Lake Oconee Fishing Report October 2011

Oconee: Level: 1 foot below full pool. Temp: High 70s to low 80s. Clarity: Slight stain.

Bass: Very good. Guide and tournament pro Tony Couch reports, “Bass are biting plastic worms and jigs under and around shallow docks. Fishing deep-water ledges is fair to good on Carolina and Texas rigs in 10 to 25 feet of water. Junebug and watermelon seed are dominant colors.”

Crappie: Good. Al Bassett reports, “The fish are starting to move with the shad to the backs of the creeks. You can still catch fish over brushpiles in 10 to 15 feet of water. Use your Lowrance HDS unit to find the fish before you start fishing. The bites may be a very light, so use light line and be a line watcher. Using live bait in the brush is your best bet. By the end of the month, fish should start to show up in the backs of the creeks around the lake.” Tony reports, “Use live shiners or shad and small grubs or jigs over submerged trees in 10 to 30 feet of water. Most of the fish are suspended over the tops of the trees. Some fish are still being caught under docks shooting small light jigs under them.”

Catfish: Excellent. Tony reports, “Plenty of fish are still being caught on bottom in anywhere from 5 to 25 feet. Fish are being caught on all areas of the lake, but the largest continue to be taken in the Oconee River arm of the lake. Shrimp and live shad are good bets for sheer numbers, but the largest fish are still being caught on cutbait and live bream.” Guide Chad Smith reports, “Look for the catfish to stage off ledges coming off main-lake channels in 30 to 35 feet of water this month. The night bite is almost non-existent, but the morning/day bite is getting better by the day as we get into October and the water temps fall into the high 60s to low 70s. A good place to start your catfish hunt during the morning is around the standing timber with a channel that swings next to the timber. Fish in the timber and in the channel. On days with a lot of sun, fish the main-lake channels from Sugar Creek to the Highway 44 bridge in 30 to 35 feet of water using big, cut gizzard shad and cut bream for bait. The best bite on any given day is during the generation cycle. So watch close for the water to start moving then hang on to your fishing rod.”

Linesides: Slow. Tony said the few that are being caught are coming from the south end of the lake on live shad. “A few white bass and small hybrids are starting to school a little on mid-lake points. Thing Poppers and Rooster Tails are best bet for these schoolies,” he said.