Kevin Dallmier

OCTOBER
Largemouth Bass
Weiss Lake
The Brushy Branch area of Weiss Lake on the Georgia side of the state line has great bass fishing in autumn. The cooler nights are signaling the fish that winter is coming. Shad are thick in the backwater sloughs, and the bass follow and feed heavily to stock up for winter.

All the backwaters offer good bass fishing, but as the month wears on and the lake level continues to drop, access into smaller sloughs can become difficult. Once you make it over the shallow bar at the mouth, there should be plenty of fishable water.

This is power fishing. Target shallow woody cover with fast-moving lures like spinnerbaits and Rat-L-Traps. There are plenty of stumps to target, but the best ones are near the creek channels. Keep your bait in the water to cover as much territory as possible. Strikes often come when your lure deflects off the cover.

Good numbers of 2- to 4-pound fish are there to be caught, with plenty of bigger fish too.

Other Options: Cooling water temperatures begin to push spotted seatrout into the estuaries for the winter. Comfortable weather, fewer bugs, and willing fish make this a great time to be in the marsh.

The upper Conasauga River is blue-ribbon trout fishing. The water is low and clear and the stream-reared trout are extremely wary, so take care with your approach and presentation. NOVEMBER
Crappie
Allatoona Lake
Autumn has a firm grip on North Georgia and with the cooler water temperatures crappie schools are roaming on the lookout for bait. Little River and Kellogg Creek are two consistent producers.

Anglers do well spider-rigging a spread of small jigs or just barely easing along pulling a live minnow under a float. If trolling doesn’t work, don’t overlook tightlining a live minnow under the tire breakwaters around the marinas.

The average crappie should measure around 10 inches and weigh about a half-pound. Anglers should find at least a few larger crappie on their stringers that tip the scales over a pound.

Other Options: In November, Lake Burton anglers catch hefty brown trout grown fat on blueback herring. Live bluebacks fished over rocky points is a good technique.

Autumn brings some of the best smallmouth bass fishing of the year to Blue Ridge Lake. Target deep, windblown flats with stickbaits and crankbaits.

DECEMBER
Largemouth Bass
Lake Jackson
Lake Jackson, Georgia’s oldest major reservoir, has a long-standing reputation of giving up trophy bass to cold weather anglers. Even in the middle of winter, a sunny afternoon can pull big fish up shallow in search of a meal.

Shallow points near deep water are good places to find feeding fish during these conditions. A soft bottom holds the heat and warms the water ever so slightly. Even a degree or two can mean the difference between getting good bites and “hauling water.”

A crankbait or spinnerbait slowly bumping along represents easy pickings to a trophy bass. During cold spells, target deeper water with big bait like a jig-and-pig slowly worked along bottom through deep cover. Lake Jackson has a good proportion of bass over 15 inches, including some real wallhangers. Other Options: Lake Sinclair is an excellent destination for winter crappie. Trolling jigs in the area of the warm water discharge from Plant Harlee Branch on Beaverdam Creek has filled many stringers with tasty winter crappie.

Warm sunny December days can pull schools of redfish into shallow marsh ponds. The dark, soft bottom and afternoon sun warms the water, turning on the bite. Fish gold spoons or soft plastics with a careful presentation to avoid spooking the skinny-water fish.

Find more about Georgia fishing and hunting at: GeorgiaSportsmanMag.com