by Robert Eidson
Linesides fishing is good. Spring is here and it’s spawning time. The white bass are already staging for the spawn run. The hybrids and stripers will be shortly behind them. With the unseasonable warm winter, I am looking for a strong run up both the Etowah and Litter Rivers this year. Since the whites run first, be sure to carry your light spinning gear spooled with 8-pound fluorocarbon. Cast a Rooster Tail, crappie jig or a tiny fluke.
Once the stripers start showing up, you better break out your bigger gear. Live and cut shad fished on the bottom are the ways to go. Fish sandy bottoms, bends in the rivers and deep holes. If you’re like me and the river isn’t your thing, the main lake can and does give up good numbers and big fish, even when the river run is at its peak.
Springtime is shad time on the big water. Threadfin shad fished on freelines, planer boards and downlines can produce big numbers. But if you’re after a big girl, then you need to be patient and pull big gizzards on freelines and planer boards. The Little River area along with the Allatoona Creek arm would be good starting points. For both numbers of hybrids and big stripers, the topwater bite is also starting to pick up. The flats at Little River and the Delta are starting to heat up at sunup and sundown. White Rooster Tails are hard to beat when these fish are busting topwater.
Spring is my favorite time of the year on Allatoona. Time to dust off the gear, grab a kid and hit the lake. May is one of the best months for stripers and hybrids on Lake Allatoona.