December Bass at Neely Henry with GPS coordinates to ten spots, baits to use on them and how to fish each one. Catch more bass with these tips from Johnny Osborn

with Johnny Osborne

    Thanksgiving Holidays. Christmas Holidays. Lots of people hunting. What a great time to be on the lake!  Compared to much of the year there are few people on the lake and the bass are biting from the end of November through December.  A good choice for catching spots and largemouth right now is Neely Henry.

    Located on the Coosa River just downstream of Lake Weiss, Neely Henry is a long river-like lake with just over 11,000 acres of water.  It runs 77 miles from dam to headwaters and has a wide variety of structure and cover, although many creeks and ditches are silted in.  Dammed in 1950, this old lake has lots of grass and there is still a lot of wood cover in the lake.

    According to the Alabama DNR there are a lot of 15 to 18 inch largemouth in the lake and the spotted bass population is “exceptional” for large fish.  The numbers of spots in the 14 to 20 inch range is one of the best in the state.   Just over half the bass weighed in during tournaments are spots, according to the BAIT survey.

    Johnny Osborne grew up in the area and has lived near Neely Henry all his life, except for a stint in the navy.  He has fished all his life and in the 1970s a co-worker got him started tournament fishing.  Fishing has been a passion all his life.

    This year Johnny fished the BFL series and made the regional tournament.  He also fishes the BASS Weekend Series and the ABA as well as many local tournaments.  He does some guiding on the lake and has helped many pros locate hotspots for big tournaments.

    Last year in the in the St. Jude’s Charity Tournament on Neely Henry he and his partner had five spots weighing 19 pounds, 2 ounces.  His best five from Neely Henry weighed over 26 pounds and his best tournament catch was five at 24-14.  He has landed a 6 pound, 3 ounce spot and an 8 pound, 2 ounce largemouth on Neely Henry.

    “Bass are following baitfish and feeding shallow from Thanksgiving through Christmas,” Johnny said.  You can catch them on a variety of baits and in several kinds of cover and structure.  Current makes a big difference and they bite much better when it is moving.

    Most of Johnny’s fishing this time of year concentrates on the mid-lake area, from City Ramp in Gadsden to the Rainbow Landing area.  Bass move to creek openings and shoreline cover and feed on shad as them move with the current, and you don’t have to make long runs to cover the area.

     Johnny will have a Stanley spinnerbait with a one gold and one silver willowleaf blade and a chartreuse and white skirt and an Academy XPO chartreuse crankbait for faster fishing. 

    For slower fishing he will rig a jig head that he pours himself with a watermelon red worm with a chartreuse tail, and have a Arkie tube Texas rigged and ready.  The tube is his favorite bait and Johnny likes a green pumpkin color.  He will also rig a Trick or Finesse green worm on a Carolina rig with a 32 inch leader behind a three-quarter ounce lead.

    A topwater bait like a Pop-R or a Sammy is also ready for low light times like early in the morning or during cloudy days.  Johnny says he catches bass at Neely Henry on top until the water gets to the low 50s so you can catch them on top most of the month.

    Put in at City Ramp or Rainbow Ramp and you can fish these spots without a lot of running. There were fish on them a couple of weeks ago when we fished and they should be even better now.

    1.  N 33 59.191 – W 85 59.996 – Head downstream from City Ramp and go under the bridges. On your right you will see a campground then a big white house on a narrow point between the river and Big Wills Creek.  The end of that point runs parallel to the river and is deep on both sides and is covered with rock.

    Stop on the river side and cast across the point.  You can run a crankbait or spinnerbait over it if there is current running and the fish are active.  If there is little current, work around the point casting a jig head worm up almost to the seawall and working it back down the point and across it at different angles.

    The day we fished there was not much current here in the early afternoon but we caught over a dozen bass on it on jig head worms. All were spots and the biggest was about two pounds. Johnny says you often get a lot of keeper size spots here since they stack up on this point.

    Before leaving Johnny will fish up the river side of the point for a hundred feet, working the steep drop along this bank.  Bass will feed here, too, especially if there is a good current running along the bank.

