By Steve McCorkle “Colonel”
stevemccorkle61@yahoo.com
For the past week the outside temperature has been falling due in part to Hurricanes Harvey and Irma. The water temps last week were in the high 70’s and lower 80’s, but this week are dropping into the mid 70’s. This drop in temperature is great for the fishing. Most of the fish will start to move into their fall patterns and will be chasing shad to the shallow waters making finding fish and establishing a pattern much easier.
The bass should be chasing shad in shallow coves and flats near deeper water. Many different types of baits will work well during this time. The majority of the bass will be able to be caught on either lipless crankbaits or swimbaits. Fish these baits along the shoreline and around shallow structure. The bass may not be as tied to structure during this time of year, so you should cover lots of water and use these fast baits to do so. If you find that the shoreline you are fishing is covered in hydrilla then back off the shoreline and use the edge of the hydrilla as the shoreline. You can also catch bass on plastic worms either weightless or Texas rigged. Have a rod with these tied on in case you find the bass are not as aggressive as they should be. Fish the same banks and structure that you fish the lipless crankbait. You can also use the weightless worm to pull across and through the hydrilla. Topwater baits such as buzzbaits, swimbaits, poppers and jerkbaits will still work well during this time of year. At night bass can also be caught fishing the lights on docks, especially the submerged lights. Best baits for nighttime are Texas rig worms, trick worms, swimbaits and rubber shad baits.
Striped bass and hybrids should start to feed on shad and should be able to be caught in the same manner as largemouth bass using a lipless crankbait or swimbait. You will find stripes and hybrids either in the back of coves or along shallow points near deeper water. The key is to locate the shad, and wherever they are is where the fish will be.
The crappie are still biting under the bridges and around docks with deep water at night as long as the dock has good lighting to attract baitfish and the crappie. Expect the crappie to move into shallow pockets and coves and be able to be caught along the banks. The best baits are minnows during this time of year, but small jigs and small spinners like a Beetle Spin are also good.
Bream, shellcracker and other sunfish are biting well. Target the back of coves, around docks and in the backwaters upriver. Live bait works best with crickets and earthworms being the best all around baits. If you prefer to use artificial baits, use small spinners in either chartreuse or yellow or some green color.
Catfish are also biting real well on Lake Harding. Best time to catch these fish is at night if you have lighting around a dock. I have started seeing some really big cats at night around the green lights. Catfish can also be caught during the day around docks and other deep water structure. Best baits are chicken livers, stink baits, and dough baits. Fish for catfish by using a bottom technique where you use a ¾ to 1 ounce weight to hold the bait near the bottom similar to a Carolina rig.
I am still catching good shoal bass up around the shoals and in the other smaller lakes on the Chattahoochee River between Lake West Point and Lake Harding. Fishing these areas is ideal for fishing from a kayak. Fish a Texas rig worm using small weights, a jointed swimbait or rubber swimbait.