Post by mwardncsu on Sept 24, 2012 10:34:04 GMT -5
Courtesy of Mike Snead
Fishing & Outdoor Report
Smith Mountain Lake, VA
Sept. 24 - Oct. 8 2012
Water Temp: 70-75 degrees
Water Clarity: Stained/Good
The weather forecast was right on target and over the past several weeks and we experienced the beautiful fall weather and cooler temperatures predicted. Seasonal temperatures continue to cool the lake and the water temperature near the surface has dropped a couple of degrees. The current forecast is for continued clear to partly cloudy skies and cool temperatures. Scattered showers are forecast as we approach this coming weekend and then again early next week. There was a first quarter moon this past weekend and with a full moon this Sunday, September 30th, there will be plenty of light when it is overhead.
The daytime high temperature will spike around 85 degrees this Wednesday and then seasonal temperatures will return. For the remainder of the next two weeks, the daytime the high temperature is only expected to reach the mid 70’s, The low temperature at night will range from the low 40’s to the low 50’s. These temperatures will continue to reduce the temperature of the lake and the surrounding streams as well. Joel Janacek’s most recent lake temperature readings at the Hales Ford Bridge indicate temperatures are evenly distributed, dropping about 3 degrees for every ten feet below the surface down to about 40 feet where the temperature tends to stabilize at around 65 degrees. For more detailed information as well as future readings, I suggest you take a look at Joel’s data on Facebook at www.facebook.com/SmithMountainStriperClub.
The heavy precipitation that moved through the area last week brought as much as 2 inches of rain. While the runoff from that storm has stained the upper sections of the lake and the backs of selected creeks, the water in the lower lake remains fairly clear. The recent rain also brought the lake level up about a foot, but we continue to be about three feet below full pond so care should be taken anytime you are boating near shallow water, shoals or unfamiliar waters. Those trailering large displacement boats will also want to use a steep boat ramp or a long one with good deep water access.
As the lake continues to cool we should see more bait fish move toward the surface and this will stimulate additional surface feeding activity, especially early and late in the day. There have already been a number of reports of smallmouth bass feeding on the surface, most in the lower lake. Smallmouths have been reported breaking in open water from Walden’s to Witcher’s Creek. Good lures for breaking smallmouth include the Lobina Rico, Spook, Lucky Craft Gunfish, poppers, small swimbaits and belly rigged flukes. Stripers have also been seen chasing bait near the surface. There have been recent reports of stripers feeding near the surface at the dam, Craddock Creek, Bull Run, Gills Creek and Becky’s Creek. Good topwater striper lures include the Cotton Cordell Pencil Popper, Red Fin, Creek Chub Striper Strike, Zara Spook, Rapala X Rap, Lucky Craft Gunfish as well as the traditional flukes and soft swimbaits.
Striper fishermen and women continue to mark both large schools and small pods of fish. Early and late some stripers are being found closer to the surface using shotlines behind planer boards, but once the sun moves overhead most stripers are still being found in schools from 20 to 60 feet below the surface. Good areas for stripers include the mouths of most creeks in the lower and middle lake as well as the main river channel. Large schools are usually located by anglers using good electronics and while schooled fish are often found in open water, they can also be located in submerged timber. These deep water stripers are being caught using live shad or shiners presented on downlines and by vertically jigging or casting counting down and retrieving spoons and flukes rigged on lead headed jigs. Schooled stripers move quickly and huge schools can virtually disappear in just a few moments, so once located getting baits or lures down to the fish quickly is critical.
Trolling continues to be a productive striper fishing technique and one that is particularly popular throughout the summer and fall when the fish are still deep and in schools. While several anglers continue to report success trolling with crankbaits and diving jerkbaits, most striper anglers trolling use a three-way rig or an Umbrella (Alabama) rig. Anglers using a three way rig typically attach a lightweight flutter spoon (Sutton spoon) to one side of a three-way swivel using a 4 to 7 foot fluorocarbon leader and either a heavy bucktail with trailer or a soft paddle tailed swimbait to the swivel using a shorter 2 to 4 foot leader. The remaining end of the three-way swivel is attached to the main line with a 6 to10 foot section of fluorocarbon leader. If neither lead core line nor downriggers are used, additional weights may be needed to get the lures to the appropriate depth. Depth control is critical when trolling so whether using lead core line, braid outfits or downriggers it is essential the angler know how deep their lures are running. If you are uncertain about the actual depth of your lures, I suggest you pull your lures at trolling speed over a structure free point 15, 20 and 25 feet below the surface, extending your lines, reducing speed or adding weight until your lure bumps the bottom. Then record the precise ground speed using your fish finder or automobile GPS and the length of line behind your boat for that particular weight rig. When schooled fish are located use these measurements to troll your lures several feet above the targeted species.
