This Lake Weiss Fishing Report Made Possible With These Great Sponsors:

Outlaw Crappie Poles, Charlie Brewer's Slider Company, Crappie Monster, Pop's Jigs, K9 Fishing Line, Hi-Tek Stuff Rod Holders, Weiss Lake Tackle & Outdoors, Costa Del Mar, A Place For Grace, Marine Recovery Services & Coosa Corner,

Want To Catch More Crappie On Lake Weiss?

Contact Tim for Electronics Installation, Updates, Modifications or Training! You can't catch what you can't see and there is no reason to fish where there are no fish! Tim has years of experience installing and calibrating down scan, side scan, structure scan and LiveScope units. Your electronics is the key to finding and catching more crappie.

November Fishing Report:

The last few weeks of have been decent to good. Battling the wind most days has been a challenge. 100% of our fall crappie have been caught by casting to fish mostly with an Ozark Smoke or Margarita small fry by Crappie Monster, a Charlie Brewer's Slider Company grub in June Bug when they want to chase it or a Pop’s Crappie Jig’s 1/24th oz. Arkie Shiner on the few shallow fish we've caught. I use a 7'2" Outlaw Crappie Poles rod spooled with 6lb K9 Fishing Products flouro.

Most fish are 12' to 20' deep. With the lack of rain and very little current moving the last few months about every river channel ledge has fish hanging out. Right now you can literally put your boat in at any area of the lake that is convenient to you, pull out to the river channel and start fishing. We've caught fish from powerhouse lake to Cowan Creek the last few weeks. I haven't had a favorite area. When we have normal rainfall some ledges are better than others. When turbines at the dam are running more from normal rainfall crappie tend to hang out more on main channel bends or just inside the mouths of Creeks. From what I've seen there's no big schools of crappie anywhere. They are still scattered out. Some structure will have 10 fish and some will have 2. Water temp was still 57 yesterday. It's time to wipe the dust off of that fishing boat and get out and enjoy fishing on Weiss Lake and Neely Henry Lake.

Good luck out there and if you want to learn more about crappie fishing on Lake Weiss this time of year, give me a call or send me a text and we can schedule a trip!

This Lake Weiss Fishing Report Made Possible With These Great Sponsors:

Outlaw Crappie Poles, Charlie Brewer's Slider Company, Crappie Monster, Pop's Jigs, K9 Fishing Line, Hi-Tek Stuff Rod Holders, Weiss Lake Tackle & Outdoors, Costa Del Mar, A Place For Grace, Marine Recovery Services & Coosa Corner,

Want To Catch More Crappie On Lake Weiss?

Contact Tim for Electronics Installation, Updates, Modifications or Training! You can't catch what you can't see and there is no reason to fish where there are no fish! Tim has years of experience installing and calibrating down scan, side scan, structure scan and LiveScope units. Your electronics is the key to finding and catching more crappie.

October Fishing Report:

October is the beginning of fall, cooler nights and shorter days and excellent crappie fishing on Weiss Lake! The Crappie are piled up on brush and stumps in 10 to 15' of water. The bigger crappie have been hanging out below big schools of the smaller crappie on brush at both Weiss Lake and Neely Henry. I've been using a 1/8oz jig heads with a  Crappie Monster in the Margarita small fry color casting to larger fish and then moving without spending much time at each stop. You can find some good fish starting to show up on the river ledges but you won't find them stacked like on flats and creek channels, they will be 2 or 3. Being accurate with your cast is key. You have to almost touch the fish you are targeting with your jig. 

Good luck out there and if you want to learn more about crappie fishing on Lake Weiss this time of year, give me a call or send me a text and we can schedule a trip!

This Lake Weiss Fishing Report Made Possible With These Great Sponsors:

Outlaw Crappie Poles, Charlie Brewer's Slider Company, Crappie Monster, Pop's Jigs, K9 Fishing Line, Hi-Tek Stuff Rod Holders, Weiss Lake Tackle & Outdoors, Costa Del Mar, A Place For Grace, Marine Recovery Services & Coosa Corner,

Want To Catch More Crappie On Lake Weiss?

Contact Tim for Electronics Installation, Updates, Modifications or Training! You can't catch what you can't see and there is no reason to fish where there are no fish! Tim has years of experience installing and calibrating down scan, side scan, structure scan and LiveScope units. Your electronics is the key to finding and catching more crappie.

