NE Bassfishing in October

[Davis]

Others know that this is the first year I have been back into bass fishing since I was 16....I'm now 28.

Back then as a kid I pretty much just fished in the summer for the fun of it and than hit the sports in the fall. So this is my first time dealing with a Fall bite. The temps have been up in the 70s and 80s until this past week so the fishing was great! But now it has been about 6 days of temps in the 50s with it getting down in the 40s over night. Still have gone out and tried to catch fish in my two reseviors but there is NOTHING to be found. The bream are not even chilling at the outlet of the dam like they usually do. My take is that my fishing spots have turned. So I have tried everything....spinnerbaits.....buzzbaits (even though I know if it has turned they will not be up top most likely).........flukes rigged on a split shot rig and dragged on the bottom.....unpegged T-rigged worms dragged.......jigs........senkos.......kreatures......and I'm not even getting bit. Is the bass fishing (largemouth) now pretty much shut down until spring? I can take 3-4 hours of fishing without a fish, but not even getting a bite is frustrating. I realize the fish are not going to be active and that strike zone is going to be super small but are there any fisherman here that can give me some pointers to at least grab some bites? Especially you fellow fisherman that deal with the winter temps rolling in like this. Should I be concentrating on the deeper water of these fisheries or shallower water with some structure? Deepest points are around 18-20 foot with the bottoms being made up of sparse grass and sand with some rocks.

Pretty much fishing from the shore right now but if putting my raft back out there means more bites than I'll do it.

[Low_Budget_Hooker]

Well, you are definitely using the right stuff in what would appear to be the right places.  My only suggestion is to go even slower.  And maybe deeper.  Fish will hold in the deep grass till it starts dying and giving off CO2.  In New England, there are still a  few weeks left before the grasses start kicking off. (Hydrilla anyway)  Keep at it, good luck.

(If you are unsure of the "areas" you are fishing, bring some shiners one day.  If you can catch on them, the fish are (obviously) still there and you just need to keep trying and figure them out.)

[dman]

I have noticed the bite is certainly slowed down here in NE PA......I was at a new pond this weekend in the poconos,  Wacky Rigged senkos have still been getting them for me though not as often,  but i started with them.   Grabbed a Huge perch (PB in fact) but no other bites (i was not even completely sure if Bass were even in this pond,  I stumbled upon it while I was out,  good thing i always keep poles and tackle in the truck!) Slowed my presentation down,  tried worms jigs - nothin.   So,  then i figured location must be the problem so i took a good look around and saw a small stream trickling in.  I had switched back to my wacky rig by now but 3rd cast I grabbed a 15 incher.   Then I got hung up and lost my hook,  for the heck of it I threw on a white spinnerbait and started casting way out and bringint it back into this inlet and I started killing them on this faster presentation.  infact I lost a very nice one ( maybe 5 1\2lb's) because he was running for this brush pile sticking out of the water and i was really forcing him away from it instead of fighting him and i just ripped it out.  Next cast i got a 2 1\2 pounder though....So like always location and presentation is key,  its just harder to find it this time of year,  but i found out they will still bite!

[Panamoka_Bassin]

I was pretty much on the worst run of my life for fishing a few weeks ago.  I coudn't catch a fish if I used dymanite.  I know the lake I fish has PLENTY of fish, but I couldn't find any bass at all.  Turns out, I was fishing the wrong end of the lake.  This time of year in the NE, the fish are still pretty active, but they want to be in the warmer waters, I think, where the grasses are still alive.  Try fishing in the southeren end of lakes and t-rig a watermellon colored tube with 1/8th oz bullet.  Let the bait get down into the weeds and even let it hang up.  75% of the time, you'll pull up a big clump of grass, but all those other times you'll get a nice fish if you let the bait get down (and I mean DOWN...) into the bottoms of the grasses.  Good luck!