Bass fishing continues to be mixed and fish are being found both shallow and deep. Smallmouth and largemouth bass have been caught while chasing bait to the surface. In addition to the lures mentioned earlier, spinner baits, buzz baits, ‘the Lucky Craft Sammy, Wake Tail, Pop’R, soft frog lure and the Strike King Sexy Dawg will also work when bass are feeding on shad near the surface. In clearer water, lures that are pearl, blue shad or white pearl, silver and light holographic in color are excellent choices. In stained or muddy water try chartreuse and gold colored lures.
The current low water condition has really influenced the places where largemouth bass can be found. In many places the water level is no longer high enough to reach the rip rap shoreline, under protected walkways and the back sections of fixed and floating docks. As a result some bass have moved out on the docks and the ends of laydowns and are being caught on spinner baits, crankbaits, wacky rigged worms (Senko’s) and lightweight shaky head jigs. Bass are also suspending in deep timber, brush, next to creek channels and ledges inside the major creeks. Some bass are reported to be moving up into shallow water at night, early and late where they are being caught on crankbaits, jigs and Texas rigged plastics.
On the local scene, Alta Vista bass angler Bryant Copley won the overall 2012 Cabela’s Bassmaster Federation Nation Mid-Atlantic Divisional by one ounce when he brought a bag weighing 21 pounds, 2 ounces to the scale on the final day for a total weight of 52 pounds 4 ounces. Congratulations Bryant. The Smith Mountain Lake Bassmaster fishing club will hold its next meeting on October 17th. It will be held in the Moneta library starting at 7 pm and all interested in the club are invited to attend. The Smith Mountain Striper Club will hold its next meeting on Friday, October 5th. The members will be sponsoring a swap meet and all who are interested in joining this club are invited to stop by and check it out. The Striper Club is also holding the Frank Skillman Fall Member-Guest Tournament on October 13th. Tournament headquarters for this event is Captains Quarters Marina. The striper tournament will end at 4 pm and the weigh-in is open to the public.
Archery and crossbow hunting seasons start in two weeks on October 6th. Anyone who expects to be in the woods or other areas where there might be hunters is encouraged to wear a bright orange cap or vest.
Enjoy this great fall weather and tight lines.
Mike Snead
Fishing & Outdoor Report
Smith Mountain Lake, VA
Sept. 24 - Oct. 8 2012
Water Temp: 70-75 degrees
Water Clarity: Stained/Good
The weather forecast was right on target and over the past several weeks and we experienced the beautiful fall weather and cooler temperatures predicted. Seasonal temperatures continue to cool the lake and the water temperature near the surface has dropped a couple of degrees. The current forecast is for continued clear to partly cloudy skies and cool temperatures. Scattered showers are forecast as we approach this coming weekend and then again early next week. There was a first quarter moon this past weekend and with a full moon this Sunday, September 30th, there will be plenty of light when it is overhead.
The daytime high temperature will spike around 85 degrees this Wednesday and then seasonal temperatures will return. For the remainder of the next two weeks, the daytime the high temperature is only expected to reach the mid 70’s, The low temperature at night will range from the low 40’s to the low 50’s. These temperatures will continue to reduce the temperature of the lake and the surrounding streams as well. Joel Janacek’s most recent lake temperature readings at the Hales Ford Bridge indicate temperatures are evenly distributed, dropping about 3 degrees for every ten feet below the surface down to about 40 feet where the temperature tends to stabilize at around 65 degrees. For more detailed information as well as future readings, I suggest you take a look at Joel’s data on Facebook at www.facebook.com/SmithMountainStriperClub.
The heavy precipitation that moved through the area last week brought as much as 2 inches of rain. While the runoff from that storm has stained the upper sections of the lake and the backs of selected creeks, the water in the lower lake remains fairly clear. The recent rain also brought the lake level up about a foot, but we continue to be about three feet below full pond so care should be taken anytime you are boating near shallow water, shoals or unfamiliar waters. Those trailering large displacement boats will also want to use a steep boat ramp or a long one with good deep water access.
As the lake continues to cool we should see more bait fish move toward the surface and this will stimulate additional surface feeding activity, especially early and late in the day. There have already been a number of reports of smallmouth bass feeding on the surface, most in the lower lake. Smallmouths have been reported breaking in open water from Walden’s to Witcher’s Creek. Good lures for breaking smallmouth include the Lobina Rico, Spook, Lucky Craft Gunfish, poppers, small swimbaits and belly rigged flukes. Stripers have also been seen chasing bait near the surface. There have been recent reports of stripers feeding near the surface at the dam, Craddock Creek, Bull Run, Gills Creek and Becky’s Creek. Good topwater striper lures include the Cotton Cordell Pencil Popper, Red Fin, Creek Chub Striper Strike, Zara Spook, Rapala X Rap, Lucky Craft Gunfish as well as the traditional flukes and soft swimbaits.
