Smith Mountain Lake August Fishing Report - Summer bite windows and suspended fish

We are at the peak of summer now. Water temps are ranging from 83-87 degrees depending on how hot we get during the day. The fish are moving and schooling up and can be hard to locate. Keep moving around and using your electronics to find schools. If you’re interested in a electronics class click here. If you are fishing over multiple days keep in mind that one day a school of fish may be there and not the next. Bait around is key to finding good areas to fish. Check depths as deep as 30 feet, but don’t completely ignore the 5-10 foot range either.

Stripers are schooling on the lower end of the lake on most main lake points and channel swings. Trolling seems to be the best way to get bites. For artificial baits try dropping spoons or drop shots with minnow imitating baits right into the school for some aggressive strikes.

Largemouth and smallmouth are keying on rock in 8-20 feet and brush piles. Pulling a Carolina rig is a great go to bait this time of year. Not the most fast paced way to fish, but it will put numbers in the boat. Always have a drop shot, Ned rig or shakey head ready on the deck. If you are able to fish on cloudy days moving baits are still getting chewed. Smaller swimbaits, underspins or crankbaits are a good choice.

Grab some Missile Baits ned bombs, bomb shots and Missile craws for your finesse stuff or some baby destroyers for your Carolina rigs.