[Davis]

I think I'm going to have to give up entirely on the one small lake that I fish. There is almost zero structure or grass in the areas that I can get to. No boats are allowed. Only shore fishing in a few areas. It is owned by a gravel company so they can set there own rules. Sucks.

But the other place I can take a boat out on. So I'm going to continue to hit those slop piles than. Can't get to them on shore so I will have to bust out the old raft and dress warm I guess. The days are numbered here in NY so I'm trying to make the best of it until that snow falls.

[Zel]

Finally go out Saturday morning to a local lake after a month-and-a-half hiatus from fishing.  Like you said the temps a few day before were in the 80's.  I was hearing catches by several people of 20+ those days.  Temp dropped in NE PA a few days before, and Saturday morning it was 40 degrees and windy.  All the regular spots where guys were catching them were dead.  Nobody we talked to was catching much of anything.  We then headed to the channel and also some man-made structure in deeper water.  Worked crankbaits and slowly worked stick baits and fat ikas (almost to the point of deadsticking), and came away with about a dozen out of the deeper water. So in my case moving to deeper water, with structure, and slowing down the presentation was key to the cold temps that moved in.

[grimlin]

I'm in the same situation....got sick of not catching i actually broke out the spinning rod and an inline spinner from blue fox...starting nailing them yesterday.For whatever reason they wanted something small and flashy.They wouldn't bite anything else.

[Shad_Master]

BTW, "NE" is the abbreviation for Nebraska - I was all set to reply to your question when I checked your tag.  

[Davis]

BTW, "NE" is the abbreviation for Nebraska - I was all set to reply to your question when I checked your tag.

It's also an abbreviation for "North East" in my parts.  

[Tokyo Tony]

The best way to combat the slow bite for LMB is to fish for smallies.  They're still pretty active, and way better than largemouths  

Otherwise, get jiggy on deep structure.

[Davis]

The best way to combat the slow bite for LMB is to fish for smallies. They're still pretty active, and way better than largemouths

Otherwise, get jiggy on deep structure.

I wish. Right now the only smallie creek that I can fish is loaded with steelhead fisherman. They crowd the banks. I'm not big into fishing one spot with a guy on my left and right both only a couple feet away from me.

[IneedAnewScreenName-63534]

Lake Ariel Here, also in the pocono's/walenpuapak area

Weve been fishing Rattle Traps the last week or so with an amazing amount of succsess.  Im currently using a jimmy houston rattle trap, its a fairly big one with bass coloration and a little holo to it.  Just a few night ago i cought a 5pnder which is rather rare to catch in the lakes we fish.

Im finding that the bigger ones are moving off shore a little bit and are sticking around or in weed beds.

Keep in mind that the lakes that we are fishing are severly stained brown/green(turned).  

The lakes that arnt stained we are having goodluck with a mix of Buzzbaits/chubgrubs and carolinia rigs.  goodluck

[Tin]

When the water was a little wamer about a month ago the lily pad deal was on. But since the water has really cooled down, (Sunday was 30 in the am and the surface temp. was low to mid 50's.),  I have been picking off fish on the little or big drops infront of beaches and on real real shallow docks in the sun on beaches. I guess they are just starting sunning themselves cause they're chilly. I have also noticted when the wind is pushing on beaches (doesnt matter which direction), they fish are real real easy to get on a rat-l-trap.

The other little gig of course is just finding shallow rockpiles (made up of rocks the size of basketballs or bigger) and just chunking a little 1/4 oz. jig at them picking off the fish, then wiating and letting another one move up and get him. Thats been the go to deal for big fish for me in the fall. Go lunker in a tourney Sunday doing it

[Shad_Master]

Around here we just call your parts Yankee land  Seriously, keep on stickin 'em til the ice gets set.  Good luck.

[Dirk_Jig---Lure]

Pretty soon, we will be going through THISagain   ;D

[Tin]

lmao, Cant wait. Like the "come on pocihontas (dont know how to spell it)" thing.