by Eric Crowley
Water temperature: low 80s maybe upper 70s by print, lake level: full, clarity 4 feet.
October usually means turnover and that usually means bad fishing conditions. For those that don’t know what turnover is, it is when cooler water building up on the surface sinks down forcing the warmer water under it to rise to the top. The different stratified layers mix, the temperature is pretty consistent across the entire lake, and the water usually turns super green.
So now that you know what and why, let’s cover what to do to catch fish in these conditions. One way is to locate water that has started to clear up a little or water that has started to warm up a degree or two. The backs of the creeks are a good place to start. Another tactic is to move upriver. The fresh water coming in from the Coosawattee River will attract and hold fish. You will be able to see the “mud line” in the river, and you’ll know that is a good indicator of where to start looking for fish. If the river is too muddy or blown out from heavy rains, another good place to check is in front of the dam. The pumping and generating of water forces the water to churn and mix which works against the layers of water building up and therefore the turnover has little effect in this area of the lake. Stripers, spots and walleye will be mixed together in each area although you will see them in different depths.
This cooling effect on the lake also pushes bait to the surface which opens up another option to catch fish and that’s the topwater bite. Look for schools of busting fish on the main lake both at dawn and mainly at dusk. Hybrids and the spotted bass are both starting to crash bait on the surface in the evening just before dark. The areas in front of the beach as well as in front of the marina have had some consistent action.
As far as baits go, live alewife and threadfin caught under the Hydro Glow are still your best bet till the water starts to cool off by the end of the month. After that we will switch to medium size rainbow trout.