Lake Allatoona Fishing Report – February 2025

Allatoona: Level: 12.2 feet below 840. Temp: 39-44 degrees. Clarity: 3 to 5 feet.

Bass: Tournament angler Matt Driver reports, “Fish are still in their winter pattern, and the jig bite has been great all winter.  Brush, bluffs and rock on red clay banks have been the most productive. A green-pumpkin Picasso Little Spotty in 3/8-oz. with a green-pumpkin trailer has been the go-to bait. A slow presentation is best. The other technique has been FFS in the main-lake area and targeting bass chasing shad. The jig minnow, spoon and lipless crankbait have worked best. Look for bait, and bass are definitely nearby. Toward the end of the month, bass will begin to migrate toward staging areas and preparing for the spawn. If we were to get warmer weather for a few days, bass will go shallow. The jerkbait bite will get good.” 

Linesides: Guide Robert Eidson, of First Bite Guide Service, reports, “Fishing is good. The stripers are eating large baits fished on planer boards and freelines right now. We are using large gizzards and large trout, and we have been fishing from the mouth of Little River up to Clear Creek. The key to fishing this part of the lake right now is clear water. If the water is muddy, don’t waste your time putting out bait. Find the mud line and start fishing. Hybrid fishing is still good but seems best mid-lake right now. We are fishing herring, small gizzards, trout and threadfin shad on downlines between 20 and 45 feet deep; this is working best for them. Look for these fish over the river channel between Galts Ferry and Clear Creek. There is a limited topwater bite on Allatoona right now. It only lasts about 20 minutes at sunrise. Trolling has been very good lately 110 feet back at 2 mph. The key is clear water.”

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Crappie: Robert DeHaas, of Red Rooster Custom Baits and an OG from “Team Geezer,” reports, “If you are like me, you are ready to shake off the deep freeze days of this past January. The extreme cold temperatures and heavy rains have taken their toll on us Allatoona crappie anglers. Good news is on the way… spring is right around the corner, and if past years are any indication, February is a great month to be on the lake. All it takes is four to five days of 50-plus degree days to get things popping, so keep your eyes on the forecast and daily temperatures. Once we have a string of 50-plus degree days, the Allatoona crappie will shake off the cold and come out of the freezer ready to feed. The crappie will need to grow their eggs and the prespawn urges will start kicking in, slowly at first, but as the water starts warming up toward mid to late February, look out, it’s time to catch some slabs. We will start targeting prime trolling areas, such as flats and in the mouths of major creeks. The flats on Allatoona are as the name implies, long or wide flat areas where the depth remains the same for a distance with no variation of depth and could be 18 to 20 feet deep or 6 to 8 feet deep. For this time of year, big open water in the north end of the lake, such as Sweetwater, Little River and mid-lake areas such as Galts, Kellogg and Owl creek come to mind. Hint: The water temps in Sweetwater and Owl creeks rise quickly, so keep these areas on your radar once the weather starts to warm and stabilize. Based on our records and experience (depending on weather), some of the biggest slabs of the year are caught in February. Now is the time to get your rods, reels, fishing line, jig heads and Red Rooster crappie jigs ready because once the crappie bite is on, it’s gonna happen quick, fast and in a hurry, so you want to be ready. Your longline trolling game plan should be: 1) Reels spooled with 6-lb. test line; 2) A mix of 1/32-, 1/24-, 1/16- and 3/32-oz. jig heads; 3) Different color jigs for a variety until you determine what color the crappie want; 4) Troll at speeds between .07 to 1 mph; 5) Target flats and mouths of major creeks. Remember Redroosterbaits.com is your longline trolling headquarters for jigs, jig head pre-selected combo packs for clear and stained water and a trolling guide to help you better understand your jig trolling depth as well as a handy list of recommended color options. Our main goal of this crappie report is to help you streamline your fishing experience by providing as much information as possible, minimize common mistakes and hopefully give you a better day on the water. The only thing we ask of Allatoona crappie anglers is to harvest ONLY the fish you need. Remember 10 keeper (10- to 12-inch) crappie amounts to 20 filets. We want to keep Allatoona stocked for generations to come, and the best way to do that is to keep only what you need in the size range of 10- to 12-inch long crappie. We typically let the larger, 14-inch crappie go because big crappie produce MORE crappie and above all we want to stress conservation as much as possible. The Lord has blessed us with a great fishery, and we would like to do our part to keep it that way for years to come. On a personal note, many of us experience trials and troubles in our daily lives that weigh us down physically, mentally, financially and more importantly spiritually. 1 Peter 5:7 says that in times of trouble “Cast all your cares on HIM for He cares for you.” We all have things that happen to us that are outside of our control, but there is ONE who has everything under HIS control and that is our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ who saw and experienced our troubles firsthand and longs to be a part of lives. No one cares for you like Jesus does… this rough confusing stressful world we live in can be more than we can handle. That’s why Jesus says cast all your cares on Him. He wants your stress, your hurts, your pain and suffering. More importantly, He longs for a relationship with YOU. We hope this report helps you catch more crappie in February and Lord willing we will have another great report for you in March 2025! May God bless you and your family.”