Lake Allatoona Fishing Report – July 2009

Allatoona: Level: 0.8 feet above full pool. Temp: 85-87 degrees. Clarity: Clear.

Bass: Matt Driver reports, “Fishing is fair. The fish are on their summertime haunts like bluff walls and deep brush. Right now, fishing at night or early in the morning is your best bet. For the morning bite, throw a topwater on bluff walls. A Pop-R or a black buzzbait fished parallel to the wall will be a good starting point. As the sun gets higher in the sky, back off to the 15- to 30-foot range with a drop shot. I like the 2 1/2-inch Bio Minnow by Big Bite Baits fished on a size 4 Gamakatsu drop-shot hook and a Slim drop-shot weight. Put a little crescent bend in your weight to keep it from getting hung as much. The finesse jig and a Norman’s Deep Little N in black or blue are great baits for night fishing.”

Linesides: Excellent. “They’re on a summer bite, and that’s the easiest bite you can do — downlines and U-rigs,” Robert Eidson said. “The fishing’s so good, people don’t need me right now.” Robert said stripers and hybrids are loaded at the mouth of Kellogg Creek where the river channel meets the creek channel. Other locations with fish include the mouth of Illinois Creek, the ledge out from Bartow-Carver beach, and he said there’s a huge school coming up every morning at the mouth of Clear Creek. “If you live on the south end, the mouth of Clark and Tanyard where they come together is loaded with fish. The average daily catch right now is absolutely insane. Set the downlines at 24 feet. It’s a carbon copy every morning. I’m using threadfin and gizzard shad, but they die really quick, so I’m carrying some shiners. On the U-rigs, troll them 100 feet back at 3.1 to 3.4 mph. Troll the mouths of the creeks. Jigging spoons will get you bit, too.”