By Preston Harden
Water temp.- mid 80s, water level- full pool.
August has all game fish in their summer pattern. All game fish migrate to deeper water in the summer. Stripers and hybrids migrate to the mid to lower lake in the summer. Some years by August, most larger stripers are south of the fork, between the Seneca and Tugaloo rivers, where the Savannah River begins. We have had bad water quality for the last three years and the thermocline has made it to the lower lake. The fish biologist says the huge rains have been a problem. Hopefully the heavy rains will subside. If there is a thermocline, fish will be above 40 feet. Bait will die if fished below the thermocline. If the thermocline does not make it to the lower lake, look for big fish as deep as 120 feet deep. Live herring works great. I add a few pounds of ice in the summer. I lower the bait thru the hot surface water quickly. Power reeling works great on these deep fish. A big 8-to-10-inch spoon, or a big jig head with a big swimbait, will get bit. When you reel thru the fish marked on the sonar, don’t slow down. Reel fast when you see a fish following.
Bass and crappie move to deeper water around structure. I think the spots group up more as the water heats up. Look for brush piles 15 to 30 feet deep around points and humps. I will start with a top water plug and then a dropshot or a shakey head fished vertically where I mark the spots on the sonar. When you find one, there are usually more.
Preston Harden / Bucktail Guide Service / 706-255-5622 / bucktailguideservice.com