Lake Blue Ridge Fishing Report – February 2024

Blue Ridge: Level: 14.3 feet low 1686. Temp: 44 degrees. Clarity: 14 feet.

Bass: Guide Eric Crowley, of Lake And Stream Guide Service reports, “The spotted bass are schooled up and cruising the 20- to 40-foot depth looking for bait balls to feed on. Spoons or live minnows, shad or herring will get plenty of bites right now. Another option is fishing the backs of creeks with small swimbaits. We are throwing the Cast Prodigy and Cast Echo in the 3-inch size on 1/8- or 1/4-oz. jig heads and letting it fall to the bottom, then crawling it back on or just off the bottom. If the fish you’re targeting are suspended up high, try a 3/8-oz. VMC Hammer Head jig and trailer hook with the 3-inch Prodigy fished real slow vertically. The recent trout stocking has given us a decent trout bite scattered all over the main lake. Casting spoons have been the go-to option as they will absolutely annihilate them. Straight chrome or chrome and blue have had the most action. Any surface activity right now is most likely trout, so sling a spoon at them if you get the chance.”

Eric Welch, of Welch’s Guide Service, reports, “Fishing has been fair. We’ve had so many weather changes the past month. The lake came up fast with all the rain, and water temps have dropped due to the single digits we’ve had. The fish I’ve been marking and catching has been 12 to 45 feet deep. I’ve been catching most my fish on a Ned rig and a 3.5-inch tube. My setup is a 7-foot, medium-fast St. Croix Legend X spinning rod with a Daiwa Fuego reel spooled with 7-lb. Gamma Touch fluorocarbon line. I will also throw a drop shot with a 4.5-inch Roboworm. In the winter when the water temp is cold, I like throwing the 4.5-inch worm over the 6-inch worm, but when the water temp gets above 55 degrees, I like throwing the 6-inch worm. The areas I’m targeting are deep banks with rocks and way-off points. If using forward-facing sonar. If you start marking a lot of fish but can’t seem to get them to bite, try throwing a Yum Sonar Minnow on a 1/4- or 3/8-oz. swimbait head. If you can find some fish bunched up, try throwing a Silver Buddy or a Flex-It spoon. With the water temps now in the 40s, try throwing a float-n-fly, and there are a couple of different ways we fish it. One is with a small, hand-tied 1/32-oz. hair fly with a 10- to 15-foot leader. We’ll fish it on rocky banks and points. The other way is with a 20- to 35-foot leader with a line through the float with a 1/32-oz. weighted hook and a small Tiny Fluke. We’ll fish this from the mouths of pockets and fish our way in. It’s hard to beat a No. 5 Shad Rap or a Bandit 200 in a baitfish pattern on the rocky banks. Also, a jerkbait and an A-rig catch good fish this time of year.”

Lake Blue Ridge Page: Archived Articles, News & Fishing Reports

Walleye: Guide Eric Crowley, of Lake And Stream Guide Service reports, “February typically brings our coldest temps of the year. These cold temps will drive fish deep to more stable water temps. This time of year, I tell everyone to find the deepest fish you can find and target those fish. Walleye hate light and love to lay in the deep water pinned to the bottom. Look for small groups of fish or individuals laying on the bottom near bait. A simple jig and minnow, small spoon or soft plastic fished right in their face will usually draw a bite or two. Walleye can be super picky on color, so switch between a few of your favorites to dial in the bite each day. As far as area or location this time of year, it doesn’t seem to matter much. As long as you’re looking deep, you’ll find a few fish here and there. Unlike most of the year, in February you can sleep in a bit and get started around 8 a.m. instead of getting on the water well before sunrise for the walleye. You may not see the numbers this time of year, but the size of fish can’t be beat. With the fish feeding up for the spring run, now is the time to catch some fatty females before they turn their attention to spawning versus eating.”