Lake Hartwell Topwater Collision

If you’ve ever come out of the canal in Mexico Beach, Fla. and run 3 miles south into the Gulf of Mexico along the buoy line and experienced fish busting on top as far as you could see, that’s what it reminded me of—even if I was hundreds of miles from the salt.

The scene played out on Lake Hartwell, a very fresh body of water on the Georgia/South Carolina border. I was in the back of a bass boat being captained by Kerry Partain, a good friend and long-time bass-fishing contributor to GON fishing reports. The date was Sept. 5, 2024. The time was exactly 2:14 p.m, and the weather was windy, sunny and 80 degrees.

“I haven’t seen bass on top during the day like this in two months,” said Kerry.

Call it divine intervention, living right or just plain lucky, but we could see largemouth and spotted bass busting blueback herring on both sides of a main-lake point about as far as our eyes would allow.

“It’s going to get even better in October, more frequent, a lot more active. The water is just now cooling down,” said Kerry.

Kerry Partain learned to walk on the banks of Lake Hartwell. Over the last 50 years, he’s seen changes in the bass and the fishing. However, one constant that has remained in October is that bait will be up shallow and the bass will be chasing them. It’s the perfect topwater collision.

Kerry and I had been planning this trip for more than two years, and it was well worth the wait as we enjoyed the first taste of fall-time topwater fishing on beautiful Lake Hartwell. In this article, Kerry lays out an October plan for the sorts of places to find schooling bass, what to throw and then some strategies for when you don’t see fish busting bluebacks on top.

“First thing right out of the gate, the bait will be shallow in the rocks,” said Kerry. “Look on main-lake points where a channel meets a clay bank with some rocks. Fish will also be in the backs of the creeks.”

It may be surprising to some that the water won’t really get boiling with bluebacks until lunch on some days. But the first-thing topwater pattern is more like what you would expect on a summertime pattern.

“Throw something moving, like a buzzbait or a spinnerbait,” said Kerry. “I use a buzzbait made by Derailer Baits. I like the gold blade in the fall with a Zoom Horny Toad trailer. I throw a Derailer spinnerbait, 1/2-oz. double willowleafs in silver with a shad-pattern skirt. You’ll catch them good up shallow for an hour, and then there’s often a lull until about 11 o’clock.”

As predicted, we didn’t get into schooling bass on top until after lunch once the sun was straight up in the sky. We found bluebacks and bass in the same sorts of place where you will find them in October and into November.

“Look for areas where you have deep water near shallow water,” said Kerry. “It may be a hump, a point, a rocky ledge, a roadbed, anywhere there is a high area that is real shallow and close to deep water.”

The reason for increased surface activity in the fall is because the bluebacks are transitioning shallow from the deeper river and creek channels where they’ve been hanging out all summer. This move shallow bunches those baitfish up in fewer places, making them much easier to find. Then, as nature turns the pages into more consistent fall weather, more and more bass will follow the food train up shallow.

“Look for areas where you have 10 feet of water or less that joins deeper water, 30 to 50 foot. You’ll see those high spots on your graph,” said Kerry.

Most of today’s depthfinders come with topographic maps built in, but you can purchase software if your graph doesn’t have them. A quick look at Kerry’s plotter showed easily a dozen humps positioned in the small area we fished on the lower end of the lake. Trust me, there are piles and piles of high spots near deep water to investigate.

“My No. 1 topwater bait in October on these schooling bass will be a Zoom Super Fluke in disco violet or blue pearl hologram,” said Kerry.

Kerry likes Falcon and Dobyn rods and Quantum and Lews reels. He’s a big fan of using the lightest line he can get away with.

“I like to be able to cast as far as I can, which is why I like 12-lb. Berkley Big Game mono,” said Kerry.

Casting greater distances these days is more important to Kerry because he says the fish are spookier than they once were, possibly due to all the sonar pinging going through the water with forward-facing sonar (FFS) on more boats. Kerry, who turns 50 this month, recalled the glory days of bass schooling on top when he was 16 years old and got his first bass boat. He’d haul his Astroglass bass boat to a campground in Lightwood Log Creek where his family camped every weekend.

“I’d be sitting there eating breakfast, and they’d come up schooling,” said Kerry. “I’d jump in the boat, and me and my brother and nephew when he got older would take off after them. They would school for 30 minutes. You had time to get to them, catch fish, and they would continue schooling. Now most times they come up and they are right back down.”

While the scene I opened this story with was an amazing sight, it may not be the standard bass schooling you’ll get to experience on any given day in October. In running probably 15 high spots throughout the afternoon, there were bass schooled up on about every one. However, we either had to call the fish up to eat or they’d bust the top as they chased bait for five or 10 seconds, go back down, and then maybe school a few minutes later 80 or 100 yards away.

“I like to chase them, but it really seems smarter some times just to sit tight,” said Kerry.

After our chasing efforts failed a few times, we did exactly what Kerry suggested and exercised a little patience that paid off with a few keepers in the boat that did finally appear on top nearby. A well-placed cast was an almost guaranteed hook-up.

“This is No. 1, the most absolute fun way to fish—hands down,” said Kerry. “The bass are getting ready for wintertime coming. It’s like a collision, the bait are moving and fish are hungry.”

