Lake Blue Ridge Fishing Report – February 2025

Blue Ridge: Level: 18 feet below 1686. Temp: 44-46 degrees. Clarity: Clear.

Bass: Eric Welch, of Welch’s Guide Service, reports, “Fishing has been decent. We’ve had some pretty cold weather the past month with nights in single digits and days not getting above freezing. It’s been a good many years since we had a cold winter. There have been some pockets that have frozen and also some ice up the river. This should help us have a pretty good shad kill this year. All of our lakes have herring baitfish, and anyone who fishes them knows we could use a good shad kill. When the water is this cold, it’s hard not to parallel the banks with a crankbait. I like throwing a Rapala Shad Rap in the old holographic blue/silver, bluegill and perch. I also like the old-school Rebel Deep Wee R and a Bandit 200. I’m dragging a 3/8-oz. jig in pb&j or green pumpkin, with an original Uncle Josh pork chunk. If you’re marking fish on your forward-facing sonar, you can try a minnow bait, but my choice this time of year is a Flex-it spoon or a Silver Buddy, maybe a tailspin. I also like throwing a Ned rig in a green pumpkin around rocky banks or a 3.5-inch tube. There are all kinds of jerkbaits to throw this time of year. I like Lucky Craft, Berkley Stunna and a Megabass. If you just want to change up your normal fishing and try something that works great in cold weather, then try the float-n-fly rig. If you can stand to throw it all day, throw an A-rig. It will catch a lot of fish and some big ones. Good luck.”

Lake Blue Ridge Page: Archived Articles, Fishing Reports and Official Lake Records

Walleye: Guide Eric Crowley, of Lake And Stream Guide Service, reports, “These cold temps will drive fish deep to more stable water temps. This time of year, I tell everyone to find the deepest fish you can find and target those fish. Walleye hate light and love to lay in the deep water pinned to the bottom. Look for small groups of fish or individuals laying on the bottom near bait. A simple jig and minnow, small spoon or soft plastic fished right in their face will usually draw a bite or two. Walleye can be super picky on color, so switch between a few of your favorites to dial in the bite each day. As far as area or location this time of year, it doesn’t seem to matter much as long as you’re looking deep. You will find a few fish here and there. In February, you can sleep in a bit and get started around 9 a.m. You may not see the numbers this time of year, but the size of fish can’t be beat. With the fish feeding up for the spring run, now is the time to catch some fatty females before they turn their attention to spawning versus eating. The spotted bass are schooled up and cruising the 20- to 40-foot depth looking for bait balls to feed on. Spoons and small swimbaits work right now. We are throwing the Cast Prodigy and Echo in the 3-inch size on 1/8- or 1/4-oz. jig heads and letting it fall to the bottom and then crawling it back on or just off the bottom. If the fish you’re targeting are suspended up high, try a 3/8-oz. VMC HammerHead jig and trailer hook with the 3-inch Prodigy fished real slow or vertically.”