“The Original Southern Fishing Report”

By Ken Sturdivant

106 Hickory Ridge

770-889-2654

Cumming, Georgia 30040

www.havefunfishing.com



December 24, 2010



LAKE LANIER IS DOWN 3.1 FEET, THE CREEKS ARE SLIGHTLY STAINED AND THE MAIN LAKE IS CLEAR & 49 DEGREES



Spotted bass are biting and there are still shallow fish and deep fish out there. In any main lake creek, fish the first 20 docks on the sunny banks first thing. Look for the larger docks all over the lake to be holding spots. Young Deer Creek work the first 20 docks just inside the creek on the right bank. Any overcast conditions will dictate using the Zoom finesse worms in water melon green and pumpkinseed on the same rig. Look in the ditches in the creeks and in the deep coves at 20 to 35 feet for the old trees and natural brush. The Zoom dark blue plastic pork trailer on the matching colors of 3/8 ounce Stanley jig is a good choice for this deep structure. Be prepared to fish deep to 35 feet with theses baits Simply drop the lure right into the structure and vertically lift the lure making contact with the cover. Strikes might be light so a sensitive rod and lighter line will allow the angler to feel this slight movement. A Flex It 1/2 ounce white spoon can work in these areas with short lifts of the bait working it through the cover. Sharp drop offs are the best locations. Try a standing timber technique. In the back of Wahoo Creek past the bridge fish on the rock island 100 feet on the left past the bridge. Some spots are in less than 10 feet of water. There are also deep fish in the creek beds that will take a spoon or a drop shot. If you can fish a 1.4 ounce jig deep with a smaller trailer, this will also work. Both bright sand and icicle Zoom finesse worms and small jigs are the best bets. When the sun is high use a Zoom sand and Limeaide worms on a Texas rig. Find the trees in the middle of any major creek and cast a jig into the tree. Let it sink at least 45 feet into the tree limbs and now use the tree limbs and doodle the jig in front of the spots. It’s sounds hard but give it try. Strikes will always happen on the fall. In the center of Shady Grove Park, there is a large stand of trees that deep water anglers fish all winter. Use the Lowrance and move into the center of the east cove and drop bait into the trees. Fish the mouth of Young Deer Creek within sight of the ramp on the main lake points. Pull up to these points and start at 45 feet deep. Keep the nose of the boat in the wind so you can control the boat. Drop baits right off the side of the boat and doodle up to 30 feet and hold on.



Striper fishing is good and the cold fronts, colder temperatures, a full moon, rain, and snow all add up to great striper fishing. Well almost, and the truth is the above weather changes can make striper fishing very unpredictable. One day, usually before a cold front, the fishing is great only to go out the next day and struggle to find any hungry fish. The fish are scattered lake wide and, as always, finding them is the key. Birds and bait are the key indicators. The birds are a big help in locating feeding fish and when you find rolling fish; approach slowly with a couple of free lines 50 ft. back, one or two down rods at 20 ft. and cast a Captain Mack's 1/2 oz bucktail jig with a fluke trailer the entire time. Trout, herring and gizzard shad will all work. If you find birds sitting or on a search pattern with bait nearby, look for suspended stripers in deeper water. You can search the area by graphing the area with your Lowrance, pulling baits or Umbrella rigs. The bite has been a early morning bite so don't wait until the late morning to hit the lake. While the fish are scattered lake wide, half way back in the south end creeks continues to be the most productive area. Success this time of the year depends on flexibility so don't spend a lot of time in any one area, keep your eyes on the water and use different techniques as the conditions change.



WEST POINT LAKE IS DOWN 5.9 FEET, STAINED AND 47 DEGREES



Bass fishing has been slow. With the lower water conditions fish have pulled out a little and the fish are scattered with the limited cover available. The best cover has been on steeper banks in the mouths of creeks and pockets such as lay downs and brush piles. It takes a little more time to find brush piles, but they are often better producers this time of year. The best cover has been in depths from ten to fifteen feet of water. These underwater hotels have been producing both spotted bass and largemouth. The best pattern has been a 3/8 ounce All Terrain jig in black and blue tipped with a black blue Z-Man chunkz, a 1/8 ounce shaky head with a Z-Man floating worm in green pumpkin, and mid depth crankbaits in a shad pattern. Use a Bandit crank bait in a natural shad pattern to cover water while locating cover. On sunny days the clear water jigging spoon bite has been great. Look for fish stacking on humps and roadbeds in Wehadkee creek to catch these fish.



Hybrid and striper fishing is good. The river bite has slowed some this week. The best bites have come from down lining live bait on humps and roadbeds on main lake. The best humps have been in Wehadkee and Maple Creeks.



Crappie fishing has been excellent. Crappie have pulled out a little with the lower winter water levels. Their depth ranges have not changed much ranging from twelve to fifteen feet. With the lower water levels you will need to fish the first break off of main channel going into pockets. These channel contours are anywhere from twelve to fifteen feet deep. Use pink and white or black and chartreuse jigs tipped with minnows in twelve to fifteen feet of water. Trolling patterns have seemed to work the best to locate fish. The best creeks have been Half Moon, Yellow Jacket, and Whitewater.



LAKE ALLATOONA IS 12 FEET, 50 DEGREES AND CLEAR


Bass fishing is good and some big spots are biting. Fish are around 15 to 17 feet deep as the water temperatures teeter around the 50 degree mark. Use the Big bite sugar cane worm on a 1/0 Gamakatsu with hook with a bait holder. Fish are scattered, but not too hard to find if look in the area of ditches in the mouths of the creeks. As far as the spoon bite go the white 1/2 oz Flex It spoon is hard to beat. Use quick six inch jerks while holding the bait in the strike zone. Last but not least the Float-n-Fly is alive and well with good numbers of spots. Most fish are coming off the white with blue and chartreuse Red rooster fly. Be sure to dope the fly with bite booster so you can mold the bait to imitate a shad. Fish these baits slowly and be carful as the icy waters can kill. Don't fish alone this time of year.



Line side fishing has been fair this week. The full moon and the cold front we had earlier this week really put the fish into lock jaw on both Lake Allatoona and Carters. The bite is starting to pick back up and should in full swing by Christmas. Trolling has been the best producer for numbers. But we have also caught some big fish this week on planner boards and down lines along with the umbrella rigs. Mid lake is still holding a lot of fish. Look for these fish to start to move south and or the back of the creek in the up coming weeks.