Yakdawg has Moved! New Adventures to come in North East TN!

Hello, it has been a while since I have posted up on the blog, but I have relocated my family to North East Tn!  After almost a decade on Lanier and surrounding waters I look forward to some new adventures next year!  

I am in process of building a new Kayak Fishing Forum:  http://easttnkayakfishing.freeforums.net/  check it out!

Good luck and I will post up a report next year when I hit the water!

Early November Kayak Fishing on Lake Lanier

Fall is one of the best times of the year to get out on Lake Lanier and Kayak Fish.  The weather is nice and the boat traffic is minimal.  I launched this week in windy conditions pictured above to set out and see what kind of fish I could coax into biting.  The North GA area has been drenched in rain for much of late October and early November.  It was nice just to launch and enjoy a day on the water.

This is the view that I have enjoyed for over seven years from my Wilderness Systems Ride 135.  I know it is time for an upgrade but the fish don't seem to mind!  I set out armed with a Zara Spook to throw at topwater fish.  The go to flex it spoon was on board to drop to deeper fish.  If that didn't work the reliable and number catching drop shot was also on board.  Since I was not fishing with live bait on this trip I also brought a spinning set up to cast out a white sebile magic swimmer.  The one thing to be sure of when fall fishing is not to be sure of any one tactic.  

My fishing expedition was quickly becoming a paddling expedition.  For over two hours I battled the high seas of Lake Lanier searching for fish only to come up empty handed.  I finally found one hump that held some schools of fish.  The drop shot produced several bites but no fish to hand so I paddled on. 

Finally, off a rocky point, a wolf pack of hungry spots busted the surface!   Quickly I grabbed the topwater rod and hurled the Spook at the boil.  Fish On!!!  A decent spot on topwater came yakside and the skunk was off for the day!  Often when you see fish on surface there are many more below them.  This holds true with both Spotted Bass and Stripers on Lake Lanier.  I continued to fish the point and was able to locate a school of spots.

Several more spots were landed to end the day!  These fish were all taken on the drop shot in depths of 35 to 40 feet.  I like to use a small spinning set up with 6 pound flouro line for drop shot.  A bright colored robo worm is my go to plastic.  Lake Lanier Spots can't resist a Morning Dawn colored worm for some reason!  

When the fish weren't biting it was nice just to enjoy paddling around without jet ski's and pleasure boaters.  I only encountered a couple of fishing boats the entire day!  Fall is arguable one of the best times of the year to get out and Kayak Fish Lake Lanier!

Will be back out on the water soon.

Lanier Striper and Spot Fishing in July

I have been out on Lanier several times over the past week and the fishing is great!  Stripers and spots are settling into their summer time patterns.  When fishing lake lanier from the kayak, the key is to get on the water early and off by noon to avoid the crowds.  The above photo is a nice sunrise over the lake.  It is hard to beat the view from a kayak!

Spotted bass are biting very good right now!  Topwater and the dropshot are the two main tactics to use.  Using a dropshot from the kayak takes some practice but can load the yak once you figure out this technique!  I search the 20-35ft depths around points, humps, docks etc and look for active fish on the graph.  If it is very windy you will have difficulty with this tactic from the yak so check the forecast before heading out!  Once you mark fish drop the worm down to them and slowly wiggle it on the bottom, try not to move it too much.  When setting the hook reel up to apply pressure much like a live bait presentation.  Dropshotting from the yak is a fun way to spend a morning!

Striper fishing has been good to excellent from the kayak this month!  These hard fighting fish are a blast to catch from the kayak on lanier!  I am catching them all on downlined blueback herring.  The majority of the fish are 2-4 pounds but some larger ones are out there to be caught!  Striper fishing on the kayak is action packed and don't be surprised if you get two fish hooked up at the same time!

My best trip this past week saw 13 stripers in the kayak!  Not bad for a one man show!  This is what I enjoy about kayak fishing.  The kayak is eco friendly, cheap and extremely productive when it comes to targeting any species of fish on a variety of waters!

I am catching these stripers over 50 to 100 ft bottoms.  Keep your bait above the fish you are marking, 30-40ft seems to be the magic depth right now but don't be afraid to drop them lower if that is where you are graphing fish!  Often stripers come up to your bait then go back down.  This is called "window shopping."  When they do this using your paddle to knock the side of the yak can entice a strike.  Even try dropping your bait and reeling it back through the fish to get bit!

Get out there if you can!  The next two months are some of the best for striper fishing on lanier all year!  The bass fishing isn't bad either!  For more information on kayak fishing lake lanier visit:
www.lanierkayakfishing.com 
www.lanierkayakfishing.proboards.com

Good luck, Yakdawg!

Springtime Striper Fishing on Lanier

The striper fishing is excellent right now on lanier from the kayak!  There is a good early morning bite on free lined or downlines blueback herring.  Some limited topwater is also available but the live bait bite is best!

With the Memorial day holiday past us summer has officially kicked in so make sure to get on the water early for best results.  The stripers are relating to points, humps over a 30-50ft bottom.  Make sure to have a topwater bait like a spook or wake bait like a red fin tied on incase you see busting fish!

June to September are some of the most consistent months for striper fishing on Lake Lanier!  This is a great time to get out there in the kayak and land some nice fish!  For more information on kayak fishing lake lanier visit our online forum:  www.lanierkayakfishing.proboards.com

Good luck!

Springtime Catfish and Crappie on Lake Lanier

Some footage of a recent trip on Lake Lanier!  The crappie bite has been strong this month.  Enjoy:

March Kayak Crappie Fishing Video

Time to go crappie fishing on Lake Lanier!  Put together some footage of my last trip, hope you enjoy! Yakdawg

Lake Lanier Crappie Fishing Heating Up!

Made it out again this week to fish for crappie!  I only had a few hours and did well fishing docks with pontoon boats in 14-15ft of water out in front!  The bite is starting to get better and better as the weather warms!  These fish are prepping for the spawn which normally happens in late March/early April on Lake Lanier.  I am expecting the shallow bite to really heat up over the next few weeks.

I hit blowdowns and brush by the bank several times but did not catch any crappie only a few buck bass and perch.  This is not to say that they may not be there tomorrow or on a different part of the lake!  Dock shooting was the key method that produced for me!  This is a little tricky in the wind with a kayak but quite fun!

I got some more go pro footage of my trip and catching a few fish, will try to post up a video later in the week when I have time!  

Good luck, make sure to visit www.lanierkayakfishing.proboards.com for more kayak fishing information and reports! 

Yakdawg