Yellow River Fishing Spot

• Elevation: 551'
• Last Modified By: vinny60 on 09/28/09 03:30 PM
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Georgia's Yellow River rises just south of Lawrenceville in Gwinnett County and flows south to Lake Jackson. Like the South and Chattahoochee Rivers, the Yellow winds through some heavily populated areas, yet shows far less wear and tear than other urban rivers. Portions of the Yellow contain a good bit of trash and sometimes a faint smell of chlorine taints the air, but overall, the Yellow is a fine stream for most species of fish and an entertaining place to paddle. Largemouth are the primary bass species, but spotted bass (illegally introduced to L. Jackson in the 1990's) are slowly discovering the Yellow and can appear as far upstream as the dam below GA 81 at Porterdale. The dam, by the way, requires a pretty tough portage around the right, across someone's property, and to the base of the shoals, which are Class II when there's enough water to run them. The best idea is to make GA 81 the end of your trip rather than the beginning. Another dam exists just downstream of GA 20 in Milstead. It may be possible, but there is no safe way to portage this dam. It is possible to access the river below the dam off Yarbrough Rd. but this is a lot of work and the neighborhood here is rather rough. On the bright side, the two dams provide great fishing opportunities on the upstream sides, and current is usually minimal. The Yellow provides good fishing for crappie, hybrid and white bass in the spring from Lake Jackson all the way up to Porterdale. The whites and hybrids don't seem to stack up in the thousands like they do in some other rivers this time of year, but the action is usually steady. Bream (mostly redbreast and bluegill) and catfish populations are excellent on the Yellow, and if you catch a species of fish you've never seen before, it may just be a yellow perch.The Yellow is generally runnable downstream from the Conyers area, and there are lots of launch points ranging from very easy to darn near impossible. Make sure you do your homework before floating the Yellow and try not to have a dam in the middle of your float trip. Other than a few logjams, the dams are the only real obstacles on the Yellow. The only serious rapids lie just below the dams, and these aren't too bad unless the river is really high. Most any type of river craft will work on the Yellow, including small motorized boats. Despite it's name, the Yellow usually runs green and fairly clear, although it does get yellow after heavy rains. The Yellow stays rather intimate through most of it's course, only exceeding 60 or so feet in width near Lake Jackson and upstream of the dams. The Yellow is living proof that great rivers can coexist with lots of people. The fishing is pretty darn good and the Yellow is convenient for a large number of people. One indicator of the Yellow's health is the presence of redeye bass in some upper sections of the river.

The Yellow River or Huang He is the second longest river in China.