By Josh Garrison
Catching stripers in March on Lake Nottely can be some of the best fishing of the year. Over the last few years, things have been screwy with too much water, early spring temps, you name it. However, this year things seem to be right on track. Our lake is still a little off through the depths (a result of last year’s rains) but good fish are being caught on the north end of the lake with various techniques.
Striper fishing is always a game of water temperatures. In March, this is especially true. After the cold winter months, the baitfish are going to be seeking the warmest waters on the lake and start to think about spawning. Right now, the majority of the baitfish (and stripers) are towards the dam where the waters are the warmest. As the days get longer and temps come up, this will all change. Not always the case on Nottely, but for March, finding the bait does equal finding the fish.
Once you have located your bait, it’s time to catch some stripers. Springtime is perfect for free-lining trout, herring, and especially gizzard shad if you can find them. Expect the stripers to be feeding shallow and covering lots of water. In the spring I like to stack multiple planer boards on the shore side as I’m pulling and adjust the pitch of your side-planers to keep multiple baits close to the bank. Then throw out some trout on a couple of free lines out the back. With only having planers out one side of the boat, turning is much easier and you can work up one shoreline and back down the other on our narrow sections of the lake.
“V-waking” Redfins on artificials is deadly this time of year along with most of you favorite topwater baits. If you can get out there early, try making some noise with a Pencil Popper and then soften your approach as the day progresses. Once the water temps hit 50-degrees, get in the backs of the creeks and rivers with crawfish imitation crankbaits. Expect to catch some great largemouths but I have found more and more that the stripers love those little mini lobsters as well.
Book a trip now with Josh or Darren before all of our spring dates are full. If you are coming up on your own, Hughes General Store has everything you need for a successful trip. Fresh, hot biscuits, bait, ice, tackle, rods, reels, and ethanol-free gas is available along with a friendly staff that will help make your trip a success. Good luck and we will see you on the water.
Josh Garrison
N. Georgia Premier Fishing Guide Service
wwww.fishgarrison.com
(706) 745-4802