By Steve McCorkle “Colonel”
stevemccorkle61@yahoo.com
This year has certainly been a little different. The weather has been warmer and stayed warmer longer into the fall than in any other year I can remember. We have seen several hurricanes hit our Gulf Coast, and in the area of Lake Harding we have seen very high levels of rainfall during these hurricanes. The lake is at full pool and even a little above full. The water still remains mostly clear but has seen some stain in some areas, especially in some of the creeks and small coves due to runoff. The water temps are still in the mid to upper 70’s, and I expect the temperatures of the lake to decrease moderately if the warm temperatures continue.
Fishing is good and I expect it to get better as the temperatures begin to decrease into November. Bass should be able to be caught shallow in coves and in the creeks using either Rat-L-Traps or swimbaits. Spinnerbaits should also be productive and the Texas-rig worm should also still be a good bait to catch fish. Hydrilla is still growing in several areas of the lake and in some areas has completely taken over some small coves and backwaters. Georgia Power has sprayed for the hydrilla but it is impossible to remove all of the weed from the lake.
Crappie are starting to bite well, and this should continue to get better also. Currently the crappie can be caught in the 10 – 12 feet depths around structure and deeper docks. The best technique is to use live minnows using a slip cork to get the bait into this depth range. I expect the crappie to move into some shallower water as the water temperatures fall into the upper 60’s, and if this happens, then crappie jigs and minnows should be productive.
Striped and hybrid bass are currently being caught off points and ledges and this should continue into November. I expect these fish will move up on shallow points as the shad move from deeper water to shallow water. Striped bass can be caught using similar baits to largemouth bass such as Rat-L-Traps, swimbaits and also on live minnows or shad.
Catfish are also still biting and can be caught using chicken livers, hotdogs, stink baits, etc. At night these fish are attracted to green lights. I have seen as many as 20 good size catfish around these lights at night.
All other species of fish are also biting well. During this time of year, you basically locate the baitfish and you will find the fish. Good Luck Fishing!