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Lake Jocassee Fishing Report

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

Lake Jocassee: a 7,565-acre Duke Energy reservoir, up to 351 feet deep, that holds five South Carolina state fish records.

2/5
Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.
Water temp
~55 F est.
Air / High
70 / 70 F
Wind
ESE 5 mph

Sources: 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.

2/5Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.

Lake Jocassee is in transition: bait on the move and predators following. Today brings clear skies, wind ESE around 5 mph, rising pressure near 1023 hPa and a high of 70. Water sits around 55 F for the season (estimated). With the waxing gibbous, the solunar majors run 10:07 AM-12:07 PM and 10:35 PM-12:35 AM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

Rainbow troutExcellent

This band overlaps Vermont's 54-66Β°F stream preference: fish feed across riffles, runs and pocket water, and in lakes WDFW says spring and fall bring them near the surface.

Brown troutExcellent

Close to Vermont's 53-66Β°F optimum, browns feed more freely; in fall, pre-spawn fish move toward tributaries and gravel, so fish streamers and keep off the redds.

Smallmouth bassGood

Spring pre-spawn and fall: Iowa DNR notes the larger bass come up to shallow structure, where a shallow-running minnow bait or a spinnerbait just under the surface works.

Largemouth bassGood

In spring, pre-spawn bass push shallow as the water climbs through the mid-50s; in fall they feed actively until the water cools into the low 50s, then drop back toward deeper structure.

Tomorrow: Similar at 68 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

South Carolina requires a fishing licence from age 16, from $10.00 for residents. What a South Carolina licence costs and where to buy it β†’

Chasing smallmouth bass here? Check the size and bag limits with SCDNR before you keep anything. The season dates for South Carolina, read off the agency, are on the South Carolina seasons page.

Water and weather

Live readings.

No live gauge on this water

Conditions here are modeled from weather, season and the nearest stations. Water readings appear when a USGS gauge is available.

304050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovOct, ~55 F now

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp70 F
High / Low70 / 51 F
WindESE 5-5 mph
Pressure1022.7 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain0% cloud, 0%
Sunrise / Sunset07:44 / 18:46
MoonWaxing Gibbous, 91%
Water temp (seasonal)~55 F est.

Bite planner

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

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunset

Which day to fish Lake Jocassee this week

The best day on Lake Jocassee this week looks like Saturday Oct 24, at 4 out of 5, against 2 today.

Best day this week: Saturday, Oct 24 β€” good at 4/5, falling pressure, usually the best window of a week.

Today, Oct 23 β€” Tough

Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.

Solunar majors
10:07 AM-12:07 PM and 10:35 PM-12:35 AM
Minor period
4:28 AM-5:28 AM
Sun
07:44 to 18:46
Moon
Waxing Gibbous, 91% lit
Sky and wind
Clear, 8 mph
Rain chance
0%

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

Species guide

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

Smallmouth bass illustration

Smallmouth bass

Best: spring and fall, when bigger fish come shallow

A bronze-brown black bass of clear, cool streams and rocky lakes, with dark vertical bars instead of a side stripe. Michigan DNR says its southeastern coast, from Port Huron to Lake Erie, is known nationally for both the size and the number of its smallmouth. Spring pre-spawn and fall: Iowa DNR notes the larger bass come up to shallow structure, where a shallow-running minnow bait or a spinnerbait just under the surface works.

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. In spring, pre-spawn bass push shallow as the water climbs through the mid-50s; in fall they feed actively until the water cools into the low 50s, then drop back toward deeper structure.

Rainbow trout illustration

Rainbow trout

Spring and fall in most lakes; rivers fish year-round while the water stays cool

A cold-water trout native to Pacific drainages from Alaska to Baja California, now stocked in most states and fished in rivers, tailwaters and lakes. This band overlaps Vermont's 54-66Β°F stream preference: fish feed across riffles, runs and pocket water, and in lakes WDFW says spring and fall bring them near the surface.

