In October the mild daytime temperatures and the chilly nighttime weather cools the lakes at Falcon’s Ledge down quickly. Trout love water temperatures between 50 and 60 degrees, so October is a great month to come out and catch trout. The fish are actively feeding and are feeling great with this ideal trout weather. Here are a few tips and tricks to help you catch more fish this October.
When fishing lakes it is important to know what depth the fish are feeding in the lake. During the summer months when the sun is hot and heats up the first 5 to 10 feet of water, trout mostly feed along the bottom of the lake on crayfish, blood worms, and small minnows. In the fall as the weather cools down the water temperature trout will become more comfortable throughout the entire water column and will feed at different depths during different parts of the day. In the morning and evening they will often feed near the surface on emerging midges and mayflies, and a dry/dropper rig or strike indicator with a midge is most effective. In the middle of the day, especially on clear days the trout will stay to avoid the warm sun and feed deeper in the water column near the bottom of the lake. Using a sinking line with a woolly bugger or leech pattern is effective during the middle of the day.
When fishing a woolly bugger or leech on a sinking line you can tie a 24-inch piece of tippet to the bend of the hook and tie a bloodworm or copper john nymph to the other end. This will often produce more fish. Trout may be interested in the woolly bugger or leech and swim over to check it out. Often the fish will turn away but see the nymph as they swim away and strike the nymph. When using this technique, you will want to work the flies slowly and close to the bottom of the lake.
In the evenings and mornings in the fall fish are often feeding on small midge emergers just under the surface. Sometimes these fish are feeding on a very specific size and color of midge. If you cannot figure out what size and color of midge they are feeding on you can try dropping a balanced leech or sno cone chironomid off a strike indicator about 30 inches. These patterns look like a good meal to feeding trout and will often trigger a fish to strike.
Good luck out there this October!
