Lake Blue Ridge Fishing Report – September 2023

Blue Ridge: Level: 3.2 feet below 1686. Temp: 84-86 degrees. Clarity: Clear.

Bass: Guide Eric Welch reports: “Fishing has been fair. It’s been hot the past month and we’ve not been getting much rain, so the water temps have been rising. I’ve been starting out on the main body, fishing deep points, banks with rock and any brush I can find. I’ve been targeting these fish with a drop-shot rig, with a 6-inch, hand-poured worm, shaky head and a Yum Sonar Minnow on a 1/4-oz. hand-poured swimbait head. This time of year, you will mark a lot of fish on your forward-facing sonar. You just have to be patient and keep working at them until you get one to bite. Most of the time if you can get one to commit, then the other fish will start getting active. I always keep a couple of topwater baits tied on in case fish start breaking. I keep a Berkley Choppo and a Zoom Fluke with a weighted hook tied on. After a couple of hours, I normally start my way up the river fishing the points and deep rocky banks. I will be throwing the drop shot and a Texas rig, targeting deep banks in 18 to 45 feet and will be looking for banks that have brush. It won’t be long until we should start seeing some cooler weather. I know I can’t wait until we get back to that 55-degree water temps. Winter fishing for these spotted bass can be off the charts. Good luck.” For more on fishing with Eric Welch, go to www.welchsguideservice.com.

Guide Eric Crowley reports, “The bass bite has picked up a lot with plenty of nice-sized spotted bass coming to the boat. We have been trolling and casting a white Cast Prodigy 4.1 for walleye and spots, as well as the purple color options. Rigging these with a 1/4- or 3/8-oz. jig head will keep them just off the bottom. Slow rolling them over points or humps just off of a tapering bottom has been a trip producer.”

Walleye: Guide Eric Crowley reports, “September can be a hot, sticky mess, but this lake has an amazing cold-water river that feeds it. The area from Point 5 up to Tilley Bend will hold a variety of fish this month. The one we concentrate on is the walleye. The fish should be along the river channel bends holding near 60 feet of water on the bottom. The type of bottom will vary, but typically rocky bottom is what you’re looking for. We like to fish with spoons, jigs and live worms. It’s a pretty easy system. Find the fish and give them your bait or lure. If they don’t react to it, go find the next fish. Covering water until you find active fish is key right now versus trying to get a fish to bite. The more ground you cover, the more fish you will catch. On cloudy days, look shallower. On post-front, bluebird sky days, the fish will always be deep on this clear, mountain lake.” For more on fishing with Eric Crowley, go to https://ellijayfishing.com.

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