Carters Lake
by Eric Crowley
Water temperature: high 70s, lake level: full, clarity: clear.
Carters has been fishing pretty good for this time of year. Stripers can still be found in their late summer hangouts. Deep points and ledges near the main river channel first thing in the morning seem to be the favorite of these big fish. Bait of choice is still live threadfins and alewife caught fresh. I like 1/0 hooks and 17-pound leaders in 7-9 foot range. Fishing these baits about 15 feet off the bottom has been the most productive lately. Always try and keep the bait above the fish but not out of the strike zone. Move slowly and watch your sonar for marks right on the bottom. Sometimes, it’s hard to tell what is a fish and what is a piece of bottom structure till it moves.
The spot bite is decent. There is some topwater action in the dark on shallow points, but after sunrise it’s all about the deep bite. Shaky heads, drop shots, spoons and jigs are all go-to’s this month. Find the fish and keep the bait right in their faces. Look around Doll Mountain and the marina for good areas to start and the long points like Woodring and Worley are always worth checking out. Hopefully, by the end of the month we will see much cooler temps and the fish moving back up shallow for the fall bite.
The walleye bite is best upriver with some fish being caught on live bait from Ridgeway upriver and on spoons in the river channel. Look for bottom contours that change from rock to mud and the surrounding areas. Good luck this month to everyone and enjoy the fall weather.