    2.   N 33 58.191 – W 86 00.004 – The mouth of Big Wills Creek is very wide since it makes a big bend, hitting the bank at the point above then swinging across to the far bank before turning and entering the river near the downstream point. Since the channel enters here, the downstream point of Big Wills Creek is good, too. 

    Stop on the river side of the point.   You will be across from the playground and old ramp at Dub Parker Boat Launch.  Fish the point that runs upstream parallel to the river and the flat on either side of it. Bass hold on the point and feed on the flats.

    Johnny starts on the river side and casts up on top of the point with a shaky head or his Texas rigged tube.   When sitting here you can see a three door white dock on the far bank of Big Wills Creek and the restaurant on the road across from it, but you will be a long way from it.

    Fish from the bank to the drop into the old creek channel.  Bump the bottom, probing for any cover where bass will be hiding.  Current running across this point makes it much better.

    3.  N 32 58.220 – W 85 59.331 – Run down the river and watch for the opening to a slough on your right.  It is near the end of a gently bend of the river to the left and is just downstream of a brown roof dock with a big wind chime on it.  The house behind it also has a brown roof with a white chimney. There was a “for sale” sign in the yard in early November.

    Keep your boat out in the river and fish the downstream point of this slough. The river channel runs right up to the mouth of the slough.  There was a stump sticking up out on the point and there is a hump in the middle of the slough. 

    Run a crankbait across the shallows, casting from the river channel and working your bait from shallow to deep. Bump the bottom as long as you can on each cast.  Make sure you work out from the point to cover the hump, too.

    After trying the crankbait try both a shaky head and tube. Drag them along the bottom, hoping them and then letting them sit still for a few seconds to wave in the current. 

    4.  N 33 57.475 – W 85 58.119 – Head downstream until you can see the upper end of Freeman’ Island, the big island in the middle of the river.  On your right you will see a small island just off the bank and upstream of it a big brown brick and wood house on that side.  The upstream point of the island has chunk rock on it and the flat from the island to the dock and ramp at the house holds feeding bass.

    Start at the island staying on the river side of the island and cast across the upstream point.  Keep working toward the dock, staying way out and making long casts. The flat has stumps on it and bass hold around them. 

    This is a good area to fish a Carolina Rigged worm since the heavy sinker will allow you to fish it quickly and find the stumps.   Your jig had worm and tube will work well, too.  Fish the area carefully, some big bass hold here.

    5.  N 33 56.910 – W 85 57.480 – Downstream of Freeman’s Island on the left going downstream you will see a electric pole on the bank surrounded by a chain link fence. It is not easy to see in the brush but it is the outlet for the Tyson plant wastewater holding pond.  Waste from the chicken processing plant dumps into the river here and it has a colorful local name that recognizes the “stuff” that comes out.

    This outflow draws in big schools of baitfish and big bass feed here.  You will see a path on the bank coming down to the water and out from it a pipe runs out to dump waste. This pipe is covered with riprap and you can see humps of rocks if you ride over it, but be careful if the water is low.

    Keep your boat out from the bank and end of the pipe and make casts to the bank with a crankbait, running it back across the rocks at different angles.  Johnny likes the Academy crankbait since it works well, runs right and is not too expensive.  You will lose crankbaits here on these rocks, but can catch some big stringers of bass.

    There are three different drops along here and bass will hold along any of them.  Johnny says a lot of six to eight pound bass have been caught here and many tournaments won on this spot so don’t pass it by.

    6.  N 33 57.037 – W 86 01.005 – Run a good ways down river past the right turn bend to where the river starts a left turn. On your right a creek enters upstream of the bend and Tommy’ Marina in the back of it.  There are some danger markers on the upstream side of the opening. 

    The mouth of this creek has several humps and drops across it where the river runs in close and many bass hold here.  Be careful, you can go from 20 feet of water to nothing in a few feet, and not all the humps are marked.

    Work this area with Carolina rig and shaky head and tube. The humps and drops are covered with stumps and chunk rock and you will get hung up a lot. Johnny says a crankbait would work well here but you lose too many to make it worth throwing them.

