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Lake Murray Fishing Report

Updated Fri, Sep 4, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

South Carolina's 50,000-acre jewel on the Saluda: stripers with a landlocked pedigree and summer cane-pile crappie.

2/5
Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.
Lake level
356.29 ft -3.71 vs pool
Air / High
96 / 97 F
Wind
ESE 5 mph

Sources: USGS gauge 02168500, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.

Tap a marker for today's tip
Friday
4
September 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 Murray stays in its summer rhythm: early magic, midday siesta, evening reprieve. The gauge reads 356.29 ft, 3.71 ft below pool, easing 0.19 over the week. Today brings clear skies, wind ESE around 5 mph, rising pressure near 1014 hPa and a high of 97. Water sits around 84 F for the season (estimated). With the last quarter, the solunar majors run 5:39 AM-7:39 AM and 5:39 PM-7:39 PM: plan around them and beat the heat.

The plan, species by species

Striped bassGood

Deep and early: live bait on downlines over the river channel at first light, or downriggers along thermocline depth.

Catfish (blue, channel)Good

Anchor on 20-30 ft baited holes with punch bait or cut shad. They keep biting through the heat when everything else quits.

Largemouth bassFair

Topwater at first light on points and seawalls, then slide out to 12-25 ft brush and points with a Carolina rig, deep crank or drop shot. The bite is dawn, dusk or deep.

CrappieSlow

Straight down on bridge pilings and deep brush at 15-25 ft. Minnows outfish jigs in hot water; move until the graph shows them stacked.

Tomorrow: Similar at 101 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Sep 5, 6:30 AMHow this report is made →

Water and weather

Live readings from LAKE MURRAY NEAR COLUMBIA, SC.

Water level, last 30 days

USGS gauge 02168500. Conservation pool is 360 ft.

356.94358.14359.35pool 360356.29 ft08/0508/1508/2509/04

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp96 F
High / Low97 / 74 F
WindESE 5-7 mph
Pressure1013.7 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain0% cloud, 1%
Sunrise / Sunset07:01 / 19:47
MoonLast Quarter, 50%
Water temp (seasonal)~84 F est.

Bite planner

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

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunset

Next 7 days

Tap a day for the detailed outlook.

Fri Sep 4 · Overcast, 97/74 F, wind 12 mph, rain 1%

Fair or better. A 12 mph breeze puts a working chop on the banks it hits: fish the wind-blown side.

Species guide

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

Largemouth bass illustration

Largemouth bass

Best: spring and fall

The headline act on most American reservoirs. Relates to cover: docks, brush, grass edges and points. Topwater at first light on points and seawalls, then slide out to 12-25 ft brush and points with a Carolina rig, deep crank or drop shot. The bite is dawn, dusk or deep.

Striped bass illustration

Striped bass

Best: spring and fall

The reservoir heavyweight. Follows shad and herring schools in open water year-round. Deep and early: live bait on downlines over the river channel at first light, or downriggers along thermocline depth.

Catfish (blue, channel) illustration

Catfish (blue, channel)

Good year-round

The most reliable bite on most southern waters. Blues run big; channels fill the cooler. Anchor on 20-30 ft baited holes with punch bait or cut shad. They keep biting through the heat when everything else quits.

Crappie illustration

Crappie

Best: Nov-Mar

Brush piles, bridge pilings and standing timber. The fish fry favorite. Straight down on bridge pilings and deep brush at 15-25 ft. Minnows outfish jigs in hot water; move until the graph shows them stacked.

When to come: the Lake Murray 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
Striped bass
Catfish (blue, channel)
Crappie
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 84 F (estimated, not a reading).

5060708090JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~84 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 Murray today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Sep 3

2/5 Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing. Striped bass led the card at good. High of 98 F, wind to 10 mph.

Wed, Sep 2

2/5 Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing. Striped bass led the card at good. High of 98 F, wind to 5 mph.

Tue, Sep 1

3/5 Fair. Fish early or late. Heat pins the bite to the dawn and dusk windows. Striped bass led the card at good. High of 96 F, wind to 5 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
Only used to send you this water's report each week. No spam, ever.

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

Striped bass: 5 per day, 21-inch minimum (check seasonal lower-lake rules June-Sept). Black bass: 14-inch minimum, 5 per day. Confirm with SCDNR.

Access

Dreher Island State Park, Billy Dreher ramp, Larry Koon and Sunset landings. The dam area parks give bank access to the summer schooling zone.

About this water

50,000 acres on the Saluda River, Lexington/Newberry/Richland/Saluda counties, SC. Dominion Energy, dam completed 1930.

Fishing Lake Murray: the full guide

Where landlocked stripers began

Lake Murray's claim in fishing history is real: when Santee-Cooper's stripers proved they could live landlocked, Murray became one of the first great inland striper fisheries, and it still runs on them: a self-image built on June blowups, downline summers and winter bird-play in the creeks. Fifty thousand acres of Saluda River water behind a 1930 dam, 650 miles of shoreline, an island-dotted mid-lake.

The Murray year

Spring: stripers push up the Saluda and bass spawn in the pockets; herring spawns bring topwater dawns on points. Summer: the famous "summer squall" schooling near the dam at first light, then downlines at 30-60 ft; largemouth go dock-and-brush. Fall: bird-chasing begins as bait balls into the creeks. Winter: the lower lake stacks stripers over the river channel and crappie load the deep cane piles.

A lake of brush and docks

Murray's bass fishing runs through man-made cover: thousands of planted cane and brush piles, and dock lines on every arm. Summer crappie fishing over deep cane at 15-25 ft with long poles is a local art form worth learning.

Common questions

What is the "summer squall" on Lake Murray?

The dawn striper blowups near the dam in June-July: schools push herring to the surface in open water. Locals idle out in the dark, wait for the first splashes, and throw flukes and topwaters into the melee.

Are there seasonal striper rules?

Yes: SCDNR applies special summer regulations on the lower lake to protect stripers in warm water. Check the current year's rules before keeping fish in summer.

What makes Murray's crappie fishing different?

Depth and cane: locals sink bamboo cane piles in 15-25 ft and fish them with long poles and minnows through summer, a pattern that out-produces anything shallow once the water warms.

Is fishing good at Lake Murray 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

Saluda River18 miBroad River35 miLake Greenwood39 miLake Wateree45 miThurmond Lake55 miClarks Hill Lake66 mi
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