Lake Blue Ridge Fishing Report – January 2025

Blue Ridge: Level: 17.1 feet below 1686. Temp: 51-55 degrees. Clarity: Clear.

Bass: Eric Welch, of Welch’s Guide Service, reports, “Fishing is good. We are almost at a normal winter pool. These colder nights and days are helping the water temp come down. This time of year it’s time to go back to the old-school ways and dig out the Rebel Deep Wee R, Bandit 200 and Rapala Shad Rap and do some parallel crankbaiting. Once the sun gets up during the day, the bass always seem to pull up around the rocks. This time of year, we always catch a lot of fish on Z-man Ned rig and a 3.5-inch tube. You can also drag around a Zoom 5-inch Finesse worm on a shaky head. When the water gets cold, I change my drop-shot up to a 4.5-inch worm and the colors are red crawler and ayu. If you find some fish bunched up, you can throw a jig-head minnow or also try a 1/2-oz. spoon or Silver Buddy. In the winter, I like fishing 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. A jerkbait and an A-rig will catch good fish this time of year. Good luck.”

Lake Blue Ridge Page: Archived Articles, Fishing Reports and Official Lake Records

Walleye: Guide Eric Crowley, of Lake And Stream Guide Service, reports, “Just because it’s freezing cold doesn’t mean you can’t catch fish. Vertical fishing is the name of the game for walleye right now. Spoons, jigs, minnows and soft plastics fished right in the face of the fish is the best way to draw a strike. It’s a reaction strike, but it’s a lot slower than in the fall. Short movements versus an aggressive presentation is the way to go. For locating fish, look for bait in an area and look for fish on the bottom just below it. Forty to 60 feet has been the target zone. Position the boat to make the most vertical presentation you can with the wind, and work around the area 20 to 30 feet in each direction. Don’t spend too much time if you’re not getting bit. Sunny conditions really affect the walleye. Look for cloudy, overcast or windy days to be best for numbers. Vary your colors for the weather conditions, and you’re in business. We have been seeing lots of 20- to 21-inch fish, with some bigger 22- to 23-inch fish mixed in.” 

Perch: Guide Eric Crowley, of Lake And Stream Guide Service, reports, “The big perch bite is still going on. The big females are gearing up for spawning, and they love minnows. Fish minnows on a jig, on a spinner harness or just a hook and split-shot. The 16- to 40-foot range where the bait is thick is where the bigger perch seem to be. Downsize everything from line to hooks, and you’ll up your catch rates.”