October 6, 2009 Stockton Lake Fishing Report

[Thompson Fishing Guide Service]

October 6, 2009 Stockton Lake Fishing Report

Lake level: 868.04

Normal pool: 867

Walleye fishing on Stockton has been fair. My clients have been catching a lot of walleye and a large number of them are short fish, but more often than not, we have been taking home enough legal fish for a good fish fry. The legal fish are between 20-24 inches, so they are worth the effort. Fish are being caught off of main lake points in approximately 20 feet of water, on jigs and small pieces of night crawler. It is important that you tap the bottom with the jig; use whatever weight it takes to keep the bait as vertical as possible. When you feel a series of tap tap tap bites that signal walleye, DON’T SET THE HOOK. Slowly point your rod in the direction of the bait. And I mean SLOWLY. If you give them too much line (like opening the bale), it will cause the jig to fall, and the fish will feel that resistance. This is the single most important bit of information you need to have to catch a walleye. If you don’t get it, you won’t get them. I have stated in previous fishing reports that walleye are a different fish than a bass or a crappie, therefore their God given mannerisms are different also.

Bass: main lake and secondary points are still producing good fish, particularly on plastic worms and jig n pigs. Depth will vary, as the fish move up and down these points in search of crawdads. Crawdads are doing their fall thing and when they do it, they get up in shallower water and expose themselves more. A good color to use (whether it is crank baits or jigs) is crawdad colors in browns, oranges or greens. Bass are also being caught in the backs of your larger coves in around 7-10 feet of water. We have caught several good fish in these locations and the reason they are there is they are taking advantage of the salad bar in the shallower water in the fall before they back off into deeper water and enjoy the buffet of massive balls of shad as they prepare for the winter months.

Marty Thompson

Thompson Fishing Guide Service

www.fishstockton.com

417-424-BASS

Often imitated, never duplicated. Fish The Finest!