By Steve McCorkle “Colonel”
stevemccorkle61@yahoo.com
Well summer is finally in full swing with the daytime temps in the high 80’s and 90’s. The water is mostly clear but can be stained after a rain, especially if it is a severe thunderstorm. The water temps are in the mid 70’s for most of the lake with temps a few degrees cooler upriver at the shoals. Bass can still be caught shallow, and most bass I have caught or seen caught have been on a Texas rig worm, trick worm or a swimbait. Largemouth and spots can be caught in the main lake around docks and along shallow points. On the river portion, the best bite is around grass beds and along the bank with structure. Shoal bass can be caught around the shoals on the north end of the lake. Bass are also biting well at night and can be caught around docks with lights. Just be aware that many home owners will cut off their lights sometimes if they see people fishing them, so do not get upset with the homeowner. They do this because some people do not respect their property and have caused damage to docks and lights.
The crappie are still biting, but most crappie are being caught in water 10 to 15 feet or deeper. Crappie can be caught using minnows mostly around submerged structure around deeper water docks and around bridge pylons. Crappie are also biting under the bridges at night.
Striped bass can still be caught this time of year, and I recommend fishing the shoals upriver for stripes or fishing in the morning or afternoon along shallow rocky points. The water temps at the shoals are still in the lower 70’s. The best baits are swimbaits, Rat-L-Traps or spinners such as Red Fish Magic. I have seen some monster stripers in water as shallow as 2 to 4 feet busting on shad.
Sunfish are biting right now. The Mayflies are just now starting to swarm, and with the full moon the sunfish will be on bed and in shallow water. Fish the bank where bushes and tree limbs hang over the water where the Mayflies will congregate. It is not hard to catch a cooler full of hand size bream or shellcrackers. Now is the time to take someone who is learning to fish or is younger and may not have truly caught on to fishing. Bream can be caught with crickets, red wiggler worms or with small artificial spinners or minnow baits like the Renosky Keystone Minnow. Another fun way to catch sunfish is with a fly rod and small popper or foam fly. This can produce a lot of fish and can be very fun.
Catfish are biting now too. Fish the bottom around structure or on ledges and use bait such as chicken livers, stink baits or other live worms.