Fishing Reports

This archived fishing reports are courtesy of Shane Watson Guide Service. To find out more about them, please click here. The very latest fishing report is available by clicking here.

Lake Lanier Fishing Report - Good Striper & Crappie Fishing On Lake Lanier

Monday, 23 January 2012 14:09

We are continuing to see good u-rig and downlining fishing on the stripers. Capt. Mack's 4 arm shad body rigs, fished 80 to 90 feet behind the boat at 3.0 mph are working well. Downlined bluebacks and trout fished 25 to 40 feet deep have also been working well most days. Mid-lake and north has been best on our boats. I have had dock pick-up down south a couple of days this past week and we have found the birds diving back in the creeks. We caught a few stripers on leadhead flukes and bucktails when you pulled up to the diving seagulls with and without loons. We caught a 20 pounder on a jig right under a loon.

Whether you fish north or south, active seagulls are a dead give away this time of the year. Our crappie guide has also been doing very well on a split trip catching stripers early and then going crappie fishing later in the day. They are catching crappie under deeper docks on jigs. This good crappie fishing will last thru spring. This report is brought to you by Shane Watson Guide Service www.lakelanierstripers.com, Hammond's Fishing Center, and Carolina Skiff Boats. Good Fishing and We Appreciate Your Business.

Lake Lanier Fishing Report - Stripers North and South

Tuesday, 17 January 2012 16:45

Shane Watson Guide Service Report. We've had boats out on trips both north and south over the last couple of weeks with a mix of results. We've had some days when the stripers were up and in the feeding mode and you could catch 15 or 20 in 4 hours.

Go back for your next trip and have to work hard for your bites. That's just the way striper fishing is. Your best bet for numbers have been up north and your best size has been down south. Up north, Capt. Mack's 4 arm shad body u-rigs have worked best and we've caught many stripers from 3 to 12 pounds. Down south, it's more of a big fish thing. Most of the fish that we are catching down the lake have been from 15 to 30 pounds. These bigger fish have bit freelined, ballooned, and planerboard medium trout, gizzard shad, and bluebacks. We've also caught a good many 20 to 25 pound stripers this week on down lined trout. This bigger fish pattern takes some patience, but the reward is much greater.

The middle to the backs of creeks have been best. We've seen some rolling fish this past week and a white bucktail or leadhead fluke have both worked well when the fish have been on the surface. Look for this pattern to increase over the next couple of weeks.

This report is brought to you by Shane Watson Guide Service www.lakelanierstripers.com, Hammond's Fishing Center, and Carolina Skiff Boats. Good Fishing.

Lake Lanier Fishing Report - Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

Monday, 26 December 2011 10:46

The stripers were biting well yesterday morning on medium freelined trout, bluebacks, and shad. They were up on points and up on the bank shallow for the first 2 hours and the blow ups were amazing. It was action like you see in the spring time. It lasted for about 2 hours, until the wind got up and the front blew on by. Our boats had stripers up to 30 pounds yesterday. We fished south end creeks.

The Guides, Staff, and Families of Shane Watson Guide Service, Hammond's Fishing Center, and Carolina Skiff Boats would like to Wish Everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. We Appreciate Your Business.

The Striper Fishing Has Been Up & Down on Lake Lanier with The Weather

Tuesday, 03 January 2012 15:19

Shane Watson Guide Service Report 01-03-12.

We had boats out on trips everyday over the Holidays with a mix of success. We had some days when the stripers were up and in the feeding mode while we were out there and the numbers were good. Some days you could catch 15 or 20 and the next day have to work hard for your opportunities. Our boats have been scattered from south end creeks, mid-lake creeks, and on up past Gainesville. Your best for numbers have been up north and your best size has been down south. Up north, Capt. Mack's 4 arm shad body u-rigs are working best and you can expect most of the fish to be from 3 to 12 pounds. Down south, it's more of a big fish thing.

Most of the fish that we are catching down the lake have been from 15 to 30 pounds. These bigger fish have bit freelined, ballooned, and planerboard medium trout, gizzard shad, and bluebacks. Once again, like up north, this pattern has been up and down with the weather. A good number this past week down south has been 8 to 10 of these better size stripers in a 4 or 5 hour trip. Having said that, we've had some days when we've worked hard and covered a lot of water for two or three opportunities. This bigger fish pattern takes some patience, but the reward is much greater.

This report is brought to you by Shane Watson Guide Service www.lakelanierstripers.com, Hammond's Fishing Center, and Carolina Skiff Boats. Good Fishing.

Lake Lanier Fishing Report - Stripers Shallow and Stripers Deep on Lake Lanier

Sunday, 11 December 2011 16:24

Shane Watson Guide Service Report 12-11-11. Since my last report the striper fishing on Lake Lanier hasn't changed much. The fish are still surfacing most mornings before the passing of a cold front and you can catch stripers on freelined and planerboard trout, and bluebacks. Leadhead flukes and bucktail jigs are also working on these rolling fish. We have also done well trolling Capt. Mack's 3 arm u-rigs thru the diving birds and rolling fish.

There has also been a decent spoon bite. There are groups of stripers scattered both north and south, also in the popular mid-lake creeks. We are catching fish around diving seagulls with and without loons. Downlined trout are producing best when the fish are down 30 to 80 feet deep. Overall, the striper fishing remains about the same. It's been good most days, but with these passing wintertime cold fronts, the stripers might be up on the bank rolling one day and 80 feet deep on a downline the next.

This report is brought to you by Shane Watson Guide Service www.lakelanierstripers.com 770-889-5549, Hammond's Fishing Center, and Carolina Skiff Boats. Good Fishing and We Appreciate Your Business.