Lake Chatuge Fishing Report – October 2009

Chatuge: Level: 1.1 feet below full pool. Temp: Mid 70s. Clarity: The main body is still clear, but some of the creek runs have a slight stain.

Largemouths: Good. John Hembry said the lake is fishing well following heavy rains. The lake has come up several feet and flooded a lot of bank structure in the backs of the creeks. The largemouths have been biting pretty well on a spinnerbait around these newly submerged trees and rocks. John said a 1/2-oz., white/chartreuse spinnerbait fished around rock or wood cover in the backs of the creeks in less than 5 feet of water is a good pattern.

Spotted Bass: Spots are schooling a little on main-lake points over about 15 feet of water, and they can be caught on either a Fish Head Spin with a fluke trailer, a Sammy or a weightless fluke. They don’t stay up long. Once they go back down, John said they will suspend over brush, and the best way to catch them is to find them on your graph and drop a spoon or a drop shot to them. Fish a small minnow imitation on your drop shot. Tiny Flukes and 3-inch worms have been working pretty well.