Lake Oconee Fishing Report – October 2007

Oconee: Level: Down 0.8 feet below full pool. Temp: 80-83 degrees. Clarity: Mostly clear, except for a light stain up the rivers.

Bass: It’s been only fair, but look for some very good bass fishing to get cranked up in October. “The water temperatures should drop to the mid 60s by the end of the month. Look for the bass to move into shallow water as they follow the shad into the back of the creeks and big coves around the lake,” said guide Al Bassett. “The best baits to use are a spinnerbait or a small Rat-L-Trap.” Another pattern to try is fishing Texas-rigged worms around the docks, particuarly the docks that are in the backs of the coves. “There will be a good topwater bite during the month using a buzzbait or a Pop-R, and topwater should bring you some good fish,” Al said. “If the day is overcast, use topwater all day.”

Crappie: Fair, but look for some trolling action for good numbers of decent-sized crappie to pick up by the middle to end of October. “Some of the crappie will be making a move back into the shallow water,” Al said. “Trolling in 5 to 8 feet of water in the backs of the coves using Jiffy Jigs tipped with minnows is a great way to catch a limit of fish. There will be some fish still holding over brushpiles in 10 to 15 feet of water. Using live bait over brush would be your best bet. Fishing at night in the standing timber around the lake will start to pick up by the end of the month and will only get better after that.” Allan Brown was on the lake Sept. 22, and said he caught about 100 fish shooting deep docks in 10 to 12 feet of water or deeper. He also pulled a few off treetops and deep blowdowns. He used a homemade 1/32-oz. jig in ice blue or blue/purple to catch most of the fish. “Try to fish as many docks as you can, and try to target docks in deep water,” Allan said. “Cover as much water as you can, shoot as many as you can and find the fish.