It has been a while since I posted to this blog; it’s also been a while since I have had an outstanding day on Lake Lanier; I sense a connection here…someplace.
As a member of the Access WDUN news team, and as a writer of this fishing blog, there is conflict within my soul. The journalist side of my brain is crazy-dedicated to only writing objective truth; the fisherman side of my brain says “stretching the truth” is part of fishing.
My effort at writing today’s blog has been overwhelming: ten minutes of typing followed by ten seconds of highlighting the text and hitting the delete button.
My ego says that people read this blog and use my suggestions to catch more fish…therefore I have to come up with something insightful and productive. My recent weeks-on-the-lake, however, says there is no such thing for me to share.
The volley of shots fired between my “news department integrity” and my good-old-boy “fishing ego” recognizes no cease-fire.
Strong parenting by my Mother and Father in the 1950’s combined with the Holy Spirit whispering into my conscience says, “Swallow your ego, son, and embrace the truth”; so here goes.
Fishing is tough right now (it usually is from late July through early September), but this year has been exceptional. I am zeroing many days (pause, swallow pride), and when I do manage to catch a bass am as startled as the poor fish that it happened.
That’s tough to admit for a man who has spent thirty-five years fishing Lanier. I am so dedicated (some say ‘obsessed’) to my sport that I have scared away all but a few remaining friends and marvel that my wife hasn’t shot me on sight.
Since this article is part of a fishing blog and not a memoir from a self-pity party I will attempt to share the best advice I have at the moment.
Take plenty of water, wear SPG clothing or layers of sun screen, and avoid fishing weekend afternoons (the boat traffic makes what I’m about to recommend unsafe and nearly impossible).
Schools of big spotted bass, mixed with occasional largemouth bass and stripers, are roaming the main channel of the Chattahoochee River following mega-schools of herring and threadfin shad.
That means bass fishermen are trying to hit a moving target; the concept of fishing a piece of fixed structure is generally unproductive. I have spent hundreds of hours since late July proving that to myself.
You may get lucky and catch something off a brush pile, but most of my bites in such places provide fish too short to keep.
Last weekend my partner and I easily won a tournament with a 6-pound limit; if you want to spend your day culling through fish that are barely long enough to keep you could win some money as we did.
But if you want to catch the bigger bass here is my suggestion: stay on the main channel; look for any kind of surface activity, even if it is nothing more than bait fish just under the surface; and fan-cast the area with a Zara Spook, Sammy or tandem bait, such as a Chug Bug followed by a weightless Super Fluke.
Then, and this is critical, have a second rod ready at your feet – something you can grab quickly and cast a long distance – and be ready to fire into any feeding activity that appears from nowhere…especially if your partner gets a response, cast next to his bait. When one fish decides to attack a surface-bait he is seldom alone.
We have caught (actually, stumbled upon) some huge spotted bass doing this but “luck” is the magic ingredient for catching these fish.
Four-or-five such unexpected encounters in the course of an 8-hour tournament will probably put you near the top of the leader board.
Our best hope right now is that next week’s weather will usher in the start of fall. Stay hydrated. Stay patient.
