SMITH MOUNTAIN LAKE FISHING REPORT – January 2013

SMITH MOUNTAIN LAKE FISHING REPORTJanuary 2013DALE WILSON’SSML GUIDE SERVICEPHONE NO:  540-297-5650 / 540-874-4950www.captaindalewilson.com

Captain Dale Wilson with a 27 lb. Striper caught 11/29/12, while fishing with John Jones of Vinton.

OVERVIEW: Winter is a great time of the year to catch a large fish! The mild weather makes it more comfortable to be on the water. Water temperature will be in the upper 40s. Early morning, late afternoon and cloudy days will be the best times to try your luck.  *Please be extremely careful when operating your boat due to the low water levels.

Largemouth Bass-Fishing will be fair. Best lures will be spoons, Carolina rigs, shaky heads, football head jigs and crank baits. Most largemouth bass will be caught around rocky shorelines, points, brush piles and docks. Best depths will be from the 5 to 40 feet deep. Cloudy days with wind will be the best time to fish this month.

Smallmouth Bass- Fishing should be fair. Best areas will be rocky banks, humps and main channel points. Best lures will be floating-fly rigs, crawfish colored crank baits, tube lures, drop shot rigs and shaky heads. Best areas will be in the mid to the lower sections of the lake. Cloudy days will be the best time to try your luck. Most smallmouth bass will feed on crawfish.

Striped Bass- Fishing will be good. Stripers will be caught mostly in the mid sections of the lake and the major creeks. Best lures will be spoons, Alabama rigs, swim baits, buck tails, and Zoom flukes fished with 1/2 to 3/4 oz. jig heads. Jigging will be a good method to catch stripers this month. Live bait and trolling will also be a productive method.. The best depths will be from the surface to 50 feet deep. Best time to try your luck will be early mornings & late afternoons. Seagulls will be active this month.

Crappie-Fishing for crappie will be good. They will be found 10 to 20 feet deep this month. Best areas will be in the main creeks around deep docks, fallen trees, and brush piles in the mid to upper sections of the lake. Small live minnows and 1 ½ inch tubes fished on 1/16 to 1/8 oz. lead heads will work best to catch crappie this month. Small Gulp minnows also work well when fished on small lead heads or drop shot rigs.

Tip of the month: Chemical hand warmers will help keep your hands and feet warm during the cold winter days. It is a good idea to always fish with a partner in the cold months. Keep your running lights on when fishing after dark. Take a kid fishing.

*Happy New Year!

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