Lake Hopatcong in the Fall

[FishNJ1162]

This is my first post. Glad to be here. Recently purchased a G3 bass boat, and want to use it as often as I can. Seeing as I have off Sundays and Mondays, I have the time to use it. We have a seasonal camper not too far down Rt 80 so I will be fishing a lot in the summer months early in the morning. Question is...... are there any areas I should concentrate on (geographically) or just look for the structure holding bass and concentrate on those types of cover? Thank you in advance for any help you are willing to share. I am a big Senko / Wacky Rig fan. Does this work well on Hopatcong?

I hope to hit it this year (fall), and anything you could offer would be greatly appreciated for this time of year as well.

[acabtp]

interesting fall for LH
https://morriscountynj.gov/2018/08/l...rt-next-month/
will be down 5' by 11/1. getting in and out of the water may become an issue
a lot of the coves will have very little water in them

[NJSquatch]

Hopatcong is a fickle mistress. The lake gets a ton of fishing pressure and the lock jaw can test your will at times. Time on the water will reveal some go to spots. Check out the navionics web map to look for spots to check out.

In my experience fall bass fishing is tough but then again i primarily focus on hybrids and walleyes in the fall. Senkos are effective in the shallow water around docks. Stick with a some blue on the crank baits. The primary forage is alewife (herring).

Great thing about this site is the search function. I use it regularly when wanting to check out a new body of water.

My advice is to fish off hours and in less than ideal weather. During the weekends there maybe as many as 2-3 fishing tournaments and a ton of pleasure boaters. Memorial day to Labor Day is pleasure boat madness.

The big 5' drawdown is this year. They already started releasing 1.5" a day. The lake will be down 2' by 10/13 and some ramps start to become unusable at that point.

Try to make it to the Hybrid Meet and Greet and pick the brains of the crew.

Be safe out there and report back with your adventures

[FishNJ1162]

Much appreciated. Already trying to plan my day trips the remainder of this year and next. I am going to be getting the most out of my boat (just bought last month and only had it in Black Lake, NY).

[Bruce Litton]

I catch bass in the shallows as late as early November. While I fish a steep drop near shore for walleye and hybrids, I turn around and cast to rocks, catching largemouths and smallmouths from a foot to maybe eight feet deep where it drops fast. I also check a spot in Lee's Cove and often score. So judging by the little bass fishing I do in October and November, I would say you stand a pretty good chance by really focusing on them.

[FishNJ1162]

Originally Posted by Bruce Litton

I catch bass in the shallows as late as early November. While I fish a steep drop near shore for walleye and hybrids, I turn around and cast to rocks, catching largemouths and smallmouths from a foot to maybe eight feet deep where it drops fast. I also check a spot in Lee's Cove and often score. So judging by the little bass fishing I do in October and November, I would say you stand a pretty good chance by really focusing on them.

Thank you for the info. Trying to find a day to get the boat out for some fall fishing. Wicked chest cold kept me in today (off from work on Sundays and Mondays). Maybe next week. Just trying to figure out what water to try.