LAKE LANIER IS FULL, MOSTLY CLEAR, SOME POLLEN & MID 70’S

The spotted bass fishing on Lanier remains very good. There are many options out there right now. There are still plenty of spots on bed and still a few more to come. A 1/8 ounce Davis Shaky head with a 4 inch worm fished on a GLoomis NRX 822 Shaky Head Rod with Seaguar 8 pound test fluorocarbon is a great way to catch these fish. Work the Shaky Head slowly and look for the bites to be light, which makes a rod like the 822 so important. A fluke is great tool to locate these fish. A spot on the bed will almost always rise up to at least look at a fluke if not eat it. Work the fluke slowly and give the bait plenty of time to fall on a slack line. Watch your fluke and your line for indications of a bite. If they don't eat the fluke and only swing at it, follow with the worm for a sure bite. A Senko is a good bet on these fish as well. Look for spot beds on hard clay banks and points with sandy areas being strong as well. Look for the prespawn females to be on steeper rocky points near these spawning areas. The same baits will work, but others will catch the prespawners as well. The herring spawn is going now and offers some great early morning action. A spinnerbait, a wake bait, and a swim bait have all been good on the rocky and shallow sandy areas where the herring generally spawn. The floating Spro BBZ1 Swim bait is a great choice as well. Top water, like poppers and walkers are starting to work on these fish also. After the sun gets up, move out deeper with your offerings and hit the brush for some top water action as well. Here is what I have left open for May: 26(PM), 28(PM), 30(AM). Give me a call and let's go get 'em!

This Lake Lanier Bass report is from Jimbo Mathley. www.jimboonlanier.com 770 542 7764

This Lake Lanier Striper report is from Captain Ken West and Captain Mike Maddalena of Big Fish On! Guide Service, 404 561 2564. www.bigfishonguide.com

Striper fishing remains good as the water temperatures continue to rise. The water temperature increased 10 degrees in a little over a week and the Stripers are in post spawn. Despite the water temperature change the pattern has not changed as the shallow water bite in the creeks on points, flats and reef markers continues. Un weighted free lines set 50 to 70 feet behind the boat with Herring is your best bet early. As the sun gets high, weight your lines and move to deeper water. Also set out a couple of down rods while you are pulling free lines. Keep your eye on your Lowrance depth finder and set your down lines based on water depth. The top water bite is picking up and you can catch both Spotted Bass and Stripers in the same area. It is always a good idea to keep someone on the front deck casting a Red Fin, Chug Bug, Spook or a buck tail jig while you are pulling bait. The umbrella rig bite is working when pulled at 70 to 80 feet behind the boat and speed at 3.0 MPH. Target a 30 to 40 foot bottom when pulling the Umbrella rig early and move to deeper water as the sun get high in the sky. Look for the Stripers to begin moving towards the mouth of the creeks and onto the main lake points this coming week. The down rod bite has been slow but will improve as the water continues to warm. There are fish in the creeks and the river channel lake wide. The south end of the Lake is starting to pick up with reports of fish being caught in Flowery Branch, Big Creek and Two Mile Creek. The water temperature is in the low to mid 70’s during the day on the South end of the lake and the high 70’s on the North end. The water is stained in the creeks and clear on the main lake. The lake is at full pool. To book your Striper fishing trip on Lake Lanier call Big Fish On Guide Service at 404 561 2564 or contact us on our web site. www.bigfishonguide.com

This Lake Lanier Crappie report is from Dan Saknini, member of the Lanier Crappie Angler’s Club. For more information, see the club’s website at www.laniercrappieanglers.net

Crappie fishing patterns continue to hold, remaining good to excellent around docks with structure and on submerged brush piles from the middle to the backs of creeks. If you have favorite crappie fishing spots, they should be producing well now. Just keep in mind that there are a lot of fishermen fishing this time of year, so if you don’t catch fish quickly, move on, as that spot may have just been fished. Jig colors still do not matter. For the night fishermen, this is the time of the year to consider fishing under bridges, using Hydra glow lights with crappie minnows. Six Mile Bridge, Wahoo Creek Bridge, and Clarks’ Bridge are our favorites. All 3 are in deep water, within sight of boat ramps, and are holding fish. For those that like bluegill fishing, they are still on bed and biting well. The smaller fish are aggressive, though, and are getting to the bait before the larger fish that are still on bed. Crickets are the best bait for bluegill. Take advantage of the month of May. This is one of our favorite times to fish! Stay safe on the water, wear your lifejacket!
The Georgia DNR is requesting your input to develop a customer supported fishing and hunting license restructure. Please plan to join us at one of the public meetings scheduled this June to learn more and share your thoughts. Meeting schedules, additional information and an online survey are available at: www.georgiawildlife.com/aimforsuccess.
Our “On the Water” Schools are Rods, Reels and Lures for Bass, SONAR and we have a Striper schools. Learn how to use the Lowrance Structure Scan and Down Scan technology. Call 770 889 2654 or see the details on our web site for more info and dates.

For a free set up sheet for your sonar, send me an e mail to ken@southernfishing.com

PRODUCT FEATURED THIS MONTH Take a look at these new stickers for tackle boxes www.highwaterscreations.com

Stop by www.gon.com on the forum page for current events.

SONAR SCHOOL: SONAR OPTIONS 1. Split screens as needed. 2. Palette sets colors of screens 14 colors to choose from. 3. Temperature graph turn on. 4. Depths line off. 5. Amplitude Code leave off. 6. Zoom Bars off. 7. FISH ID OFF!

Anglers have these books for sale BASS FISHING ON WEST POINT LAKE, BASS FISHING LAKE RUSSELL, BASS FISHING WEST POINT LAKE, and BASS FISHING LAKE HARTWELL. These books have lots of bass fishing and covers every week of the year. Each book $39.00. If you would like a sample of any book, send us an e mail to ken@southernfishing.com.

We offer these waypoints for sale. You get the coordinates and you load them into your GPS unit
Lake Allatoona for $99.00, Lake Lanier for $99.00, Lake Oconee for $99.00, Lake Weiss for $99.00, Lake Hartwell for $99.00 WAYPOINTS ARE NOT REFUNDABLE!

Our mailing address is Southern Fishing Schools Inc. 106 Hickory Ridge, Cumming Georgia 30040. 770 889 2654