August 2021 Fishing Report
August 2021 Lake Lanier Fishing Report
It's hard to believe that this summer is coming to a close. It certainly has been a different sort of summer for striper fishing on Lake Lanier than in recent years. The large mega schools of deep water fish were largely replaced by scattered fish in nearly every pocket, creek and river channel section all over the south end. Places that have been summer fishing hot spots for the last decade have produced few if any fish. Those willing to reboot and pattern the current striper population from scratch have had the most productive season. Also, the fish have generally been bigger than usual for August.
Jeff and I have stuck to fishing live blueback herring on downlines and freeline spinning rods. It seems like the days when leadcore is producing are the same days we have strong catches on bait. When the bite has been tough, it has been slow for everyone across the board no matter the tactics employed. My best trips have been all about capitalizing on the bite when it is happening. The fish have been feeding at certain times throughout the lake. More often than not, when comparing notes with other guides, we all catch our fish within very similar time frames rather than randomly throughout the day. This isn't completely unheard of for August, the key is to be over fish when others are catching them. Having a network on the water as we do can make all the difference between having an ok day and a banner day of striper fishing.
Concerning the bait presentation, I am using 8 foot fluorocarbon leaders of 10 pound test on my downlines. My freelines pitched out from the boat have 5 foot fluorocarbon leaders of 12 pound test. My bigger fish have consistently been caught on the freelines all month, perhaps due to them being away from the boat. There are also a lot of fish up high between 20 and 30 feet down that won't go near a down line. I am convinced these suspended fish are the ones taking the freelines. Baits are lasting around 10 minutes in most places I am fishing, though this can change daily, so pay attention to your bait's condition when reeling up your first drop.
As we move into September, I expect to continue fishing live bait with perhaps more power reeling coming into play. My favorite power reeling technique is a using a live or dead blueback with a short, 3-4 foot leader. This minimizes the tangles but can often get the bite started if they are hesitant to eat. Mid and late September can be an uncomfortable time for the fish as we approach turnover, you may see groups or even schools of fish fly through under your boat and never touch a bait. They are searching for a comfortable place to call home and eat after a lot of swimming around, we will all be working day in and day out to find it, some truly great fishing can happen then.
August 2021 Striper Report Pictures
