Name’s Artificial Lure, checking in with your Lake Lanier fishing report.

We don’t worry about tides on Lanier, but timing still matters. FishingReminder’s solunar table for the lake shows the main bite windows running mid‑morning and again late afternoon into dusk, lining up nicely with the low light. PredictWind’s Port Royale forecast has us starting out cold with light and variable winds, climbing into a cool, cloudy day with only a slight breeze on the main lake. That’s classic winter Lanier: slick pockets early, just enough ripple by lunch to help the bite.

Sunrise is right around 7:35 a.m. with sunset a little after 5:30 p.m., so you’ve got a tight prime-time window. First hour after sunrise and the last hour of light are when these spotted bass and stripers slide up and feed.

According to FishingReminder, fish activity is rated moderate overall, but that underplays how good the short feeding flurries can be this time of year. Recent December reports out of Lanier—especially from LanierKayakBassFishing and other local YouTube folks—show a solid mixed bag: numbers of 1–2 pound spots, a handful of 3–4 pounders, and schoolie stripers in the 5–10 pound range with the occasional teen‑class fish when you intersect a big pod of bait. Another December Lanier video focused on winter stripers, bass, and gulls working bait showed fish a little finicky but very catchable when you matched the small shad with small swim baits.

Best patterns right now are all about *ditches, channel swings, and bait*. Think 25–45 feet of water off main‑lake points and in the front half of creeks. Spotted bass are suspending around timber edges and roaming with the bait balls, while stripers slide through in wolf packs. If you’ve got forward‑facing sonar, keep it panning and stay with the moving bait; Major League Fishing’s coverage of modern sonar tactics lines up perfectly with what works here.

For **lures**, fish small and natural:
- For spots: 3–3.5" soft swimbaits on 1/4–3/8 oz heads, silver or pearl; underspins; and Damiki‑style flukes hovered over bait. A finesse jig or shaky head will still pick off bottom‑oriented fish on steeper rock.
- For stripers: 4–5" paddle‑tail swimbaits, flukes on 1/2 oz heads, and small spoons dropped straight into the marks. When gulls start diving, cast those swimbaits right through the birds.

Live bait is still king for many. Medium shiners and small to medium bluebacks on down‑lines in 25–40 feet over creek mouths and humps will get both spots and stripers. Freelines and planer boards closer to the surface are worth a shot when you see scattered bait high in the column.

A couple of **hot spots** to consider:
- Mid‑lake around Brown’s Bridge and the mouths of Six Mile and Flat Creek: classic winter ditches, timber edges, and roaming schools of stripers and spots.
- South end around Big Creek and Flowery Branch: clear water, strong spotted bass bite on finesse and small swimbaits, with stripers cruising the main creek channels.

Stay safe, watch that winter boat traffic and the timber, and don’t sleep on that last light bite—Lanier has a way of giving you your best fish right before dark.

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This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI