Carters Lake Fishing Report – October 2023

Carters: Level: 1.3 feet below 1074. Temp: 73-78 degrees. Clarity: Clear.

Bass: Guide Louie Bartenfield with Carters Lake Guide Service reports, “There will be lots of surface schooling all during October, so always have a walking or chugging topwater bait ready to cast. Those baits will work all day. Shorter days and cooling water makes bass start their transition into ditches and creek channels from the main lake. Look for them feeding in those channels, especially in early morning. They will hit topwater baits all the way down to drop-shot baits in 40 plus feet of water. Start early in the back of a ditch or channel and work out until you hit the fish. Swimbaits, drop-shot worms and A-rigs will catch them, as well as jerkbaits and topwater, so do not get locked into one bait or depth. Be versatile. October also means lake turnover, so watch for a change in water color and a bad smell. If you hit an area turning over, go somewhere else. Fishing will be especially tough where water is turning over.” For more on fishing with Louie, go to http://carterslakeguideservice.com.

Walleye: Guide Eric Crowley, of Lake And Stream Guide Service, reports, “Ahhhhctober, with hunting season, football season, youth sports and school in session means the lakes have been pretty empty of boat traffic. This is a nice change after the last few months. This is also when we get our first real cold fronts of the year. These fronts can really fire up the bite before and during a storm and shut it down on those beautiful blue-bird days just after. With the falling water temps and working around the weather fronts, we like to fish vertical in the fall. The weapons of choice are jigs, spoons, jig and minnows or about any sort of plastic that you can fish straight up and down in their face. Having good sonar is key. Finding fish, getting the bait to them quickly, presenting it and moving on if you don’t get bit or working the area is the plan. Cover water and move pretty quick. The fish will be on the bottom anywhere from 20 to 80 feet deep, depending on where the sun is and where the bait is holding. Humps, points, shoals and any high spot will be the places to start looking. We have been seeing some really quality fish all summer and can’t wait to see them fatten up for the fall.”

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Stripers: Guide Eric Crowley reports, “The striper bite has been really good this past month on live bait and on artificials. We have seen the best bites on medium-sized alewives, and we are still catching them on the Cast Prodigy 4.1. This month you’ll still have fish deep on the main lake. You will also find fish cruising the points for easy meals early in the morning. There’s also fish up the river this time of year feeding on threadfins over the river channel. The trick, as always, is getting them to eat your bait in the clouds of natural bait. This is a good time to get the Parker Spoons out and get the fish fired up.” For more on fishing with Eric Crowley, go to https://ellijayfishing.com.