by Eric Crowley
Water temperature: 81-83 degrees, lake level: full, clarity: 5-7 feet.
The heat of summer is upon us and the fish are feeling it too. Most all of the striped fish in the lake are holding on the thermocline. Whether it’s where the deep cool water meets the deep water edges or drop offs, or on the submerged timber or out in open water, the key is fishing deep. Look for hybrids in 35 to 50 feet of water on the main lake points and in the creek mouths at daybreak, or look in the back of the creeks for fish chasing bait later in the day just before dusk. Live bait is key. Baits of choice for the smaller of the two striped species are 4-5 inch threadfin and alewife.
The stripers are deeper but catching them that deep is really hard on the fish. Our preferred method of catching them is at night under the Hydro Glow lights. These fish are more than willing to come up and eat bait in the 40 feet or less depth range in the dark, and this makes for a much better release with the fish swimming off healthy and not exhausted or bloated. For night fishing we like the biggest alewife possible with 2/0 circle hooks and 20 pound mono leaders. This allows us to get the fish in the boat faster, get a pic and release the fish quickly.
The night bite is also good for walleye. We have seen some really nice ‘eyes’ showing up in hours just before dawn. Believe it or not, they like the biggest baits available. Big alewife and even dollar bill size gizzards seem to be irresistible to the big eye bottom dwellers. We have seen fish up to 8 pounds in the last few weeks. As these are not the hardest fighting fish, they are the fish of choice for the table.
The spots have been up feeding on schools of fry bait all over the lake. It seems like every school has a couple fish right below it. Long casts will be a must to keep from spooking them, but if you can make a good cast from a distance with a live bait or a small fluke or jig, it’s almost an instant bite.