Thread: Clarks Hill 23rd Dec

Sorry for the late report. My internet went down and I had no way to check on all my pals at crappie.com. The repairman just came over this morning and replaced my shot modem. Now I see that Jiggs has done put out the word I'm holding out on y'all. I'll have to have a talk with my partner about that! :D

Well, I was going stir crazy with all the wind and rains, so when a calm day arrived, I decided to try and find some fishies on the Hill. Butch and GA Slabman had struggled mightily on the upper end the previous day, so I decided to head south. I had never fished Soap Creek and decided this would be the day. I arrived around 9 am and found it fairly clear at the ramp near the bridge. The folks at the marina told me to go up the creek for the fish. Well, as soon as I crossed under the bridge, the water became chocolate milk. It was thick and brown. I spotted a few bait and fish but go no takers. I went back out to the greenish water in front of the marina and had one half hearted tap on a minnow. So I pulled out around 11:00 am still skunked!

I took a lunch break in Lincolnton at the Hardee's and decided to blow my other half tank of gas and head down to GA Little River. I had some serious doubts that the water down there would be any less muddy. I arrived around noon and it was really stained. But then something neat happened, a fellow fisherman who had experienced recent success was launching and told me the best fishing tip you can hear..."Foller me!"

I did just that, and less than a mile from the ramp, I turned a corner in the river and saw an amazing sight....EIGHTEEN boats all piled together in a channel bend with seagulls everywhere! Rods were bending all around me when I pulled up in the middle of all that. Most were using herring and catching hybrids. I didn't have anything but medium crappie minnows so I put them out and hoped. Well, I am delighted to report that, in a pinch, a crappie minnow looks as good as a high dollar herring to a hungry hybrid in cold (48°F) muddy water! I ended up catching 8 hybrids on minnows and one on a weighted fluke. All these fish bit in the first two hours. After that, the fish dispersed and just before dark, the fellows with the herring caught more, but my bigger minnows were long gone and I packed up and headed home. It turned out to be about a 110 mile round trip, but to catch a few fish I guess a fellow's got to do whatever he's got to do right?

Here's a pic to gauge the size. Incredible fun on 6 lb line and ultralights!

Way to tough it out F O M . You got a nice Christmas gift there.

Good to see you hung in and found some fish willing to bite and it is real good to see a picture of fish about forgot what they look like :D

I am surprised Soap Cr. didnt pay off for ya. Maybe the water was so clear fish didnt like it. Glad to see you stuck with it and ran across a fellow fisherman willing to help out. Again, surprised that a striper fisherman would do that! Most of 'em are very tight lipped about their stripers. Sorry to hear of your 'puter problems but glad theyre fixed now. Next time maybe we'll get a report before it gets a week old so we can go catch a few too, 'eh Jiggs?!?:D:D

Did you put in at amity an go under the bridge at the ramp or head out toward Germany Creek