Striper fishermen and women continue to mark both large schools and small pods of fish. Early and late some stripers are being found closer to the surface using shotlines behind planer boards, but once the sun moves overhead most stripers are still being found in schools from 20 to 60 feet below the surface. Good areas for stripers include the mouths of most creeks in the lower and middle lake as well as the main river channel. Large schools are usually located by anglers using good electronics and while schooled fish are often found in open water, they can also be located in submerged timber. These deep water stripers are being caught using live shad or shiners presented on downlines and by vertically jigging or casting counting down and retrieving spoons and flukes rigged on lead headed jigs. Schooled stripers move quickly and huge schools can virtually disappear in just a few moments, so once located getting baits or lures down to the fish quickly is critical.
Trolling continues to be a productive striper fishing technique and one that is particularly popular throughout the summer and fall when the fish are still deep and in schools. While several anglers continue to report success trolling with crankbaits and diving jerkbaits, most striper anglers trolling use a three-way rig or an Umbrella (Alabama) rig. Anglers using a three way rig typically attach a lightweight flutter spoon (Sutton spoon) to one side of a three-way swivel using a 4 to 7 foot fluorocarbon leader and either a heavy bucktail with trailer or a soft paddle tailed swimbait to the swivel using a shorter 2 to 4 foot leader. The remaining end of the three-way swivel is attached to the main line with a 6 to10 foot section of fluorocarbon leader. If neither lead core line nor downriggers are used, additional weights may be needed to get the lures to the appropriate depth. Depth control is critical when trolling so whether using lead core line, braid outfits or downriggers it is essential the angler know how deep their lures are running. If you are uncertain about the actual depth of your lures, I suggest you pull your lures at trolling speed over a structure free point 15, 20 and 25 feet below the surface, extending your lines, reducing speed or adding weight until your lure bumps the bottom. Then record the precise ground speed using your fish finder or automobile GPS and the length of line behind your boat for that particular weight rig. When schooled fish are located use these measurements to troll your lures several feet above the targeted species.
Bass fishing continues to be mixed and fish are being found both shallow and deep. Smallmouth and largemouth bass have been caught while chasing bait to the surface. In addition to the lures mentioned earlier, spinner baits, buzz baits, ‘the Lucky Craft Sammy, Wake Tail, Pop’R, soft frog lure and the Strike King Sexy Dawg will also work when bass are feeding on shad near the surface. In clearer water, lures that are pearl, blue shad or white pearl, silver and light holographic in color are excellent choices. In stained or muddy water try chartreuse and gold colored lures.
The current low water condition has really influenced the places where largemouth bass can be found. In many places the water level is no longer high enough to reach the rip rap shoreline, under protected walkways and the back sections of fixed and floating docks. As a result some bass have moved out on the docks and the ends of laydowns and are being caught on spinner baits, crankbaits, wacky rigged worms (Senko’s) and lightweight shaky head jigs. Bass are also suspending in deep timber, brush, next to creek channels and ledges inside the major creeks. Some bass are reported to be moving up into shallow water at night, early and late where they are being caught on crankbaits, jigs and Texas rigged plastics.
On the local scene, Alta Vista bass angler Bryant Copley won the overall 2012 Cabela’s Bassmaster Federation Nation Mid-Atlantic Divisional by one ounce when he brought a bag weighing 21 pounds, 2 ounces to the scale on the final day for a total weight of 52 pounds 4 ounces. Congratulations Bryant. The Smith Mountain Lake Bassmaster fishing club will hold its next meeting on October 17th. It will be held in the Moneta library starting at 7 pm and all interested in the club are invited to attend. The Smith Mountain Striper Club will hold its next meeting on Friday, October 5th. The members will be sponsoring a swap meet and all who are interested in joining this club are invited to stop by and check it out. The Striper Club is also holding the Frank Skillman Fall Member-Guest Tournament on October 13th. Tournament headquarters for this event is Captains Quarters Marina. The striper tournament will end at 4 pm and the weigh-in is open to the public.
Archery and crossbow hunting seasons start in two weeks on October 6th. Anyone who expects to be in the woods or other areas where there might be hunters is encouraged to wear a bright orange cap or vest.
Enjoy this great fall weather and tight lines.
Mike Snead