Catchin’ the Coosa with Zeke Gossett
Logan Martin
The months of November and December can be some of the best fishing Logan Martin has to offer with a lot going on during this timeframe. What happens during these months is that the lake is pulled down to its final winter pool, and fish are finally starting to feed up for the winter months ahead.
I usually find fishing better early on the main river, especially if there is current in the system. I target river docks and points with either a spinnerbait or shallow diving crankbait. The points and docks are typically better when there is deep water nearby.
Once the sun starts to rise, I’ll start fishing more in the pockets and creeks. Much like in the morning time, I tend to fish shallow docks and laydowns if present. I ordinarily target the sunny sides first. I am hoping there might be fish trying to warm up from the night before.
If there is defined channel swing in the pocket, I’ll target it as well. I will focus there, especially if the channel swings up or near one of the banks.
Once we ease into December and the water temps get below or around 55 degrees, that’s when I slow down with the jig – especially later in the day, once I feel like some bigger fish might have pulled up from the night before.
I traditionally target docks and laydowns. I will fish an occasional boat ramp as well. This is a great way to catch a big one during the latter part of December on Logan Martin.
One last thing, Alabama Power is supposed to be leaving more water in the lake during the winter for 2023. Officials say the depth will be two feet higher than winter level of previous years.
I am eager to see how this may change the fishing patterns I have used in the past. We shall see.
Neely Henry
Neely Henry offers a lot of good structure for early wintertime fishing. I mainly set my sights on the mid- to bottom-end of the lake.
My lure choices are fairly simple when it comes to fishing Neely Henry this time of year. I will start looking for fish on either shallow river points or bluff walls, which are plentiful on the bottom end of this lake.
I try to find the ones catching the most current. On the walls with the current, you can normally catch more than one bass. There is an abundance of fish present in these spots because the current has the shad pushed up against them. This allows the bass to gorge and feed up for the wintertime.
A couple of my favorite baits for fishing these bluff walls are a spinnerbait and/or jig. When you fish these type bluffs, boat position is critical! You want to position your boat close to the wall and make parallel cast with the spinnerbait and jig. This allows you to keep your bait longer in the strike zone and cover more water efficiently.
Lastly, one the sun does get up good, you can target shallow docks and laydowns with the jig. Targeting short river pockets are often where you’ll find the most success. These areas can offer isolated cover – one single dock or one single laydown in a pocket is generally the best.
