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THE SOUTHERN FISHING REPORT - Lake Weiss

Meet Ken Sturdivant Saturday's at
Bass Pro Shops "Outdoor World" in Lawrenceville Georgia.

“SONAR WITH KEN STURDIVANT”

Ken Sturdivant, Lowrance Professional Fishing Staff will be conducting FREE! Sonar Seminars at Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World in Lawrenceville Georgia. The 2009 Sonar Seminar dates: November 28 and December 26, 2009. All seminars start at 2pm and are subject to change without notice.

See samples of the New Lowrance HDS Structure Scan Down Scan at this address: http://havefunfishing.com/fishingreports/lowrance.htm

Our NEW! DVD, FINDING FISH WITH MODERN TECHNOLOGY is now on sale.

Now you can order 50 G P S Way Points by Mark Collins for both Bass and Crappie Fishing for Lake Weiss. Cost is $99.00 for all 50. Check or Money Order only, (NO CREDIT CARDS). Southern Fishing Schools Inc. 106 Hickory Ridge, Cumming Georgia 30040

WAYPOINTS ARE $99.00 FOR 50!

(waypoints are not refundable!)

November 6, 2009

LAKE WEISS IS AT 3.32 FEET BELOW FULL POOL, VERY STAINED AND 57 DEGREES BY MARK COLLINS GUIDE SERVICE

Bass fishing is good and bass have moved shallow on secondary points and shallow stump flats and the back of the coves, following the shad movement. Some coves and flats have huge schools of shad in them and the schooling bass are feeding on them with a few larger fish mixed in. Shallow running crank baits like the Gizz 3 and Gizz 4 from Smack Tackle and the Bandit 100 series are working. A 3/8 ounce spinner bait in chartreuse and white with double silver willow leaf blades is also a great fall bait, 1/4 and 1/2 ounce Rat L Traps in chrome and blue are also producing some great fishing. The upper part of Little River and the Chattooga River are loaded with spotted bass right now and they will stay there all winter, they are being caught on 4 inch Zoom ring worms in June bug, pumpkinseed and watermelon seed colors and a 5 inch Senko worms in these same colors are producing fish too.
 
Striper fishing is fair and they are being caught on the old river channel ledges and the flats beside the channel with live shad 8-12 feet deep.

Crappie fishing is fair and there are a lot of quality fish, 12-15 inches long being caught on the river ledges in 10-14 feet of water. Spider rigging with live minnows and Jiffy Jigs on the ledges of the old Little River and Chattooga River channel is the way to catch these fall fish. Look for sharp drops on the old river channel with cover, target the 10-12 foot range early and as the sun gets higher the fish are moving a little deeper to the 2-15 feet range. Stumps and brush in the deeper flats are also producing some Crappie. Shooting docks with a 1/24 ounce Jiffy Jig in colors JJ13 and JJ17 is producing some fish also.

If you would like to have a free set up sheet for your sonar, send me an e mail to kensturdivant@earthlink.net and ask for the “Sonar Setup Quick List”.

We have these books for sale: “BASS FISHING ON WEST POINT LAKE”, “BASS FISHING LAKE RUSSELL”, “BASS FISHING WEST POINT LAKE” and “BASS FISHING LAKE HARTWELL”. These books are written by Tim White and Ken Sturdivant and each one has over 65 locations exclusively for bass and covers every week of the year. Each book $39.00. If you would like a sample of any book, send us an e mail to kensturdivant@earthlink.net. Our mailing address is: Southern Fishing Schools Inc. 106 Hickory Ridge, Cumming Georgia 30040.

We teach “ON THE WATER SCHOOLS”: “Rods, Reels and Lures for Bass or Maps and Depth Finders. Call 770 889 2654 for details or see the web site: www.havefunfishing.com.

Use an All Pro Rods Striper Special APX series. www.allprorods.com The Finest Fishing Rods Available Today. To keep your live bait Alive make sure to use a Keep Alive Bait Tank and Oxygen Infuso2r Aeration System www.keepalive.net For all your outdoor needs please visit Marks Outdoors Sports in Birmingham Alabama. The most complete sporting goods store in Alabama. www.marksoutdoors.com For all the best deals on striper tackle visit Captain Marty at www.stripertackle.net

For all your outdoor needs please visit Marks Outdoors Sports in Birmingham Alabama. The most complete sporting goods store in Alabama. www.marksoutdoors.com For all the best deals on striper tackle visit Captain Marty at www.stripertackle.net

Come fish with me on Weiss Lake, Alabama The Crappie Capital of the World and Striper Capital of the South for a fishing trip of a life time. NO FISH NO PAY Mark Collins 256 779 3387 H www.markcollinsguideservice.com