After the Super Fluke, Kerry likes a chrome Ima Skimmer, which isn’t made anymore and will have to be found on places like eBay. A chrome Sammy is his third choice for a topwater presentation.

“If they’ll bite a swimbait, I’ll throw a Southern Hook Lures Bite Size Herring,” said Kerry.

Above: Kerry’s go-to baits for schooling bass on Hartwell in October (from top): Sammy, Ima Skimmer, Southern Hook Lures Bite Size Herring and Zoom Super Fluke. Below: Notice how the Bite Size Herring looks very much like an actual blueback herring.

I caught several bass burning a Sebile swimbait over these fish, and you can cast an A-rig if you prefer that. However, Kerry threw the rig and watched on his FFS as it spooked the bass away. The rig went right back in the box for the day and remained out of service for our trip. Several times throughout the day Kerry and I discussed bass being spookier than they used to be, a factor he again believes is a product of increased sonar use.

“It’s like they have changed with all the sonar pings. They don’t really chase after the baits as good as they once did. It’s like they know you are there,” said Kerry.

To keep this in context, this statement comes from a guy who learned to walk in a Lake Hartwell campground. He’s seen a few things on the lake. As a tournament angler, Kerry uses and knows FFS has its place and can certainly help anglers catch limits and win tournaments. However, he gets frustrated with the new technology, too.

“Look, you can see the bass on here. I pull up to a spot and they are constantly swimming away from the boat,” said Kerry.

Several times during our trip, he turned FFS off and just kept his 2D sonar on in order to take a more stealthy approach to a high spot. He’s fished some of these high spots for decades. If you look at his graph, he has an actual stop sign icon as a waypoint that is positioned a cast length off the high spot. Without FFS, he feels like he’s able to approach the area a little quieter.

“Before GPS we’d just use structures on the bank,” said Kerry.

Our first keeper largemouth of the day actually came off an area 100 yards off the bank he called “the naked pine” because he used a pine tree with very few branches to line up his first cast.

“Before all this (FFS and GPS), it seemed like not only would the fish stay on top longer but they’d bite better, too,” said Kerry.

To combat fish that won’t stay up schooling or become finicky to bite, Kerry still keeps a drop-shot rig and a shaky-head worm on the deck in October. On his drop-shot worm, he likes a Zoom Swamp Crawler. Green pumpkin candy gets his No. 1 pick in color. For the shaky head, he prefers a Zoom Magnum Swamp Crawler. Colors can change daily or based on water conditions, but he was quick to mention green pumpkin blue as a good choice.

“I’ll work these two baits all over those high spots and on the drops around them,” said Kerry. “If you’ve got timber, brush or rocks in these areas, I really like that.”

He will fish both plastics under the boat, but more times than not he’s using 12-lb. fluorocarbon to make long casts to a high spot or other piece of structure and working it back out, much like a Carolina rig.

Even in October, Kerry says a finesse approach will come into play. He opts for Zoom plastics on either a drop shot or shaky head.

“The only other thing you have to be ready for this time of year is the turnover,” said Kerry.

Hartwell is large enough that you can usually find some clean water somewhere.

“Typically, the upper end will turn over and the lower end will be good, and then the lower end will turn over and the upper end will be back good,” said Kerry. “It changes weekly. You’ll see it. The water will be stained, it’s brown.”

However, if you find yourself fishing in water that is turning over, head shallow.

“When it’s turning over, you can catch a lot more fish shallow in the turnover area on a spinnerbait and a buzzbait. They’ll be in the backs of the creeks up on the banks where there is some oxygen. They’ll also be more aggressive up shallow like that.”

Whether you’re in a deer stand or decide to launch the boat, there is a Hartwell topwater collision occurring as baitfish move shallow and bass follow. As the weather continues to cool, watch the sky for birds to arrive and give away which humps have bait on top. If not, get your topo map turned on and start running from one high spot to another. Kerry makes one more recommendation to anglers wanting to experience fun fishing.

“If you can take a few days off work, going during the week is better. Even with much lighter traffic in the fall, those weekdays can be incredible. Imagine fish busting on top and it’s just you and the fish. Not a boat in sight!”

Yep, we went on a Thursday. Worked out pretty good for us.

Kerry Partain, Off The Water…

Kerry Partain graduated from the University of Georgia in 1997 with a degree in poultry science. He married his wife Dena the same year, and they have two daughters, Lexie Faith, 22, and Jade Christine, 20.

Kerry lives and works in Elberton. He has been employed with Swiftco Supply for 12 years. He appreciates a great boss who often works around his fishing schedule.

For about 10 years, Kerry has been a Sunday School teacher at Dewy Rose Baptist Church. He said being a teacher is certainly one of his callings in life.

“We’re supposed to be disciples ourselves, but we are also suppose to disciple others. I think Sunday School is where you get a closer fellowship with believers. I like seeing how God is working in people’s lives. I like seeing the genuineness of having Jesus in someone’s lives. It not religion, it’s about that relationship.”

On Wednesday night, Kerry drives the church van and teaches kids Bible Explorer. Dena volunteers in the church nursery, and Lexie is helping with music.

Kerry also deer hunts, but he admits that when the first 45 minutes have gone by on a morning hunt and he hasn’t seen anything, he starts to kick himself because he knows the fishing is so good in the fall. He often climbs down and heads to the lake.