Fishing Report For Lake Marion, SC
AKA: Marion Reservoir
By Rick Seaman
January 6, 2025
Fishing Reports
Popular Fish Species Lake Marion, SC
Black Crappie
Current Report: Good
Outlook: Good To Very Good
Anglers can fish for crappie year round in Lake Marion. The SC Department of Natural Resources reports the best fishing is from Spring to early Fall. In Spring crappie move into shallow coves to spawn. Docks, brush, wood, vegetation are a good place to cast small crappie jigs or live minnows. Light tackle with 4-pound line is ideal. Locals report good success using fish finders to locate schools of crappie, which tend to stack vertically around cover.
Blue Catfish
Current Report: Good To Very Good
Outlook: Very Good To Excellent
Although there is a strict limit on blue catfish here, locals report that fishing for blues is quite good - especially in early Spring. Fishing for blue catfish is often productive around any kind of structure. Road beds, creek channels and rocky points are all good places to begin. Use a slip sinker or Carolina rig setup with shad, preferably live.
Striped Bass
Current Report: Fair To Good
Outlook: Good To Very Good
Striper season is closed from June to August, with the best fishing reported to be in April, May and October. Being successful at fishing for stripers is a matter of locating schools of bait, and wolf packs of stripers are likely to be nearby. Fish finders are a big help in locating these roaming schools. Swimbaits, jigs, spoons, as well as live bait or cut bait are all effective here.
Lake Marion Fishing Video
Fish species to fish for...
Guide to fishing for largemouth bass, channel catfish, flathead catfish, blue catfish, black crappie, white crappie, bluegill, pumpkinseed sunfish, redbreast sunfish, redear sunfish, warmouth, white bass, white perch, yellow perch, striped bass and chain pickerel at Lake Marion in South Carolina.
The largest lake in South Carolina, Lake Marion is the upper lake in the Santee Cooper Reservoir System. Excellent fishing opportunities abound at this 110,000-acre lake in the central part of the state, at Santee. Over 300 miles of shoreline entice fishing enthusiasts to wet a line most every where you look.
Primary fish species residing in Lake Marion
Click images for fishing tips and details about each species.
Today's Weather & Forecast
Fishing Boat Rentals
Click here for fishing boat rentals available at this lake.
Public Boat Launch Ramps & Landings
Click here for boat ramps available at this lake.
Marinas
Click here for marinas available at this lake.
Fishing Guides On Lake Marion
S & S Guide Service - catfish, crappie, bream
Santee Cooper Charters - stripers, crappie, bass
Santee Pro Guide Service - crappie, catfish
Fishing License
Click here for a South Carolina Fishing License.
Lake Marion, SC Map - Fishing & Access
Rick Seaman is a fishing enthusiast with over five decades of fishing experience, a retired bass tournament fisherman, author of numerous published articles on fishing, and co-author of the book "Bass Fishing - It's not WHAT you throw, It's WHERE you throw it".
Contact Information
Lake Marion
SC Department of Natural Resources
1000 Assembly Street
Columbia, SC 29201
803 737-8483
Fishing lakes in each state.
022924
Lake Marion, South Carolina Report
SOUTH CAROLINA
Information about fishing lakes in SC
Go fishing at Lake Marion to catch bass, catfish, shellcrackers, crappie, perch, stripers, white bass, sunfish and chain pickerel in central South Carolina.
