Smith Mountain Lake October Fishing Report - Fall is here!!!

Bring on the big fish! It’s about to get very good out on Smith Mountain Lake as we turn from late summer into early fall for the region. Fish are starting to move around a lot more, the bait is moving shallower and the cold nights are driving the fish to be more active and start feeding. Early October is completely different then late October so going into the month be prepared for some slower days and having to cover a lot of water. However, after we have a few days in a row of colder nights (anything 40-50 degrees) those temperatures will cause the fish to start eating quickly. Keep power baits on the deck like a jerk bait, Crankbait, topwater or spoon to cover water and see where the fish are located.

This is the time of year where you will have to start breaking down how far along the fish are in their fall transitions. A great tip is to start in the mouth of a pocket and work each point going back until you either catch a few or see signs of life such as bluegills or shad on the surface. The predatory fish will be moving with those bait fish for food. Using a lure that covers water is key to finding those active eating fish.

Once you’ve located fish its a good idea to slow down and focus on what they are eating. Stripers will be chasing bait so keep a Swimbait and spoon close to mimic the small fall bait fish. a Kietech 2.8 is hard to beat.

Largemouth and Smallmouth will also be chasing the shad around but will also be heavily eating crawfish that are moving shallow to burrow for the winter. Riprap banks and rock are a great place to toss around a jig or Shakey head for some big bites. These bass will also be roaming the banks looking for bluegills to eat. A buzz bait or whopper Plopper are a great cover water lure that allows you to find those big single fish moving around shallow.

Crappie are starting to stack up on brush up the rivers in 15-25 feet and will be moving into shallower brush as the bait fish move back into the pockets.

Stripers can be found on main lake humps, points and will be in the backs of the pockets by late October. A topwater, spoon and hair jig are great tools to catch numbers and size. Look for birds chasing bait and the stripers won’t be far behind.