Lake Oconee
GA · Putnam
- No recent stocking record
- 17,436 acres mapped (USGS NHD)
- 315 miles of shoreline
The pin marks the middle of the water, for directions. The shoreline on the map comes from USGS NHD.
At a glance
- Acres
- 17,436 acres
- Shoreline
- 315 miles of shoreline
- County
- Putnam County
Conditions
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Overview
Lake Oconee is a 19,050-acre Georgia Power Company reservoir, mostly in Greene County near Madison and Greensboro. It works with Lake Sinclair as a pump-storage hydropower system, and that operation plus the lake's long, narrow shape creates noticeable current during generation and pump-back. The Georgia Wildlife Resources Division says fish tend to feed more actively when water is moving through the dam. WRD lists largemouth bass, black crappie, hybrid striped bass, blue and channel catfish and white bass as best bets, and describes Oconee as a very productive bass lake popular with both recreational and tournament anglers. Hybrid bass numbers have been well above the five-year average in recent sampling, and striped bass are stocked. White bass make a spring run up the Oconee River, and crappie fishing is best from February through May and again in fall. Riprap, rocky points, offshore humps, fallen trees and docks are productive bass cover.
Regulations
Lake Oconee has a special largemouth bass minimum length limit. See the current Georgia fishing regulations: https://georgiawildlife.com/fishing-regulations
Starter gear
A 5.5 to 7 foot light to medium-light spinning or spincast rod and matching reel, spooled with 6 lb monofilament. Spincast is easiest for beginners, and a 4 to 5 foot rod suits small kids. Carry size 6 to 10 hooks, a few split shot (pinched on 4 to 8 inches above the hook), small bobbers, a couple of small spinners and jigs, and worms. Learn the improved clinch knot and the palomar knot.
Light line casts farther and draws more strikes. Heavier line and stiffer rods are for bigger fish, heavy cover or sharp teeth, not for everyday fishing.
Likely species (watershed)
Bigeye Chub, Blackbanded Darter, Bluehead Chub, Chain Pickerel, Coastal Shiner, Creek Chub, Creek Chubsucker, Dusky Shiner, Eastern Silvery Minnow, Flat Bullhead, Golden Shiner, Ironcolor Shiner, Longnose Shiner, Mosquitofish, Piedmont Redhorse, Redeye Bass, Silver Redhorse, Silverjaw Minnow, Smallfin Redhorse, Speckled Madtom, Spottail Shiner, Spotted Sucker, Striped Jumprock, Tessellated Darter, Yellowfin Shiner
Likely species come from USGS Aquatic GAP ranges for the whole watershed (HUC8). They show what may be here, not a count of this water.
Watch for stocking
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Some stocking records are adapted from LurePassion (formerly lurepassion.com) (normalized and matched to our waters), licensed CC BY 4.0. State agencies retain their own terms for the underlying records.