Brown trout illustration

Brown trout

Spring along Great Lakes shorelines; low light and overcast days in rivers; fall spawning runs

A European trout first stocked in the US in 1883 and now fished in rivers and lakes nationwide; it tolerates warmer water than other trout, and mature stream fish feed mostly at night. Close to Vermont's 53-66Β°F optimum, browns feed more freely; in fall, pre-spawn fish move toward tributaries and gravel, so fish streamers and keep off the redds.

When to come: the Lake Jocassee 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
Smallmouth bass
Largemouth bass
Rainbow trout
Brown trout
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 55 F (estimated, not a reading).

304050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovOct, ~55 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 Jocassee today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Oct 22

2/5 Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing. Rainbow trout led the card at excellent. High of 74 F, wind to 8 mph.

Wed, Oct 21

2/5 Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing. Rainbow trout led the card at excellent. High of 74 F, wind to 6 mph.

Tue, Oct 20

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Rainbow trout led the card at excellent. High of 76 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

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

Regulations

South Carolina fishing license. Trout: 3 a day; Oct. 1-May 31, 15-inch minimum and only 1 over 20 inches; June 1-Sept. 30, any length; no corn, cheese, fish eggs or imitations. Black bass: largemouth 14-inch minimum, smallmouth 12-inch minimum, 5 a day combined with redeye bass; spotted bass any length, 15 a day (SCDNR limits on eRegulations, updated Aug. 5, 2026).

Access

Devils Fork State Park, the only public access: three public boat ramps (SCDNR's lake page counts four), a boat-in campground and lakeside villas.

About this water

A 7,565-acre Duke Energy pumped-storage reservoir, impounded in 1973, in Oconee and Pickens counties, South Carolina.

Fishing Lake Jocassee: the full guide

A deep mountain reservoir

SCDNR describes Lake Jocassee as a 7,565-acre reservoir in Pickens and Oconee counties with a mean depth of 154 feet and a maximum of 351 feet. Duke Energy impounded the Whitewater, Thompson, Toxaway and Horsepasture rivers in 1973 as a pumped-storage facility, and about 43,000 acres of public land surround the lake.

State records

SCDNR's freshwater records list five South Carolina records from Jocassee: brown trout, 17 lb 9.5 oz (1987); rainbow trout, 11 lb 5 oz (1993); and smallmouth bass (9 lb 7 oz), spotted bass (8 lb 5 oz) and redeye bass (5 lb 2.5 oz), all in 2001.

Trout rules

Jocassee has its own trout rule: no more than 3 trout a day; from October 1 to May 31 they must be at least 15 inches and only one may exceed 20 inches, while from June 1 to September 30 any length may be kept. It is unlawful to use or possess corn, cheese, fish eggs or imitations of them on the lake.

One way in

South Carolina State Parks says the only public access to the lake is through Devils Fork State Park, which has three public boat ramps, a boat-in campground and 20 lakeside villas. The park warns of long entry lines on weekends and holidays, especially from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., and posts when it reaches parking capacity.

Common questions

How big do the trout get?

The South Carolina records for brown trout (17 lb 9.5 oz, 1987) and rainbow trout (11 lb 5 oz, 1993) both came from Jocassee.

How many trout can I keep?

Three a day. From October through May they must be 15 inches or longer, with only one over 20 inches; from June through September any length counts.

Where can I get on the lake?

Only through Devils Fork State Park, which has the lake's public boat ramps; expect lines at the gate on summer weekends and holidays.

Is fishing good at Lake Jocassee right now?

Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.

Nearby waters

Lake Keowee11 miHigh Rock Lake20 miChattooga River21 miDavidson River25 miLake Hartwell33 miLake Burton37 mi

Where this page's numbers come from

Weather and pressure
Open-Meteo forecast model
Queried at 34.9590, -82.9245 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.