Striper Fishing is on the downhill slide to fall, the river is warm and while there are still fish to be caught the hot weather and warm water temps have us looking to fall for some relief. If you are targeting Striper right now look for the deep water adjacent to shoals. Striper are predators and schooling fish, they will herd bait up in the shallows to feed during low light conditions and slide back into the deeper water during the heat of the day so finding these ambush areas can be key to finding fish. Keep flies simple, a few weighted and unweighted shad imitations are all it takes, length should be 3-5 inch range. Use heavy tippet this time of year to cut down on how long you fight fish. I generally don’t ever go below 20lb test even when the water is low and clear but this time of year I go to 30lb just to be able to bring fish in as quick as possible. Keep fish in the water as much as possible and make sure to revive fish for at least as long as you fought them!
Bass fishing has been fair this week, the popper bite has still produced some good fish but overall the topwater bite has slowed. Streamer fishing however has produced some tanks! Spotted Bass can be found in slow moving water but they can also be found in fast water and shoals so don’t forget to check the shallows when fishing for Spots. Poppers such as Boogle Bugs, Crease Flies, and Pole Dancers can entice a strike but if the fishing is slow then switch to subsurface. Trout Streamers like Large Wooly Buggers, Sex Dungeons, and Sparkle Minnows are all good bets to bag a quality Etowah River Spotted Bass. If you like Streamer fishing for wild native fish that grow to 5+ lbs then you need to try streamer fishing the Etowah!
Good Luck!
-Conner Jones
Check the Generation schedule before you plan your trip! We do not recommend that you float the Etowah if Allatoona dam is releasing water!
Allatoona Dam Release Schedule- (706) 334-7213
