October 4 Fishing Report: A Busy Week Put Lake Guntersville To The Test
Lake Guntersville was busy this week. Really busy.
The Ultimate Angler Championship brought a major field to the lake with competition running Thursday through Saturday. At the same time, anglers preparing for Saturday’s SPRO Frog Tournament were practicing throughout the week.
Add normal October fishing traffic to that mix and there were boats covering a tremendous amount of water.
That made this a good week to see what the lake would give us when the obvious places were getting pressured hard.
We still caught fish. We still found quality bass. We also had two electronics training trips and spent a lot of time paying attention to something that matters more than anything else right now: where the fish are actually holding and when they are willing to feed.
There Were Boats Everywhere This Week
Tournament pressure is part of fishing Lake Guntersville. This lake has hosted big events for decades, and when a large field of serious anglers spends days practicing and competing, the fish feel it.
That does not mean the lake suddenly quits producing.
It means the easiest fish usually become a little less easy.
Places get visited repeatedly. Fish see anglers coming and going. Areas that looked great early in the week can fish completely different after several days of traffic.
We saw some of that this week.
The Frog Bite Is Getting Better
We have been encouraged by what we are seeing with the frog bite. By the end of this week, though, the amount of fishing pressure made that bite harder to judge. That did not mean we stopped catching fish. It meant we had to move on, make adjustments and keep working through what the lake was showing us.
We Are Starting To Find Fish In Some New Places
This is probably the part of the current fishing that has our attention the most.
We have found fish showing up in some areas that we have been waiting on.
It is not wide open. We are not going to make it sound like you can pull into every place that looks right and catch them.
But there are enough fish beginning to use those areas that we are paying close attention.
The grass continues to look good across a lot of the lake. There are healthy edges, thick mats and plenty of cover for bass to use as the season changes.
The latest stretch of warmer weather may shuffle things around again before the next real cooldown arrives. That is fine. October is a transition month, and we expect things to move.
The Bite Windows Have Our Attention
Something else we have noticed is the timing of the bite.
The better feeding windows have not always started when we would normally expect them to. Some days the lake has taken longer to get going. Other times the better activity has shown up in a window that does not fit what we would normally expect for the conditions.
That is worth paying attention to because timing can be just as important as location.
We also came through a big full moon, and longtime readers already know how we feel about those.
We are not big fans of a full moon during this part of the season, especially when so much of the productive shallow cover is buried underneath thick grass mats. In our experience, it can make the daily rhythm a little harder to predict.
We are not blaming every tough stretch on the moon. There was too much tournament pressure this week to do that. Between the traffic, the warm weather and the moon, there were several things affecting how and when these fish wanted to feed.
Pay Attention To What The Lake Is Showing You
Right now we are paying more attention to fish location, timing, grass condition and the small changes that happen during the day. Those details are what help us adjust when a productive area suddenly starts fishing differently.
Watch The Water Temperature, Not Just The Calendar
October is on the calendar, but the fish do not know what date it is.
Water temperature is one of the things we watch closely as the lake moves from late summer toward the real fall transition.
A few degrees can change where fish position, how much time they spend shallow and how quickly certain parts of the lake begin to develop.
We maintain a dedicated Lake Guntersville water temperature page with the latest surface reading and an ongoing temperature chart so anglers can follow that change instead of guessing from the weather forecast.
Two Electronics Trips This Week Too
Not everything we did this week was a standard guided bass fishing trip.
Capt. Jim also had two electronics training trips.
Those trips are designed for anglers who want to understand what their graphs are actually showing them instead of simply staring at a screen full of returns and hoping they are reading it correctly.
We work with forward facing sonar, side imaging, fish finding and graph setup in the client’s boat. The goal is to make the electronics useful after the class is over, whether you are fishing Lake Guntersville or taking those skills somewhere else.
Do Not Sleep On October And November
If you are waiting for somebody to announce that fall fishing has officially started before booking a trip, you may be waiting longer than you need to.
We are catching fish now.
More importantly, we are beginning to see the pieces that can make October and November really enjoyable months on Lake Guntersville.
The current warm stretch is not going to last forever. Cooler nights are coming. Water temperatures will eventually follow, and the fish will continue making their seasonal moves.
That is why we like this part of the year. You are not waiting on one magic day when everything suddenly changes. You are fishing through the transition as new areas and new opportunities continue to develop.
Come Fish Lake Guntersville With Us This Fall
This is the part where we are going to be straightforward.
We want to take you fishing.
If you have been watching the reports, looking at pictures and thinking about making a trip to Lake Guntersville, October and November are a good time to stop thinking about it and put a date on the calendar.
You do not need to know exactly what the bass are going to be doing three weeks from now. That is what we spend our time on the lake figuring out.
Pick the date that works for you. We will handle the lake when you get here.
A $100 deposit per fishing day secures your reservation.
Planning More Than A Standard Fishing Trip?
A lot of the people coming to Guntersville are planning more than one morning in a bass boat.
Some are putting together multi-day fishing trips. Some are bringing employees or customers for a company outing. Others need several boats for a larger family or group.
Guntersville Bass Guides™ is set up to handle those trips too.
Corporate And Group Fishing
We coordinate multi-boat Lake Guntersville corporate fishing trips, company outings, client events and larger groups with professional guides and organized launch logistics.
Explore Corporate And Group Fishing TripsFishing And Lodging
Coming from out of town? Compare angler-friendly Lake Guntersville lodging and start putting the complete fishing trip together before you arrive.
View Lake Guntersville LodgingGuided Bass Fishing
Four, six and eight hour guided bass fishing trips are available with our Lake Guntersville guide team throughout the fall season.
See Available Guided Fishing DatesFishing Guntersville From The Bank?
Not everybody coming to Lake Guntersville has a boat, and there are plenty of anglers who want to learn more about fishing the lake from shore.
We recently posted a bank fishing video on our Facebook page, and this is going to be part of an ongoing series.
We plan to keep adding more bank fishing content, different locations and useful information for people who want to enjoy Lake Guntersville without getting in a boat.
If that sounds like you, follow along. This is only the beginning of what we have planned.
A Couple More From The Week
Not every fish has to be the biggest one of the week to tell us something useful.
When the lake is under heavy pressure, every bite helps put another piece together. Sometimes a smaller fish confirms that a group has moved into an area. Sometimes the next bite is the one you are looking for.
October Is Just Getting Started
This was one of those weeks when Lake Guntersville made everybody work a little harder.
There was tournament traffic everywhere, a big full moon, another round of warm weather and feeding windows that did not always happen when we expected them to.
But through all of that, we continued catching fish and started seeing bass show up in some places we have been waiting on.
That is the part we are carrying into the next week.
October does not need to be wide open everywhere for us to like what we are seeing. The grass is here. The fish are moving. The frog bite is showing signs of getting better. Cooler weather will eventually get here, and November is sitting right behind it.
We are going to keep following those changes every day we are on the water and keep putting our clients in the best position we can.
If you have been thinking about fishing Lake Guntersville this fall, come spend a day with us and experience it for yourself.
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