    Current running across these drops makes a big difference.  The fish will feed when the current is running so position your boat so you can cast upstream and work your bait back with a natural movement with the current.  Work around the area until you find the bass feeding.

    7.  N 33 56.737 – W 86 01.407 – Go around the bend and downstream toward the bridges.  Stop just upstream of the upstream boat shed on your right at Bucks Marina and work upstream.  There is a house here with satellite dish in the yard and a boat shed with a pontoon under it with a yellow and white cover.

    Fish all along this bank, working the cover and cuts along the bank, staying out in 20 feet of water or so.  Use your shaky head, tube and Carolina rig.  There is a good bit of wood cover on the bottom here so probe for it. 

    The channel makes a good ledge along this bank and bass hold on the lip of it and run in to feed.  It was along this bank where Stacey King got 2^nd place in a PAA tournament and where Johnny’s fishing partner, Gary Howington caught a huge seven pound, six ounce spotted bass.

    Work the bank and all cover from the boathouse all the way upstream to gray and white dock with a boat with a Mercury motor on it. Just downstream of this dock is a ridge or hump and this is where Stacey King caught his fish.

    8. N 33 56.499 – W 86 01.610 – Go to the upper bridge of the Highway 77 crossing and stop out from the riprap on the left side going downstream. Johnny says this is a great place to find bass pushing shad into the corner and feeding, especially in the morning.

    Throw a spinnerbait, starting on the end of the riprap and working it into the grassy pocket and fishing upstream about 50 feet. Work it at different speeds as much as you can in the shallow water. Watch for fish busting bait on top.  Current makes this spot much better.

    This pocket and pattern gave Johnny the bass he needed to win the two day BFL finale last year on Neely Henry. He said he was surprised to get here each morning and find it open, with no boats ahead of him stopping here.

    Work the upstream pocket then go around the point and fish the downstream pocket, too. Sometimes the current will make the bass go into this pocket and eat the baitfish here.

    Johnny will fish down to the second bridge, the bigger one, and work around the second piling from the left bank going downstream. There is a big rock pile around this piling and it is a good place to throw a jig head worm or a tube and catch spotted bass.

    9.  N 33 56.051 – W 86 02.322 – Go downstream to the first small island on the right bank downstream of Rainbow Landing. It is several hundred yards down that bank. Start at the small pocket just upstream of the island and fish upstream all the way to the ramp.

    Some bass released in tournaments at Rainbow Landing stay here and feed along this bank. You can fish it in either direction but current usually makes boat control better going upstream, and current helps the fishing. 

    Fish all the shoreline cover including docks, wood and rocks along this bank. It is shallow and your boat will be in only a few feet of water, but you can often catch a lot of bass here.  There are several private boat ramps along here and Johnny says you should never pass a boat ramp on Neely Henry without casting to it.

    We got our best two bass on our trip here, a 3 pound spot and a 3.5 pound largemouth. Both hit a jig head worm. Fish topwater baits along this bank and also work it with a crankbait, tube or jighead worm along this bank and work it carefully.  If you are catching fish it is worth more than one pass.

    10.  N 33 55.283 – W 86 03.615 – Past the small island in the hole above the river channel moves to the left bank then makes a swing back to the right bank below a big flat.  Near where it swings back to the right bank there is a small marina with boat sheds. Start fishing just upstream of the boat sheds and fish upstream.

    There are a series of small points and three riprap areas along this bank to hit as you go upstream.  Work the riprap and points with your tube and jig head if there is not much current and throw a spinnerbait and crankbait when the current is strong.  Watch for any wood cover along this bank and fish it carefully. 

    Johnny says big spots often get on these riprap banks and you can catch a big stringer quickly when you hit the right spot.  Fish all the way upstream to the brick house on the upstream side of the third patch of riprap.

    These places will give you a good idea of the kind of places Johnny catches bass on Neely Henry this time of year. Give them a try then find similar places on the lake that will hold fish, too.

November Bass at Lay Lake

with Josh Herren

    Bass fishermen often think of November as a time to start hunting bass deep with jigging spoons.  That is fun, but catching shallow bass is usually preferred. Fortunately, Lay Lake offers the chance to catch bass on a couple of shallow patterns this month so it is a great choice for a fishing trip.

