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The newest Lake Keowee fishing report can be found at: http://www.anglersheadquarters.com/ahq-insider-lake-keowee-sc-spring-2018-fishing-report/
April 18
Lake Keowee is at 99.2% of full pool, and water temperatures are in the mid- to upper-60s throughout the lake. Clarity is high and the lake has been at full pool for several weeks.
Fishing continues to be very good on Lake Keowee, and veteranangler Charles Townson of the Keowee Anglersreports that bass can be found at all three stages of the spawn right now: pre-spawn, spawning, and post-spawn. They have generally moved into the 10-20 foot range, and fish are bedding in the traditional areas. This means under docks, along rocky shorelines, in cuts off the main lake, and in the back of coves around cover. Lake Keowee spotted bass spawn a little deeper, and it is not unusual for a spot to spawn in 8 to 15 feet of water on Keowee. There is still another wave of fish that will move up to spawn.
Right now fish can be caught on topwater, soft plastics, and spinnerbaits (when windy).
April 9
Lake Keowee is at 98.8% of full pool, and water temperatures have moved into the low to mid-60s on the northern and southern ends of the lake and mid- to upper-60s around the power plant. Clarity is normal.
It’s been an up-and-down spring on Lake Keowee, but veteranangler Charles Townson of the Keowee Anglersreports that fishing is very good overall on Keowee now. The spawn is on throughout the lake with many fish on the bed, and there are also still some pre-spawn fish that have generally moved up to the 8 to 15 foot range. Fish can be caught on a variety of soft plastics now including shaky heads, neko rigs, carolina rigs, etc. On windy days, spinnerbaits will also catch fish on points and rocky shorelines.
Some limited topwater action is underway as well and that bite will get stronger over the next few weeks.
March 30
Lake Keowee is at 98.7% of full pool, and water temperatures on the lower and upper end have again risen into the upper 50s while the middle part of the lake is in the low to mid-60s. Clarity is normal.
Things are finally getting back to where they were about a month ago, and veteranangler Charles Townson of the Keowee Anglersreports thatin the warmer middle part of the lake some fish are bedding – but for the most part fish are pre-spawn throughout the lake. Pre-spawn fish are biting soft plastics in the 10-25 foot range, including shakey heads, Carolina rigs, and neko rigs. The bite is definitely starting to improve and with warmer temperatures more and more fish should pull up shallow.
March 15
Lake Keowee is at 99.0% of full pool, and has been stable for several days. Water temperatures have fallen significantly all over the lake, with temperatures on the upper and lower ends in the mid-50s and in the lower 60s mid-lake.
A couple of weeks ago it looked like spring on Lake Keowee, but after two weeks of falling temperatures it looks more like winter. Veteran angler Charles Townson of the Keowee Anglers reports that the fishing has gone backwards as a result.
In the middle part of the lake some fish have moved up, but for the most part they are out deeper in 10-20+ feet of water. Most fish are being caught on jigs, shakey heads, Carolina rigs, and medium running crankbaits.
There are even some fish still in a typical winter pattern, like these fish caught today on Guide Brad Fowler’s boat in 35-55 feet with a drop shot and shakey head.
March 2
Lake Keowee is at 99.3% of full pool. Water temperatures remain in the lower-60s on the southern and northern ends of the lake, and mid-60s in the mid-lake area. The water is stained in the backs of creeks but clear on the main lake.
It’s a weird early spring in South Carolina, and veteran angler Charles Townson of the Keowee Anglers points out that although water temperatures have shot up in the last two weeks fish have not pulled up yet as they are probably behind what the temperatures would suggest. There are some fish in the middle part of the lake starting to prepare for bedding, and a few around the hot hole already spawning, but other than there is not a major push to spawn yet – even with the full month. This is much more likely at the next full moon if water continues to warm.
Fish can be caught on spinnerbaits early or in the wind, jerkbaits, medium running crankbaits, jigs, and shaky heads.
February 23
Lake Keowee is at 99.1% of full pool. Water temperatures have shot into the lower 60s on the southern and northern ends of the lake, and mid-60s in the mid-lake area. The main lake is clear but the water is stained in the backs of creeks.
Veteran angler Charles Townson of the Keowee Anglers and Guide Brad Fowler concur that the fishing has been pretty tough on Keowee, and Charles points out that 10 pounds is still a good bag on Keowee right now. With temperatures rising so fast fish are actually a little behind the water temperatures, but expect to see fish start to moving quickly to the banks with the rapid change. (Unless there is a major cold front, expect to see some fish moving in to spawn in the next few weeks). Shakey heads, jigs, and Carolina rigs should all work in the next week. Charles points out that even though some fish are moving up, it will not happen all at once.
