Lake Chatuge Fishing Report – January 2024

Chatuge: Level: 7 feet below 1925. Temp: 52-54 degrees. Clarity: Clear.

Bass: Guide Eric Welch, of Welch’s Guide Service, reports, “Fishing is good. The lake is down at winter pool. There has been some topwater action around during the day. I would recommend always keeping a topwater on the front deck. I like throwing a Berkley Cane Walker, Strike King Sexy Dawg Jr. and a Lucky Craft Gunfish. With the lake being down, you can get way off some of the clay points on the main body of the lake, and you will see fish stacked up 12 to 25 feet deep before it drops off to deeper water. I’ve been targeting these fish with a drop shot using a 6-inch Roboworm or switching it up with a 3-inch minnow bait to try and match the herring that they’re feeding on. You can also catch some on a Ned rig, jig and a shaky head. This time of year is a good time to start using small swimbaits. I like throwing a Strike King 3.25-inch Rage Swimmer on a 1/4- to 5/16-oz. VMC swimbait hook. If you find a good school of fish off a point or in a ditch, try throwing a Flex-It spoon or a hair jig. Chatuge is full of herring baitfish, so fall and winter is a great time to throw a jerkbait or a small crankbait. If you want to just burn the banks, try paralleling and throwing a No. 5 Shad Rap. This is a great time of year to work on your electronic skills. If you have any of the forward-viewing sonars, now is the time to check out your settings. If you set it up right, you will be able to watch a jerkbait or crankbait come right over the brushpile or school of fish. It’s a good time to drag the A-rig back out. It’s really fun to watch on the Garmin Livescope. You can watch the fish chase it, and you can also pause it and watch them run into it on the screen. Good luck.”

Lake Chatuge Page: Archived Articles, News & Fishing Reports