Carters Lake Fishing Report – July 2024

Carters: Level: 0.3 feet above 1074. Temp: 80-85 degrees. Clarity: Clear.

Bass: Guide Louie Bartenfield, with Carters Lake Guide Service, reports, “July is always a tough month on Carters, but bass will bite. During the day, watch for surfacing fish and fish holding high in the water column around offshore brush or points. Walking and popper-style topwater baits are my favorite for these bass. When the fish go down, try drop-shot or shaky-head worms around the bottom cover. The night bite heats up in July. Target fish in 10 to 25 feet of water relating to steep drops on bluffs and points with soft plastics and football jigs. Find those sharp drops on your GPS mapping.”

Walleye: Guide Eric Crowley, of Lake And Stream Guide Service, reports, “It’s time to fish deep. It’s that time of year when the water gets hot and the fish go down to find a more comfortable place to live. On Carters, this can be 40, 50 and 70 feet or more at times. No matter what species you are after in July, it’s going to be deep. The bigger walleye are already down in the depths living amongst the trees that cover the bottom of this lake. If you want to catch them, that is where you’re going to have to go. Live bait is always a good option at Carters, as well as trolling. This month we will be using everything you can think of to get baits to fish. Crankbaits are the go-to, but  you’re going to lose some. It’s just part of the game here. Spoons are another great option. Krocodile, Hopkins and Little Cleo spoons will all put walleye in the boat this month when paired with good electronics. There’s no real areas to concentrate on since the fish are on the move with the bait. Mark the fish that are following the baitfish, and present your bait to them. Early morning and evening are going to see the most consistent bite to pattern, as these are key feeding times for walleye.”

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Stripers: Guide Eric Crowley, of Lake And Stream Guide Service, reports, “The striper bite picked up at the end of June and is pretty good. We’re catching some nice fish early on live bait over the Hydro Glow and then switching over to umbrella rigs after that and fishing the creek mouths and river channel.”