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Lake Russell Fishing Report

Updated Fri, Oct 23, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

Lake Russell: a 26,650-acre Corps reservoir between Hartwell and Clarks Hill with regulated shoreline development and a trophy striped bass rule.

3/5
Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Lake level
473.93 ft -1.07 vs pool
Air / High
72 / 72 F
Wind
NE 7 mph

Sources: USGS gauge 02188100, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.

Satellite view
Friday
23
October 2026

Today's Fishing Report

Generated this morning from live readings: gauge, weather model, sun and moon. A fresh report is published here every morning.

3/5Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Lake Russell offers the kind of conditions this water was made for. The gauge reads 473.93 ft, 1.07 ft below pool, up 0.54 over the week. Today brings clear skies, wind NE around 7 mph, steady pressure near 1023 hPa and a high of 72. Water sits around 74 F for the season (estimated). With the waxing gibbous, the solunar majors run 10:06 AM-12:06 PM and 10:33 PM-12:33 AM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

Striped bassExcellent

Use electronics to find shad schools in open water, and watch for birds working over bait.

Largemouth bassGood

The main feeding season after the spawn: work moving baits along weed edges, points and wood, and follow up with a soft plastic where a fish swirls.

CrappieFair

Early in this band crappie are spawning in protected coves; afterward they move to docks, brush piles and standing timber near deeper water.

Tomorrow: Similar at 70 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Oct 24, 6:30 AMHow this report is made β†’

Before you go

Georgia requires a fishing licence from age 16, from $15.00 for residents. What a Georgia licence costs and where to buy it β†’

Chasing largemouth bass here? Check the size and bag limits with GA DNR before you keep anything. The season dates for Georgia, read off the agency, are on the Georgia seasons page.

Water and weather

Live readings from RUSSELL LAKE ABOVE CALHOUN FALLS, SC.

Water level, last 30 days

USGS gauge 02188100. Conservation pool is 475 ft.

473.15473.88474.61pool 475473.93 ft09/2310/0310/1310/23

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp72 F
High / Low72 / 45 F
WindNE 7-11 mph
Pressure1022.8 hPa, steady
Sky / Rain0% cloud, 0%
Sunrise / Sunset07:42 / 18:46
MoonWaxing Gibbous, 91%
Water temp (gauge)71 F USGS
Water temp (seasonal)~74 F est.

Bite planner

Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today. Tap a bar to see why.

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunsetPRIMEPRIME

Which day to fish Lake Russell this week

The best day on Lake Russell this week looks like Saturday Oct 24, at 5 out of 5, against 3 today.

Best day this week: Saturday, Oct 24 β€” excellent at 5/5, falling pressure, usually the best window of a week.

Today, Oct 23 β€” Fair

A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Solunar majors
10:06 AM-12:06 PM and 10:33 PM-12:33 AM
Minor period
4:27 AM-5:27 AM
Sun
07:42 to 18:46
Moon
Waxing Gibbous, 91% lit
Sky and wind
Clear, 7 mph
Rain chance
0%

Forecast-based scores, less reliable further out: how the score is built.

Species guide

The species that matter on Lake Russell: seasons, structure and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.

Largemouth bass illustration

Largemouth bass

Best: the spring pre-spawn and the fall feed

A warm-water sunfish of lakes, reservoirs, ponds and slow river backwaters that holds tight to cover: weeds, logs, rock ledges and docks. In Texas, TPWD surveys rank it "by far" the freshwater fish anglers most want to catch. The main feeding season after the spawn: work moving baits along weed edges, points and wood, and follow up with a soft plastic where a fish swirls.

Crappie illustration

Crappie

Best: the spring spawn; summer around docks, brush and the thermocline

Two slab-sided panfish, the white crappie and the black crappie, that gather around submerged timber, brush piles, docks and bridge pilings in lakes, reservoirs and slow river backwaters. Texas Parks and Wildlife counts crappie as the state's most popular panfish. Early in this band crappie are spawning in protected coves; afterward they move to docks, brush piles and standing timber near deeper water.

Striped bass illustration

Striped bass

Best: spring and fall inland; on the coast, during the seasonal migrations

The largest of the temperate basses, a sea-run fish of the Atlantic and Gulf coasts that now also lives in reservoirs across much of the country after hatchery stocking. Inland, it follows schools of shad and herring through open water. Use electronics to find shad schools in open water, and watch for birds working over bait.

When to come: the Lake Russell calendar

Activity by species and month, and how the water warms through the year. Tap any cell.

Species activity by month

1 = slow, 5 = peak. Current month highlighted.

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Largemouth bass
Crappie
Striped bass
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 74 F (estimated, not a reading).

5060708090JanMarMayJulSepNovOct, ~74 F now

Angler reports

Real reports from real anglers, reviewed before publishing. The water log below tracks each day automatically.

