Largemouth bass are ready to move shallow to spawn and they are tight on shallow creeks, ledges and on the secondary points in the creeks. The bass are not quite shallow enough for anglers to get the usual spring bite. The warmer nights and a little warm rain will get the action hot soon. Look on the ditches and creeks bends and on the ends of trees in the water for the bass.

Early in the day use the red shad Culprit worm. Then after mid day, slow roll the 3/8 ounce Stanley Wedge spinner bait. Use bright tandem blades and slow roll the spinner bait in and around any under water object. The up river fish are on the points waiting for a few more days of warming waters to get them into the mood to spawn. Little River and Wahoo Creek are great spring locations.

The up lake fish have to be coaxed into taking baits. Use a dark Stanley jig in a 3/8th ounce size with a 4 inch Yamamoto trailer or the #11 Uncle Josh trailer. Cast to the same location several times. Use the blacks and brown colors in these jigs and cast on the points and docks up lake and work these baits slowly. The Zoom u tail worms in the pumpkinseed and greens on a Texas rig have been fair later in the day. Major feeding periods all week are mid to late in the day. It’s not a shallow bite yet, but its coming. Docks in the back of Thompson Creek on the right side are holding pre spawn bass. Skip a Zoom trick worm or the Zoom Super Fluke under the docks and let the bait sink. Work points from Gainesville Marina up the Chattahoochee River and fish in the coves and small creeks off the river. After a mid day warm up, use the Pradco Fat Free in the baby bass and shad colors on the points and around docks. Use 10 pound Stren Magna Thin and these baits will run a few feet deeper.  

Spotted bass are on tight docks with heavy cover and rocky points from 10 to 20 feet. Rocks and gravel points all over the lake are key areas. The pockets in the back of Shoal Creek around the ramp are pre spawn and post spawn holding areas. Do not cast the baits to the bank early and late. The spots seem to be in the center of the coves and pockets and just holding there. Fat Albert pearl or smoke grubs on a 1/8 ounce jig head can take almost any specie in the lake. Cast these baits to the banks and reel them back.

For the bigger fish work the deep man made and natural cover with small hair jigs and worms. Pick several of the larger docks half way back in the Big Creek on the right side past the rock island and fish baits very, very slowly. Worms should be greens, natural blues and sand on a Texas rig. Fishing has been fair on a spinner bait but use the 1/4 ounce smaller sizes with a single Colorado blade. The Zoom Super Flukes with a 4/0 Mustad hook will work around any wood and under docks. Use this bait on 8 pound Stren Easy cast line to get to these fish. Skip or cast the bait and pull it back with short jerks of the rod. The points in Shady Grove Park on the east side will be good spawning locations. Use the Texas rigged worms in the lime aide colors and be sure to work the lure all the way back to the boat on points. Depths will be from 15 to 25 feet. On windy and overcast days, use the darker colors of finesse worms. The river fish are shallower and use a Leverage 3/8th ounce spinner bait with all silver willow leaf blades. Cast this spinner bait right up on the points. The Largemouth bass will also attack this lure. Add a bright trailer on the spinner bait. Night crawlers on any dock will get a strike from the hungry and aggressive spots. Never overlook a Fat Albert grub on a lead head jig in bright colors.  

Stripers are scattered all over the lake from the backs of the down lake creeks to up both the rivers. Unless you get really lucky, you will only see a single striper on the sonar because the fish are so shallow early, no sonar can see them. The fish are feeding super shallow in the off colored waters early until 9am. Then they leave and head to timber on the main lake just past the stain lines in the creeks. Live is best all day. Lake wide, flat line a medium shiners, herring and larger trout. Last week casting buck tails around the banks in the backs of Six Mile Creek and Flat Creek would work but this bite is off this week for some reason. The fish are biting best early each morning and on overcast days. Drift across coves and creeks with the wind using large live bait in the mouths of the creeks after the early bite. These stripers are feeding shallow all night so get there early and pull flat lines shallow right up on the banks. After 9am, these fish seem to leave and heads out to the main lake to get away from the stained waters. Now id s the time to pull free lines out over 80 feet of water. You may not see the fish in the trees but they are coming up to get baits, especially trout. Little River and Wahoo Creek are great areas on the Chattahoochee. Up the Cheastee River, the Thompson Creek channel and the mouth of Taylor Creek has schools feeding fish on large shad. The river fish are moving every day and trolling the shad crank baits is the best way to keep up with them. After dark stripers are VERY shallow.

Fish anywhere from the dam to Browns Bridge and cover water casting until you find some cooperative fish. Sandy areas like those around Three Sisters are feeding zones. Any 15A or 16A Bombers will work. My best color has been trout. But be sure to change the hooks to #2 Gamakatsu salt water 4X strong hook. These hooks are superior to the stock hooks. Be sure to cast RIGHT ON THE BANK and find sand and the fish are biting as late as midnight, then go home and come back at 5am. We are using 17 to 20 pound Silver Thread Line as well as 30 pound Sufix Braid. Use a 7 foot rod and a Shimano Curado reel due to line capacity. You will hook a fish in the next month you will not stop. Be sure to have your batteries fully charged to chase these fish. Get them on the surface fast and your chances of touching the fish are much better. The Gainesville Marina and north is a good area and the same techniques will work. (Please go to www.stripersurvey.com and report your fishing trip, good and bad.) 

Crappie are shallow and with the warming waters have the fish after grubs, jigs and minnows. The fish are very shallow around wood, docks and bridges. They are still shallow on overcast days and move a little deeper with the sun high. Fishing is good especially up lake in the creeks Look in the coves and pockets off the rivers and Little River and the back of Johnson Creek are excellent areas. Tubes in a variety of colors on a 1/24 ounce lead head and 4 pound test on a spinning reel will work. Color didn't seem to matter, so use all yellow, red and yellow, green, and pink tubes tipped with minnows flipping around a dock. Ada Creek is very good.

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