    Lay Lake is on the Coosa River about 35 miles south of Birmingham.  It covers 12,000 acres of river and creek ledges, shallow flats and backouts full of grass.  It is an old lake, dammed in 1914, and the shallows are getting silted in. 

    For many years Lay has been a quality bass fishery for both largemouth and spotted bass.  In the Bass Angler Information Trail statistics for 2008 about half the bass weighed in during tournaments were each species.

    The average size of bass has been good, with tournament bass averaging 1.81 pounds in 2008 and average big fish in a tournament weighing 3.95 pounds. But in early fall tournaments average size has been down and winning weights have been lower than in the past.  There are lots of smaller bass so the next few years looks good. And cooler water this month will make bigger bass hit better.

    Josh Herren grew up near Lay Lake and says he has been fishing it since he could walk. His father Matt, who fishes the Elite Series on the BASS Trail, got Josh started tournament fishing when he was about seven years old and he started tournament fishing on his own as soon as he got a drivers license.

    In college Josh wanted to fish with the University of Alabama bass team but could not since he had won money in tournaments.  That rule has changed now, but it kept him from fishing with the team then.  He says he will follow in his father’s footsteps and be a full time professional bass fisherman.

    Josh now works for Reaction Innovations and helps sell their lures nation wide. He fishes as many tournaments as he can, including the BFL Bama Division.  Although he missed the first BFL this year due to them changing it because of bad weather, he still finished 30^th overall and qualified for the Regional.

    Josh is on the Legend Boat and Mercury Marine Pro staff working through Grammer Marine, where he is on their pro staff, too.  He is also sponsored by Transducer Saver and Reaction Innovations Lures.

    “Bass are predictable on Lay Lake in late October and during the month of November,” Josh told me. They follow the baitfish into the creeks and coves as the water cools, but will surprise you and move very shallow very fast. They may move from the mouths of the coves to the very back overnight, not in stages as on some lakes.

     As the water cools in late November the bass will move back out, more slowly this time, and can be caught in the first couple of hundred yards of the cove or creek.  All during the month they will relate to grass cover.

    The lower lake is the best area for finding bass moving like this since it is more “lake like” rather than river fishing. And the lower lake offers a second good pattern, bass feeding on rocky points early in the morning. That pattern is a good way to hook one of the huge Coosa spots in the lake.

    For fishing the grass in the pockets Josh ties on a Swamp Donkey Frog, four and a half inch Skinny Dipper swim bait, and a Sweet Beaver.  All work well around the grass and he fished them on 65 pound Power Pro Braid to get a better hook set and get big fish out of the grass.

    For fishing on points Josh has a Santone Get 5 white spinnerbait with silver willowleaf blades and a Vixen topwater plug. These baits are fished around the mouths of pockets where rocks give bass cover to attack shad moving into and out of the coves.   This fishing is best before the sun gets on the water.

    Josh makes his own rods and plans on starting a custom rod business. He teams his rods with a Shimano reel and uses long, heavy rods for fishing the grass and slightly lighter rods for spinnerbaits and topwater. 

    A couple of weeks ago Josh showed me the following spots. Some small bass were back in the pockets but bigger bass should be in them now.  Check them out to see the kinds of places Josh fishes right now.

    1.  N 33 05.612 – W 86 31.773 – Go back in Spring Creek to the right and you will see an island sitting in to your left.  It is the end of a point and grass is all around it, and the contour lines wrap around it, giving bass a path to follow on both sides.

    This is a good example of the kind of place bass will move to first when they move in. It is well back in the creek and there will be lots of baitfish moving around the grass beds here as soon as the water hits about 67 degrees. At that point bass will move into the big feeder creeks on the lower lake, and will often move far back in them all at once.

    Fish a Skinny Dipper swimbait in the grass and along the outside edges. Josh likes shad colors like bad shad green, pearl blue shad and white trash. He rigs them on a screwed up bullet, a weightless nose cone to make it come through the grass better, and a 6/0 wide gap Owner hook.

