SMITH MOUNTAIN LAKE FISHING REPORT
August 2017
DALE WILSON’S
SML GUIDE SERVICE
PHONE NO: 540-297-5650 / 540-874-4950
www.captaindalewilson.com
Picture: Phil Christopher from Greensboro, NC with 2 nice stripers caught 7/26/17 while fishing with Captain Dale.
OVERVIEW- The fishing has been fair the past several weeks! The water temperatures are above average. The hot water temperatures have made for tough fishing conditions. Fishing for bass has been good at night this past month! Water temperature will be in the 80’s. Best times will be early morning, late afternoon and at night. August is usually a good month to fish for stripers.
Largemouth Bass- Fishing for largemouth bass will be good at night this month. Best lures will be large plastic worms, football head jigs, deep diving crank baits and Carolina rigs. Main points, brush piles, deep rocks, ledges and deep docks will be the best areas to try your luck. Best depths will be from 12 to 30 feet deep. Remember to take care of the bass and release them! Best lures at night are large plastic worms, spinner baits, jigs and deep running crank baits.
Smallmouth Bass- Fishing will be fair. Best areas will be ledges, humps, rocky areas and long main channel points. Best lures will be tubes, jig & pig, hair jigs, drop shots and deep diving crank baits. Best areas will be in the mid to the lower sections of the lake. Cloudy days with wind and at night are good times to try your luck! Look for areas with rocks and deep ledges close to the creek channel. Look for isolated rock piles near deep water. Smallmouth bass feed heavily on crawfish around the full moon each month.
Striped Bass- Fishing should be good this month. Stripers will be caught in the mid to lower sections of the lake and in the large creeks. Best lures will be swim baits, buck tails, spoons and Zoom flukes fished on 1/2 to 3/4 oz. lead heads. Best time to fish is cloudy days and early mornings. The best depths will be from the 25 to 80 feet deep. Live bait fished on down lines and planner boards work fair this month. The stripers will constantly be on the move. Night fishing will be poor this month. Look for large schools of stripers with your electronics. Vertical jigging is a good method to catch stripers this month.
Crappie- Fishing for crappie will be poor this month. The best depths will be 15 to 25 ft. deep. Crappie will be found around deep docks, brush piles, and fallen trees. Docks with brush piles are usually good areas to hold crappie. Small live minnows and 1½ to 2 inch tubes or shad shaped plastic lures fished on 1/16 to 1/8 oz. lead heads will work best to catch crappie this month. Best areas are the main creeks and the upper sections of the lake.
TIP OF THE Month- Wear sunscreen and stay hydrated when fishing in the hot sun! Always wear your life jacket. Most fish will be caught deep. When fishing at night you need to fish with a partner! Slow down after dark!!! You can also hear reports about local fishing on the website: THE BASS CAST RADIO SHOW & WSLK 98.3 radio. Make sure your running lights are on after dark! Remember to TAKE A KID FISHING! SEE YOU ON THE LAKE!!!