Lake Allatoona Fishing Report – January 2008

Allatoona: Level: 20.7 feet below full pool. Temp: 50 degrees. Clarity: Mostly clear.

Boating advisory: Guide Mike Bucca reports that access is very limited due to historically low lake levels. “The only ramps open are at the Blockhouse and Coopers Branch near the dam. Coopers Branch ramp was extended,” Mike said. “Gatewood has been extended about 5 feet, but it was only extended to the water line, so the water will have to come up before it’s usable. If the water remains stable, we will probably be extending the shorter Gaults ramp to make it even with the longer ramp. This will allow us more ramps open during a normal drought year.”

Bass: “Fishing is pretty darn good this week now that we have had some stable water levels and temps,” Mike said on Dec. 21. “ I had one trip yesterday, and we caught just short of 30 fish in 4 1/2 hours. So the numbers are there.” Mike said the best baits to use right now are jerkbaits, crankbaits, drop-shot rigs and spoons, which are all producing a strong bite. The quality of the spotted bass has been very good, with lots of 2- to 4-lb. fish being caught this week. “Concentrate the drop shot and spoons down to 30 feet or so. Most of the spoon fish are being caught by using it in conjunction with your sonar. I am alternating between a 1-oz. and a 3/4-oz. spoon. The shad are very small right now, so spoon size can be crucial. Cranks and jerkbaits are doing best around rocky humps in the 8- to 10-foot range. I am using a Lucky Craft Staysee 90 and a Flat Mini Dr. as my weapon of choice. As we approach January, I will rely more on the deeper fish to produce — mostly a lot of sonar fishing with your spoon and drop shot.”

Linesides: Staying on the linesides has a challenge this winter at Allatoona, and that’s after you get the boat in the water. “Its been hit or miss. We’ve had some very, very good days, but also some days that aren’t so good,” said guide Robert Eidson of First Bite Guide Service. “I would say the best tip right now is to believe what you see on the depthfinder, not what you read in the fishing reports. We should be catching fish near the surface this time of year, but I’ve been catching stripers 32 and 40 feet deep. All the bait is deep, like it’s set up in a summertime pattern. I caught some fish 50 feet deep on spoons. If the weather gets stable and stays cold and the water temperature gets down to 48 or 49 degrees, I think we’ll see these fish blow up on top,” Robert said. If the baitfish move up to the surface, use flatlines, freelines and planer boards with small 5 1/2-inch trout, or cast a Sammy or Zoom Super Fluke. “I absolutely love a Fluke. They’ll eat it, and the single hook doesn’t tear the fish or you up with all those treble hooks,” Robert said. “We should be catching them on the surface, but I’ve never seen bait come up quickly from 40 feet to the top. Normally the shad come up the water column gradually.” He said the linesides are spread out from Kellogg Creek to Iron Hill, and you should concentrate at the mouths of the creeks. “The fish are moving. One day you can catch them at a spot, and the next day they won’t be there. The key is the mouths of the creeks. They’re not in the backs of the creeks where they should be. Forget about traditional wintertime patterns,” Robert said.