    This is a good bait to throw on bluebird days when you want a subtle presentation.  There will be cuts and lanes in the grass to swim the Skinny Dipper through, and running it along the outside edge of grass mats works well, too.

    2.  N 33 03.656 – W 86 31.544 – Across Spring Creek a huge grassy area starts on the right side going in and covers the whole back of the creek.  Since it has a channel running into it this is another good place to find bass moving all the way back in late October and early November.

    There are big clumps of grass in here and any of them can hold bass.  Fish all of them before you leave. Start on the right across from the island in hole #1 and work the whole back of the creek. Fish around the island back there, cover as much of the grass beds as you can.   You will often hit several good fish close together but fish won’t be everywhere in the grass.

    Look for a pattern. If they are on points where the grass comes out a little and are almost all the way back in a creek or cove, concentrate on places like that. Look for similar places in the creek you are in and the same kinds of places in other creeks.

    3.  N 33 04.956 – W 86 31.024 – As you come out  of Spring Creek and head downstream there is a big island sitting in the mouth of it off the downstream point.  Behind this island is a secondary point on your left going into the pocket behind the island.  There is a big grass mat all around this point that holds bass, especially later in the month as they move back out.

    Fish all around the point, working the grass with all your baits.  Look for transitions in the bass that hold fish.  A point sticking out further than the grass mat indicates slightly more shallow water and will attract bass.  A dip indicates deeper water and will also attract bass. Changes from one kind of grass to anther indicated a change in bottom composition and is an attractor. A hole or cut in the grass does the same thing.

    Fish these transitions with your best casts. Work them carefully, running all your baits over and by them from different angles.  Watch for patterns in the transitions to use in other spots, too.

    4.  N 33 04.451 – W 86 30.775 – The big pocket just upstream of Bozo’s Marina on the same side of the lake is one of Josh’s favorite tournament holes. He says he has won a lot of tournaments here and bass will be in it somewhere.  Fish all the way around the pocket, hitting all the grass with all your baits.

    As the water cools you will notice the grass starts to get a slime on top of it. This is the key to throw a Swamp Donkey frog.  When the slime forms the bass will be under it and a frog is the best was to fish it.

    Josh likes any black color frog to give a good silhouette against the sky if it is clear. He will throw a white frog on cloudy, overcast days.  Work the frog fast across the surface of the slime covered grass and be ready for explosive strikes.

    Bass will hit the frog even on bright, sunny days, but the best days are when it is messy, with rain and clouds. The kind of day you really don’t want to be on the water will often produce the best fishing in the grass.

    5.  N 33 03.980 – W 86 30.690 – Just downstream of Bozo’s Marina the river makes a turn to the right going downstream and the first cove on the right opens at a big grass flat. This flat is right on the river, not back in the cove. Bass will hold and feed in it every day.

    Fish all of this grass.  If the sun is bright a good choice is to flip a Sweet Beaver into the grass, dropping it through any small openings you can hit. Josh rigs his Beaver on a one ounce tungsten weight to punch through the mat and get under it.

    Let your bait fall to the bottom, jig it once then move to the next place. You have to be ready to set the hook hard and horse the fish out of the grass fishing like this because you will be in some of the thickest grass.  Use heavy rods and 65 pound Power Pro.

    6.  N 33 03.344 – W 86 31.294 – The next big open cove on your right going downsteam has an island in the middle of it.  It is not far off the main river channel and bass will hold on it and feed. Fish the grass all around the island.

    Look at your map or GPS and you can see how the island has a good contour line bending around it on both sides. This kind of structure makes a place much better, with deeper water near the grass beds in shallow water. 

    Look for this kind of depth change to find good spots to hit.  Bass follow these contour lines as they move in and out of the feeding area, following the shad.  Such changes mean a better place to fish.

    7.  N 33 02.636 – W 86 33.547 – Go into Reed Creek and you will see the mouth of a smaller feeder creek on your right on the outside bend of the creek channel.  Fish all of it, working the grass from the mouth of it as far back as you can go.

    These small feeder creeks often hold good numbers of bass and they may be all the way back in them.  If you catch a bass on the first pass it is worth the time to work around it again since the bass is there for a reason, and others should be in the same area for the same reasons.

