Lake Allatoona Fishing Report – January 2019

Allatoona: Level: 13.3 feet low. Temp: 52 degrees but warms the closer you get to the dam. Clarity: The northern part of the lake is stained, but the south end is clear.

Bass: Tournament angler Matt Driver reports, “Fishing on Allatoona typically gets tough toward the end of the month if temperatures dip into the low 40s and we start to see a shad kill. The end of December has been mild, and water temps are still in the low 50s and high 40s. January is a great month for the Float-n-Fly. I fish the three-way swivel system with a 10-foot leader of 6-lb. Sniper Fluorocarbon and a variety of Red Rooster flies. Bluff walls and slow retrieves are the keys to getting bit. January is also a great month for catching a mixed bag of spots and white bass on the spoon. I like to use a 3/4-oz. War Eagle spoon on 14-lb. Sniper Fluorocarbon. Fish are not always visible on sonar when they’re holding close to the bottom. Drop the spoon to the bottom, reel up a couple of turns, and work the bait with short pops of the rod tip. Target fish in ditches off creek channels. Last but not least, the Ned Rig is always a go-to in January. Fish an Aaron Martens’ Picasso Weedless Rhino Ned Head and a Roboworm Ned Worm in bull bream. Little River to Galts is most productive right now.”

Linesides: Guide Robert Eidson reports, “Lineside fishing is very good. The fish are on the move and can be caught anywhere from Little River to Iron Hill. Our better bite has been mid-lake from Stamp Creek to Kellogg Creek out over the river channel. I start out my day putting out a full spread of planer boards, freelines and downlines midway back in the creeks. After 9 a.m., I switch to all downlines, and after 10 a.m., I pull u-rigs out of the river channel. Trolling has been my best bite for numbers, but our bigger fish are coming on live bait (shad, threadfins, shiners and trout). This is usually the time of year I put my cast net up and fish exclusively store bought bait (Striper Soup and The Dugout Bait and Tackle) and Mack Farr U-rigs. Over all, I think this is the best fall bite we have had in years. I look for this pattern to hold on through Christmas and until the middle of January.”