As a reminder of that, last weekend Brad and tournament partner Brock Taylor finished 4th out of 190 boats with 15+ pounds in the Boating Atlanta event. They had to look hard, but they caught all their fish in 50-80 feet of water on jigging spoons, doodle worms and drop shots. Even while they were fishing super deep there were some rumors of fish on the beds already, completely plausible with the hot hole influence.
February 16
Lake Keowee is at 97.9% of full pool. Water temperatures are in the mid-50s in the lower and upper lake, and in the low-60s mid-lake. With a lot of rain in the past week major creeks are stained near the back while the main lake is still clear.
Lake Keowee bass fishing has been tough, but veteran angler Charles Townson of the Keowee Anglers reports that the pattern is changing. The deep bite has dropped off significantly as fish have started to move up with the warming water. A good depth right now is 25-40 feet. Fish can be caught a variety of way including on shakey heads, jigs, drop-shots, medium running crankbaits, fish head spins and Carolina rigs.
A limit over 10 pounds has been good the last few weeks, but with warming temperatures that should change. It will be interesting to see what approximately 175 boats pull out of the lake this weekend in the Boatin Atlanta event.
February 9
Lake Keowee is at 98.2% of full pool.
There’s no strong new pattern on Lake Keowee bass to report, and Guide Brad Fowler reports that the fishing remains tough. You have to be willing to try different things to get bit. Brad fished the BFL Savannah River division tournament this past Saturday, where fish were hard to come by. With more than 100 boats only 12 bags over 10 pounds were weighed in, and 9-1 was good enough for a check.
J.R. McKay of Helen, Georgia won the boater side of the event with a strong 15-7, and even he reported that the places which had produced for him in practice didn’t pan out for him on tournament day. He ended up heading into the back of a creek with some stained water and flipping a jig for three of the fish he weighed, then caught another on a jig on a long flat on the main lake. He rounded out his limit with a swimbait off a rock pile in 70 feet of water on the south end.
January 31
Lake Keowee is at 97.3% of full pool, and water temperatures are in the lower 50s on the lower and upper ends of the lake. Mid-lake temperatures are right at 60 (because of the influence of the power plant). Clarity is high. Lake levels have been fluctuating about three feet each week with the movement of water between Keowee and Jocassee for power generation.
The bite on Keowee has gotten much tougher over the past few weeks, and veteran angler Charles Townson of the Keowee Anglers reports that in two big tournaments on the lake this weekend any bag over 10 pounds was a very good one.
Some better fish are being caught deep on drop shots and spoons, but these fish are hard to find as they are scattered and not present in large numbers. Smaller fish are being caught on shakey heads around docks and any structure like lay-downs – this bite is better on warmer days as the water temperature rises. Fish can also be caught on fish-head spin with small swim bait or flukes.
There has been a lot of fishing pressure on the lake with multiple large tournaments taking place or upcoming in the next few weeks. If you find an area holding fish, the best bet is to fish slowly and thoroughly in that section.
January 18
Lake Keowee is at 98.3% of full pool, and water temperatures are in the low 50s. Visibility is normal.
After getting pounded on all winter bass fishing is a little tough on lake Keowee, as is typical from about mid-January to February. Earlier in the season there were some good bags being caught up the lake just behind the Jocassee dam, but that bite has slowed way down. For now fishing deep with jigging spoons and drop shot rigs is the best bet, relying heavily on electronics and looking for bait around depth changes.
December 11
Lake Keowee is at 97.2% of full pool, and water temperatures are falling with the lower and upper ends of the lake around 60 degrees and the mid-lake area around 64 degrees (because of the warm water discharge). Clarity is normal.
With dropping water temperatures fish are getting into a more seasonable pattern, and veteran angler Charles Townson of the Keowee Anglers reports that the best pattern is finding schools of bait with suspended bass in and around the bait. These will be primarily spotted bass with an occasional largemouth mixed in. Fish a drop shot or jigging spoon around the bait, which can be found from 30 to 50 feet deep typically. Anglers should also look for surface activity with diving gulls/loons to locate schools of bait. If fish are on the surface they can be caught with topwater or lipless crankbaits while they are chasing bait.
Fish can also be caught on shakey heads or jerkbaits on windy points.