May Fishing Report:

We are wrapping up the crappie spawn on Weiss Lake. For some the bite is over and for the rest of us it is just getting good!

The month of May and into June is a great time to catch post spawn crappie around deep docks, on brush and stumps casting or sniping. From here on out we will be using a Crappie Monster - Small Fry Jig, a Pop's Crappie Jigs hair jig, or for those finicky fish we will down size to a Charlie Brewer Sliders Company Whirley Bee or a Crappie Monster - Outbreak. I prefer using a #4 or a #6 hook when downsizing for post spawn presentation. I always have these tied onto 6lb K9 flouro Hi-Vis on my 7'2" or 6'8" Outlaw Crappie rod.

For sniping I'll us a 14' Outlaw Crappie Pole with 12 lb K9 Hi-Vis flouro.

Good luck out there and if you want to learn more about crappie fishing on Lake Weiss this time of year, give me a call or send me a text and we can schedule a trip!

This Lake Weiss Fishing Report Made Possible With These Great Sponsors:

Outlaw Crappie Poles, Charlie Brewer's Slider Company, Crappie Monster, Pop's Jigs, K9 Fishing Line, Hi-Tek Stuff Rod Holders, Weiss Lake Tackle & Outdoors, Costa Del Mar, A Place For Grace, Marine Recovery Services & Coosa Corner,

Want To Catch More Crappie On Lake Weiss?

Contact Tim for Electronics Installation, Updates, Modifications or Training! You can't catch what you can't see and there is no reason to fish where there are no fish! Tim has years of experience installing and calibrating down scan, side scan, structure scan and LiveScope units. Your electronics is the key to finding and catching more crappie.

April Fishing Report:

April is a great month to get out and do some crappie fishing on beautiful Weiss Lake! We have been catching crappie longlining Charlie Brewer Slider 1.5" Grubs in Chicken, June Bug and Blue and Chartreuse colors and casting Crappie Monster - Small Fry Jigs in the Kentucky Blue and Electric Chicken colors to brush and roaming schools. We use the 12 foot, 10 foot and 7'2" Outlaw Crappie Poles when we are longlining. The 6'8" one piece Outlaw Crappie Poles is perfect for casting to crappie holding on brush. All of our Outlaw Crappie Poles are spooled with K9 flouro in 6 pound test Hi-Vis.

We have had some BIG crappie this year that needed a net! When you see that you have a big crappie on the line make sure to use a net because I have lost many a good size crappie by horsing them to the boat only to have them get off at the boat! If you are looking for a good fishing net check out the Crappie Monster Outlaw Crappie Net.

Good luck out there and if you want to learn more about crappie fishing on Lake Weiss this time of year, give me a call or send me a text and we can schedule a trip!

This Lake Weiss Fishing Report Made Possible With These Great Sponsors:

Outlaw Crappie Poles, Red Rooster Custom Baits, Pop's Jigs, K9 Fishing Line, Hi-Tek Stuff Rod Holders, Weiss Lake Tackle & Outdoors, Costa Del Mar & A Place For Grace, Marine Recovery Services & Little River Cove Cabin Rental.

Want To Catch More Crappie On Lake Weiss?

Contact Tim for Electronics Installation, Updates, Modifications or Training! You can't catch what you can't see and there is no reason to fish where there are no fish! Tim has years of experience installing and calibrating down scan, side scan, structure scan and LiveScope units. Your electronics is the key to finding and catching more crappie.

February Fishing Report:

The bite is heating up on Weiss Lake! We are catching fish longlining in 8 ft of water in some areas and spider rigging current breaks on the main river channel. The bigger fish still seem to be holding in 12' to 20' foot of water close to the mouths of creeks on river channels.

Longlining we are using a 1/24 oz pink or red jig heads with an assortment of colors in Red Rooster Custom baits in the Georgia Razor style using 6lb K9 fluorocarbon on 7'2" Outlaw Crappie Poles.

On river ledges we are spider rigging with a double minnow rig on 12 to 14ft Outlaw Crappie Poles. With all of the rain and swift current on the main channels at Weiss Lake you can still put together a nice bag of fish when you find them.

Good Luck and if you want to learn more about crappie fishing Lake Weiss this time of year, give me a call and we can schedule a trip!

This Lake Weiss Fishing Report Made Possible With These Great Sponsors:

Outlaw Crappie Poles, Red Rooster Custom Baits, Pop's Jigs, K9 Fishing Line, Hi-Tek Stuff Rod Holders, Weiss Lake Tackle & Outdoors, Costa Del Mar & A Place For Grace, Marine Recovery Services & Little River Cove Cabin Rental.

