Smith Mountain Lake Fishing Report – October 2012 – Captain Dale Wilson

SMITH MOUNTAIN LAKE FISHING REPORTOctober 2012DALE WILSON’SSML GUIDE SERVICEPHONE NO:  540-297-5650 / 540-874-4950www.captaindalewilson.comPicture is of Chris Wilson from Apex, NC, son of Captain Dale Wilson. He is holding 2 largemouth bass caught 9/23/12 while fishing with his dad. They were competing in a tournament sponsored by: The Bass Cast website, held at Smith Mtn. lake.

OVERVIEW: October is usually a great month to fish! When the water temperature begins to fall most species of fish will actively feed as they prepare for winter. Water temperature will be in the 70s. Early morning, late afternoon and cloudy days will be the best times to try your luck.

Largemouth Bass-Fishing will be good. Best lures will be plastic worms, surface lures, Carolina rigs, shaky heads, football head jigs and crank baits. Most largemouth bass will be caught near humps, ledges, rocky shorelines and brush piles near water. Docks will also be productive.  Best depths will be from the surface to 15 feet deep. Top water fishing should be good this month.

Smallmouth Bass- Fishing should be fair. Best areas will be rocky banks, humps and the back of coves. Best lures will be crawfish colored crank baits, top water 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 be suspended near bait fish.

Striped Bass- Fishing will be good. Stripers will be caught mostly in the mid sections of the lake.. Best lures will be swim baits, buck tails, and Zoom flukes fished with 3/8 to ½ oz. jig heads. Vertical jigging and casting will be a good method to catch stripers this month. Live bait and trolling will also be productive. The best depths will be from the surface to 40 feet deep. Best time to try your luck will be early mornings & late afternoons. Schools of stripers will surface this month.

Crappie-Fishing for crappie will be good. They will be found 5 to 15 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.

Tip of the month: Try fishing areas that hold the most baitfish.  Don’t forget that most species of fish also feed on crawfish in the fall. Keep your running lights on when fishing after dark. Take a kid fishing.

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