium-action spinning rig is what I would start with.

 

[Beenslayin]

Like Bobby said above, I would start with an combo rod and reel off of Amazon. Look at the light tackle ugly stick combos. I have 2 them. Buy some Stren mono line 4 lb or 6 lb. Get some thill floats with thill bobber stops. Get some small hooks. Then just find some little red wiggler worms and you will wear out some bream. This will get you started. I’ve fished for most of the species over the years and nothing brings me more joy than a bream (sunfish) on an ultra light rod and reel.

 

[ChidJ]

So I got me an ugly stick and some tackle. Gonna grab some worms and head to the Lake on Saturday. I'm reviving this because a coworker of mine swears up and down that, because its been cold, I won't even get a nibble. What do y'all think? Is it too cold to catch fish in Clarks Hill Lake?

 

[LittleDrummerBoy]

So I got me an ugly stick and some tackle. Gonna grab some worms and head to the Lake on Saturday. I'm reviving this because a coworker of mine swears up and down that, because its been cold, I won't even get a nibble. What do y'all think? Is it too cold to catch fish in Clarks Hill Lake?

Plenty of pictures of fish from Oconee and Lanier on various forums the last week, so I think the fish in Clarks Hill will still be biting also. But it's a matter of technique, presentation, and location. Most pics I've seen are catfish, spotted bass, and stripers. Most of the spotted bass and stripers are being caught deep due to the time of year, so catching them from the bank would be tricky. I've never known blue gill to bite in these water temps. There are reports of crappie biting, but that's tough from the bank. I think your best bet may be catfish, and blues bite more than channels in these temps. Most of the catfish I caught last week were within casting distance from the bank, and I think that was another poster's experience also. But you might have a better shot at blue catfish with shrimp or cut shad than with worms.

If you take your boat out, I think you should still target catfish. Targeting bass, stripers, or crappie this time of year is somewhat tricky and most folks who succeed have pretty good sonar and experience using it. But whatever you do, we'd all appreciate a report on what you try and how well it works.

 

[Cmp1]

Style of fishing and target species tends to dictate rod and reel choices. Never owned or used a telescopic rod that I liked. All my rods have been Ugly Stiks for the past several years - paired with Shimano spinning reels or Daiwa or Okuma level wind reels. But I'm more of a soak bait or trolling lure guy. Each lake is different for best lures since you are more matching the prey species than picking lures for the target species. Lakes with blueback herring fish much differently than lakes without them. Turbid waters also fish differently from clear waters.

Oconee is one of the best lakes in N Ga for catfish. Of the possibilities you mentioned, that may be the easiest way to get your rod bending. Keep an eye open here in this forum. I'll be offering to take people fishing (no charge) often in 2020 in Lake Lanier and Lake Oconee. You're welcome to jump in my boat and I'll show you first hand what I know. I'm not the best angler in N Ga by any stretch, but by the grace of God I usually catch fish.

Cause you say a prayer first,,,,me too,,,,but you know Alot more than me,,,,

 

[ChidJ]

Thanks. I'll be sure to post an AAR here. Do you suppose maybe put the bait about a foot off the bottom at maybe 30ish down? Do they sell shrimp bait at the gas stations around the lake?

 

[LittleDrummerBoy]

I get my shrimp at walmart. The uncooked Gulf shrimp. Good for local catfish, but sold in the seafood area.

 

[ChidJ]

Well, just to close this out, I went out on Saturday night. Fish were jumping all around me so I know they are there. It was a beautiful evening and I enjoyed floating around on the lake looking at the stars and munchin on snacks.

No fish though. I'll try again another day. It's just nice to get out

Thanks again for all the input. I'll get em on the hook eventually