Want To Catch More Crappie On Lake Weiss?

Contact Tim for Electronics Installation, Updates, Modifications or Training! You can't catch what you can't see and there is no reason to fish where there are no fish! Tim has years of experience installing and calibrating down scan, side scan, structure scan and LiveScope units. Your electronics is the key to finding and catching more crappie.

December Fishing Report:

With all of the rain and swift current on the main channels at Weiss Lake you can still put together a nice bag of fish when you find them. In some coves you can find crappie stacked up just out of the current and in coves on creek channels in 10 to 18 ft of water. You can look for groups of fish on structure with Livescope and casting a crappie jig (such as a Red Rooster Jig or Pop's Jig) or single pole with the length that you mostly feel comfortable with (I use a 14ft Pro SE Outlaw Crappie Pole for single poling). You can also be successful longlining or spider rigging in coves and creek channels. For Longlining I would start with a 1/24 jig head and add a #7 split shot if see fish deeper in the water column than 6ft.

Good Luck and if you want to learn more about crappie fishing Lake Weiss this time of year, give me a call and we can schedule a trip!

This Lake Weiss Fishing Report Made Possible With These Great Sponsors:

Outlaw Crappie Poles, Red Rooster Custom Baits, K9 Fishing Line, Hi-Tek Stuff Rod Holders, Weiss Lake Tackle & Outdoors, Costa Del Mar & A Place For Grace.

Want To Catch More Crappie On Lake Weiss?

Contact Tim for Electronics Installation, Updates, Modifications or Training! You can't catch what you can't see and there is no reason to fish where there are no fish! Tim has years of experience installing and calibrating down scan, side scan, structure scan and LiveScope units. Your electronics is the key to finding and catching more crappie.

November Fishing Report:

The crappie fishing on Weiss lake is getting better and better! Water temps are in the mid to upper 40s and the crappie can be found roaming creek and river channels.

You should be able to catch crappie long line trolling, casting, shooting docks or spider rigging. I've been catching my better fish jigging or spider rigging main river channels but if you want to cover water and catch fish at the same time you can be pretty successful long line trolling with Red Rooster Crappie jigs in certain areas of the lake where they are schooling and chasing shad. I have been using the Red Rooster Georgia Razor in the Blue Glimmer an Hammer Time (MC Hammer) colors.

Good Luck and if you want to learn more about crappie fishing Lake Weiss this time of year, give me a call and we can schedule a trip!

It has been different fishing on Weiss lake this fall with the winter drawdown changing to 3ft from now on instead of 6ft.

Crappie are on river and creek channels as normal but holding tight to stumps and brush and not roaming on channel ledges like they normally are this time of year.

Winter drawdown started a month later also. The lake is only down a little over 1ft when normally it's down 2.5 ft or more. Combine that with very little current the last month or more which means less dissolved oxygen. All the dams on the Coosa river were upgraded to supply dissolved oxygen during times when the dams are not generating power.

Weiss Lake did not benefit from this because the dam above Weiss is owned by the Corp of Engineers and wasn't required to do the upgrade.

The crappie are there but we have been fighting the Fall winds as well!. You have to be patient and move slow.

Hope this helps those that are struggling. It's not just you. There's good days ahead. I have started booking for February and March. I have some dates open the last half of November and several open days in December. 

Winning tournament angler and successful guide Tim Pentecost targets crappie on Weiss Lake from mid-October through the end of December using two patterns. One is on the main river channel, and the other is along the shoreline.

Main River Channel Pattern

Of the two patterns, the main river channel pattern produces the biggest crappie.

“We catch a lot of big fish on the main river channel,” said Pentecost. “The crappie range in size from 10 inches to 1½ pounds. Last year, we competed in a tournament with a 30-fish limit. Our bag weighed 31 pounds and some were two pounders.”

While this pattern usually begins in mid-October, Pentecost says the key is water temperature. As the water cools, shad and crappie migrate from the flats to the main river channel. It’s possible to find fish on the submerged channel in September, but the migration is not complete until the water temperature falls below 70 degrees.

When conditions align, Pentecost says fishing the main river channel offers fast action.

He continued, “Some days fishing is slow, but there are days when you cannot keep your lines in the water. On days like that, you have to hit spot lock on the trolling motor, remove all the fish from your lines, then reset your rods and start again.”

