Carters Lake Fishing Report August 2013

Carters: Level: 0.8 feet below full pool. Temp: Low 80s. Clarity: Clear; 4-foot visibility.

Bass: Good. Guide Louie Bartenfield reports, “Fishing is good. The water temps are still holding in the low 80s. It doesn’t look like we’ll reach the upper 80s this year. This could help our fall bite coming up in September and October. Stay tuned on that, but for now we’ll stay with an August report. The spotted bass are scattered from 8 feet to 30 feet right now and are starting to move out a bit deeper on the main lake with the bait. A variety of baits are working; 1/4- to 3/8-oz. drop shots and 1/8-oz. to 3/16-oz. Spotsticker jig heads are producing best tipped with Big Bite Shaking Squirrels and finesse worms in green pumpkin and watermelon/red colors. I’ve also been seeing lots of surface activity on any cloudy overcast days. We’re throwing topwater baits over the points and structure before moving in and fishing our bottom baits, and it’s produced some quality fish over the past couple of weeks. A Strike King Sexy Dawg Jr. and a Spit-n-King in threadfin patterns have been my choices for topwaters. As we move into August, typically the fish will be in the 25- to 35-foot range, and I expect most of our bigger fish to make that move regardless of water temps. I’ll start focusing more on these depths late mornings, usually when the light gets high around 10 to 11 a.m. Look for points with very sharp drop-offs on one side or the other. Typically the fish will relate to the sharpest drop on a point for more shade and ambush. August can be a good month for big fish. Regardless of the late-summer reputation, it’s one of my favorite months to fish, day and night. An August full moon is always a great time to go night fishing, so if you’re burned out on day fishing, try the night bite. Pick a bluff or steep bank, and take your favorite jig and trailer, and fish from the shore out to 30 feet deep. You’ll get bit.”

Linesides: Good. Guide Eric Crowley reports, “Carters has been great the last few weeks and should be pretty consistent this month as well. Stripers have been on the move to a little deeper water. Look for them in 50 to 60 feet of water. Downline herring or threadfin shad on 2-oz. sinkers and 2/0 hooks, and look for the fish right off the bottom. The area from Woodring boat ramp down to the dam has been the most productive, and the earlier the better. The nighttime bite has been very productive this month and should get better as we move to August. The hybrids and stripers are coming to the big schools of bait attracted by the Hydro Glow light. Downline fresh baits just off the bottom, and try to keep the boat stationary.”

Walleye: “The walleye bite has slowed down some, but we are still catching quite a few just before dawn on smaller baits fished on the bottom near the boat ramps and humps,” Eric said.