Lake Weiss The lower Coosa River from Mayo’s Lock and Dam near Rome to the Georgia Alabama state line is the Georgia portion of Weiss Reservoir, an Alabama Power project. This portion encompasses approximately 2,000 acres of river and shallow backwater habitats. A “Guide to Fishing the Coosa River” in PDF format (645 kB) contains access and fishing tip information and a color map with river mile designations. The map can be obtained at www.gofishgeorgia.com .
Boaters unfamiliar with the area should use caution when navigating outside of the main river channel. Popular access points include Lock and Dam Park and the Brushy Branch boat access both operated by the Rome Floyd County Recreation Department. Both facilities have paved ramps, courtesy docks and ample parking. The Lock and Dam Park also has bank fishing access, a bait shop, nature center, camping, picnic and restroom facilities.
Lake Weiss carries the title of “crappie capital of the world” for good reason. Despite heavy fishing pressure for crappie, an excellent forage base supports the population resulting in quality fishing year after year. Slabs over 2 pounds are routinely caught from these waters. Trolling small jigs or live minnows on multiple rods is a favored method for locating crappie schools especially from mid late winter. Anglers should also key in on downed shoreline trees and logjams, as crappie will congregate in these areas especially in the post spawn period. Anglers can download and print out a map of brush piles placed in the Brushy Branch area of the lake by Georgia and Alabama Power and WRD at www.gofishgeorgia.com . In late February through early April, white bass can be caught as they make their annual spawning run up the Coosa River. A better than average run of mature white bass should make for good spring fishing in 2008. The River Road boat ramp upstream to Lock and Dam Park is a prime river stretch for catching spawn run white bass. Key in on creek mouths and fallen trees with good water flow around them in the main river. Hungry white bass congregate in these areas waiting on food to pass by on the current. Anglers targeting white bass should try casting small jigs and crank baits in shad patterns or use live bait. Most likely, anglers will catch a mixed bag of white bass and crappie using these techniques.
Striped bass fishing in the Coosa will be good in 2008, but the severe drought last summer may limit the number of larger striped bass caught this year. Spring run stripers are caught from the Lock and Dam upriver to the city of Rome. Live or cut shad is the most popular bait, but a few stripers are fooled using artificial lures such as bucktail jigs, shad colored crank baits, and large jerk baits fished in swift water near fallen trees. After the spawn, stripers disperse all over the Coosa River basin in search of cool waters to beat the summer heat. These fish can be found hiding wherever there is cool water in the rivers above Lake Weiss and the smaller tributaries to the lake. Find one of these spots and striped bass could be on the menu all summer. When cooler fall temperatures arrive, stripers will begin moving back toward the main lake where anglers can find them chasing shad on the Coosa River. From mid to late winter the area between Brushy Branch and the main body of Lake Weiss are good places to find some winter striper action.
Largemouth bass numbers and quality continue to be good in the upper portion of the lake. The average fish will weigh 1 2 pounds , with larger individuals topping the 7 8 pounds range. Most bass fishing in this part of the lake is done in the Brushy Branch area, but largemouth will be found in any of the backwater tributaries off the main Coosa River channel. Such stump laden areas like Kings Creek and Mt. Hope Creek hold plenty of largemouth, but must be boated with care.
Spotted bass occur in fair numbers in the upper sections of Weiss. Spotted bass tend to stay in the main river channel and are generally a little smaller on the average than largemouth. Spots over 4 pounds are available to anglers fishing bluff banks and creek mouths along the Coosa River above Brushy Branch.
Blue, channel and flathead catfish of all sizes are abundant. The larger blue catfish can top the 50 pounds range in the riverine portion of the lake. Fish for these whiskered behemoths in and around log jams and undercut banks common in this area. Cats can be taken with a number of unsavory baits, but anglers should keep in mind most “pole breaker cats” are after live prey such as shad or bream. Freshwater drum, smallmouth buffalo and suckers are extremely abundant in this portion of the lake. The average drum is slightly over 12 inches, but be prepared to hook into some bull drum over 20 inches in length. Bluegill, redbreast sunfish and redear sunfish round out the fishing opportunity in the Georgia portion of Lake Weiss.

A few anglers may encounter an odd looking fish they have never seen before in Lake Weiss or its surrounding waters. The lake sturgeon, once a resident of the Coosa River system, disappeared in the 1960s. Pollution and over fishing are believed to have eliminated these archaic fishes from the river system. Thankfully since then, water conditions have improved in the river and WRD has begun to restock lake sturgeon in an effort to re establish this native fish. Since their first stocking in 2002 more than 67,000 sturgeon fingerlings have been released in the Coosa basin. This long term reintroduction project will require annual stockings over the next 15 to 20 years to reestablish this native fish. The species grows slowly and does not mature for 12 15 years so it is important to protect them from harvest until they can reproduce and once again support some limited harvest. As their name implies, they do have a tendency to inhabit slow waters, which includes Lake Weiss. Anglers accidentally catching a lake sturgeon should immediately release the fish unharmed. Fish hooked deep will often survive if anglers cut the line near the hook and release the fish with the hook. If you catch or otherwise see a sturgeon, please contact the Calhoun WRD office (706 624 1161) to report the location from which the sturgeon was caught. Such “sightings” are very helpful to biologists trying to assess the survival and dispersal of these magnificent fish. Those wondering what impact sturgeon will have on their favorite game species can rest easy. Because of its low reproductive potential, the fish does not establish itself as a prominent species making its impacts negligible. In fact, the sturgeon’s poor reproductive potential has caused the species to be listed as rare or endangered throughout most of its original range.