To find crappie, Pentecost concentrates on fishing mid-lake between Yellow Creek and Bay Springs. He avoids areas on the main river channel with a steep drop off.

“Steep drop-offs do not produce as well as places where the submerged river bank slopes into the channel. A gradual slope has more cover and steps. Small stumps that you can barely see with LiveScope will hold two or three fish.”

Once on a promising stretch of river channel, Pentecost’s hunt for crappie involves pushing bottom-bouncing double minnow rigs with six spider rigged rods. The technique is also known as tight lining, and the terminal gear as a drop shot. His rig has a ¾-ounce bell sinker at the end of the line with a 6-inch leader attached 12 to 15 inches above the sinker. A second 6 inch leader is attached 12 to 15 inches above the bottom leader. Both leaders sport No. 2 hooks. All lines are 10-pound K9 Hi-Vis Fluoro, and the rigs are fished on 16-foot Pro SE Outlaw Crappie Poles with Outlaw spinning reels.

Pentecost’s double minnow rig is effective for two reasons. It allows him to stay in contact with the bottom and fish two different depths at the same time.

“Most of the time during the day,” he said, “crappie sit in the mud on the bottom. You cannot see them, not even with LiveScope. Sometimes when we catch them, the scales on their bellies are stained or dirty. I prefer to find crappie on the bottom. Most anglers will not fish deep, so it’s a great pattern when guiding or when fishing a tournament."

“Start fishing 15 feet deep. Sometimes the fish will be as deep as 30 feet, but most of the time, you will find them about 15 feet deep. I never troll any faster than .3 mph. And I troll against the current to better control my speed.”

Dock Shooting Pattern

“Anglers catch crappie off docks year round on Weiss,” says Pentecost. “In the fall, there are always plenty of crappie on the docks. The average fish is smaller than the ones we catch on the main river channel, but occasionally you will catch a fish weighing 1½ pounds.”

During fall, Pentecost targets docks at the mouths of coves.

“The docks on the main lake are good,” he said, “but the ones at the mouth of coves just off the main lake hold more fish. Look for docks in water at least 10 feet deep with cover. Dock owners on Weiss sink a lot of cover around their docks.”

Pentecost scans the docks with LiveScope. The forward facing sonar reveals if a dock holds fish, their size, location and depth on the dock. “LiveScope took the hunt out of finding crappie on docks,” he said.

Without live sonar, Pentecost shoots his jig as far as possible to the back of the dock and lets it sink to the bottom before beginning a slow retrieve. Often the fish will be near the bottom. If he doesn’t catch one, the next retrieve is higher in the water column. The depth where crappie suspend under a dock can vary, so it’s necessary to experiment to find the fish.

Pentecost’s setup for shooting docks is a 5-foot, 8-inch Outlaw Crappie Pole with an Outlaw spinning reel spooled with 6-pound K9 Hi-Vis Fluoro line. He uses this rod, reel and line combination to shoot a 1/24-ounce Red Rooster jig head dressed with a 2-inch Red Rooster Georgia Razor soft plastic. The guide’s favorite Red Rooster colors are black and chartreuse in stained water and blue glimmer in clearer water. The lighter jig head sinks slower and skips easier than a heavier one.

“The biggest tip I give anglers,” Pentecost said, “is to practice shooting a jig for accuracy. Practice in the yard by shooting a jig into a cup on its side and by shooting under a garage door that is only open 6 inches.”

To book a guided fishing trip with Tim Pentecost on Lake Weiss or Neely Henry lakes, visit his website, Facebook page or call 256-630-5042.

Although summer is not the most popular time of year to go crappie fishing it doesn't mean that you can't. If you are an early riser you can get out on the lake when the sun comes up and be back at the dock by the time it gets hot with a stringer of fish if you know where to look.

During the summer months with the surface temperature bouncing close to 90 degrees crappie will feed more in the early mornings. You'll find them on brush and stumps from 12 to 25 feet of water near creek and river ledges. You can cast to them with a light jig, spider rig with live minnows or you can set a slip bobber to suspend your bait just over the top of them. Usually you'll get a few takers pretty quick and then the bite will slow. You can either move on to the next spot or you can wait them out and usually the spooked fish will eventually move back.

If you want to learn about crappie fishing on Weiss Lake in the summer months, give me a call to book your trip for some great summer time fun!