No angler reports yet this weekBe the first: your report helps every angler who checks Lake Russell today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Oct 22

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Largemouth bass led the card at excellent. High of 77 F, wind to 6 mph.

Wed, Oct 21

2/5 Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing. Striped bass led the card at excellent. High of 76 F, wind to 6 mph.

Tue, Oct 20

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Largemouth bass led the card at excellent. High of 77 F, wind to 6 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
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Before you go

License

Georgia requires a valid fishing license for adults. Buy online from the state agency; one-day options exist for visitors.

Regulations

Georgia and South Carolina recognize each other's freshwater licenses on the lake and its banks, but not on flowing tributary streams. Border-water limits (Georgia regulations, updated August 27, 2026): striped and hybrid bass 2 in combination, only 1 over 34 inches; black bass 10 in combination, 12-inch minimum on largemouth; white bass 10; trout 5; walleye and sauger 8; 40 game fish in all, not counting catfish. Crappie and bream rules differ between the states.

Access

Richard B. Russell State Park on the Georgia side has boat ramps, a campground and cottages. Calhoun Falls State Park on the South Carolina side has a campground and a marina with rental boat slips.

About this water

26,650 acres on the Savannah River between Hartwell and Clarks Hill, Georgia and South Carolina; U.S. Army Corps of Engineers reservoir.

Fishing Lake Russell: the full guide

Between two bigger lakes

Georgia DNR describes Richard B. Russell as a 26,650-acre Corps of Engineers reservoir on the Savannah River between Lakes Hartwell and Clarks Hill. Because shoreline development is regulated, it calls Russell one of the more pristine reservoirs in Georgia; South Carolina State Parks describes the lake as sparsely developed.

Bass in 2026

Georgia's 2026 forecast expects consistent largemouth fishing, with largemouth and spotted bass populations near equilibrium and average length improving. It points to Beaverdam, Coldwater and Pickens creeks for largemouth and encourages anglers to keep spotted bass, which are abundant but smaller, to ease competition. Night fishing is popular in summer.

Trophy striped bass

The forecast says Russell is managed as a trophy striped bass fishery. Striped bass have been stocked at very low densities on a three-year cycle since 2011, so catch rates are low, but fish average 12 to 15 pounds in 2026 and many exceed 25 pounds. In winter it suggests the lower third of the lake; in summer, the Lake Hartwell tailrace and the Russell Dam area.

Crappie

Black crappie fishing should stay strong, with most keepers 8 to 12 inches. February through May is the best window, around timber and brush in Coldwater, Pickens and Beaverdam creeks, shifting to bedding fish on shallow cover once the water reaches the low 60s.

Common questions

Why is the shoreline so undeveloped?

Georgia DNR says shoreline development on Russell is regulated, which is why it calls the lake one of the more pristine reservoirs in Georgia.

What is the striped bass limit on Lake Russell?

Two striped or hybrid bass a day in combination, only one of them over 34 inches, under the Georgia-South Carolina border-water rules.

Do I need licenses from both states?

No. Anyone meeting the freshwater license requirements of Georgia or South Carolina may fish the lake and its banks; the agreement does not cover flowing tributary streams.

Is fishing good at Lake Russell right now?

Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Nearby waters

Clarks Hill Lake28 miThurmond Lake35 miLake Greenwood38 miLake Hartwell46 miLake Keowee56 miLake Oconee57 mi

Where this page's numbers come from

River and reservoir readings
USGS 02188100 β€” RUSSELL LAKE ABOVE CALHOUN FALLS, SC
Read from the USGS Water Data API (api.waterdata.usgs.gov). Latest value timestamped 2026-10-23 at 19:00 UTC.
Weather and pressure
Open-Meteo forecast model
Queried at 34.0340, -82.6201 in this water's own timezone. A model, not an observation.
Moon and solunar windows
Calculated on this site
Astronomical calculation from these coordinates and the date, not a third-party feed. How much weight it deserves.
Pages checked
The facts in the written guide were checked against these pages, from the agencies and operators that manage the water, on October 8, 2026. Anything we could not verify was taken out.
The written guide on this page
Pablo Ruiz Quintero
How this page was made. The daily report is computed by our scoring engine from live readings; nobody types it. The written text was drafted with AI assistance from the official pages listed above, and its facts were checked against those pages by automated verification on October 8, 2026; anything that could not be verified was taken out. Pablo Ruiz Quintero sets every guideline, the data-verification system and the minimum standards a page must meet to be published, reviews page structure and approves what goes live; the responsibility is his, and the AI carries out the work. We work this way because it is how one person can keep every page current with named sources. Errors are published in the verification log; the full policy is in the editorial policy.

Readings refresh on a 30-minute window. The full method, with every figure and its source, is on how our reports are made. Something wrong here? Tell us and it goes in the log with the date.