Hooray! Autumn is in the air and this definitely looks to be the real deal. Let's talk fishing!
The weeks of highs in the 70's and lows in the 50's are upon us and this means the fishing only gets better* here on Allatoona. The current lake level is nearing 831 feet - 9 feet below full pool, and the water quality is good. Surface temps are 76-78° lakewide through today and we can anticipate a continuing cooling of water temps going forward into October. We have some precipitation forecasted for the next 2 weeks that will muddy the waters a little, but for now the clarity remains. Remember that we will soon experience a lake 'turnover' that typically places the fish in a state of suspended animation, but this too shall pass and the Striper fishing should be absolutely fantastic into November.
The Hybrids and Stripers are still being mostly cooperative. Reports are sporadic from our boat (and others) with respect to the Topwater action. I am personally not seeing the 'boiling' of these schooling fish that tends to excite us more, and more individual/small pod swirling of the linesides has been much more common this past week. While our target range has been mainly limited to the main channel from Kellogg Creek to the Dam, I have not witnessed a sustained topwater boil lasting more than seconds this past week. In all fairness, my observation has been limited to 3 mornings and 4 evenings over the past 7 days. The wind has been both bothersome and beneficial. Personally, I prefer rain, sleet and snow to windy conditions but the wind can push that bait onto a western shore, for example, that just brings the gamefish right with them.
Freelines have been key to catching the majority of the fish, but the downlines are what will reach the active fish eating down under. We have caught fish close to 30' down at the right moments this past week though the 18-24' ranges are where we have marked many active fish, particularly in the pre-sunrise slots. Again, these fish are rising up to eat and we are hooking up most consistently on the freelines with threads or gizzards just below the surface during daylight hours.
Do not hesistate to drag a larger bait or two, particularly if you are committing to spot/stretch of water. We had the sheer pleasure of 2 fish in the 30" class just this week, each caught on a 'SchMedium' size gizzard shad in back to back passes with a side-planer along the channel edge. We only had the 2 bigger baits that day, but there was no hesitation by those Stripers in the chomping down of those larger baits. They may have been strays, but for anyone that saw the fish when posted, they were far from skinny and have been eating good. They swam away to aid in future pleasures for the next in line to hook up to.
We have the pleasure of some real good Crappie fishing ready to ramp up here soon. They are eating daily, but the schools have been small and spread out in our range. We'll be on them like it is our job to do so, much like we do with the Hybrids and Stripers, so please reach out to book your Adventure for October and November. We anticipate being on the water full time, rain or shine so we will know right where all those rascals are for the day your trip arrives.
We look forward to having you on board, making friends, enjoying some good conservation and catching some fish, all while enjoying the sights and sounds of nature here on Lake Allatoona.
Let's go fishing! Visit us at www.heronoutdooradventures.com, message us on Facebook or call us direct at 404-919-4918, any time. Tightlines, friends.
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