    Always watch for baitfish.  Seeing schools of shad mean you are in the right area.  You will also often see bass busting the schools of shad showing you the area they are holding.

    8.  N 33 01.163 – W 86 30.853 – For a change of pace head down the river and watch for Camp Creek, a small creek on your left heading downstream. It is across from the mouth of Waxahatchee Creek.  There are rocky points on both sides of the creek mouth and standing timber in the mouth of it.

    Start before the sun comes up on these points for best results. Cast a spinnerbait or topwater bait right on the bank and work it out.  Big Coosa Spots come in to feed on these points early in the morning and you can catch some good bass before the sun gets on the water.

    Work around both points, keeping your boat out in 20 feet and casting right to the bank. Don’t go far back in the creek. Work the bank about 100 feet on both the inside and outside of the creek mouth. This creek has good points on both sides.

    9.  N 33 00.694 – W 86 31.042 – Go down the river past three small pocket to the next big one on your left.  Both sides of this small creek are also rocky and there is timber in the mouth of it. Both things are needed for a creek mouth to be good, a rocky point and standing timber.

    Work this one like the one above. Throw your spinnerbait right against the rocks. Bass will often be surprisingly shallow on these spots and seem to be looking toward the bank.  They may ignore your bait if it hits even a foot from the edge of the water.

    Josh likes two small willowleaf blades on his Get 5 spinnerbait and uses silver blades and white skirt. The small blades let him run the bait back to the boat fast. Fish these points quickly and cover as much water as you can before the sun hits them.

    10.  N 33 00.571 – W 86 31.049 – The next bigger creek, past two smaller coves just upstream of where the river makes a bend to the left, is also good.  It has rocks and standing timber and also a good channel going into it, a key that makes the spots marked better than the smaller pockets between them.

    A topwater bait will often get more hits than a spinnerbait so try both. Throw a stick bait like the Vixen right on the bank and walk it back to the boat. Fish it in a fast, steady motion, keeping it moving.

    All these places will hold bass now through the end of November. Check them out, catch some bass and see the kinds of places Josh likes to fish. Then you can find other similar places to fish.

October Bass At Wedowee with Brian Morris

    Bass schooling on top. Bass hitting crankbaits in shallow water. Bass
actively feeding all over the lake.  October fishing is great!  And Lake
Wedowee is one of your best bets for enjoying great fall action this
month.
    Wedowee is located where the Tallapoosa and Little Tallapoosa Rivers join
near the town of Wedowee.  The shoreline is steep and rocky and both
rivers make sharp bends and turns above where they join. Downstream of
their confluence there is more open water. All over the lake rocky
points, bluff walls, flats and docks hold spotted bass and largemouth.
Shad are the main baitfish but bass feed on bream and crawfish, too.
    Access to Wedowee is limited to a few small public boat ramps and one
bigger ramp at the Highway 48  Bridge.  There are some marinas on the
lake but most have limited parking. This lack of big ramps means there
are not a lot of tournaments on Wedowee and it is less crowded than many
other area lakes.  You will have plenty of company on the lake when bass
fishing in October but less than you would expect on other big lakes.
    Brian Morris grew up bass fishing and fished with several clubs as well
as competing on the BFL trail.  In 1992 he discovered fishing at Wedowee
and fell in love with the lake, then in 2002 he and his family bought
Wedowee Marina.  He moved a few minutes from the lake in 2003 and has
concentrated on fishing it since then.  He now guides on Wedowee and
is sponsored in tournaments there by BusterMilesAuto dealerships, Wedowee Marine, Legend boats and  Rapsody Fishing Rods..
    “Cooling water makes the bass active all over the lake,” Brian said. They
are actively feeding up before the cold weather and you can catch them on
a variety of baits.  Shad are beginning to move into the creeks and bass
set up for them on points and cover near the mouths of the creeks and
bigger coves.  The bass are gorging on shad and will often spit them up
when you catch them, so, if shad are in the area bass will be nearby,
too.
    Brian will have several baits rigged and ready for October fishing on
Wedowee.   He says you should start early in the morning and finish up
late in the day with a topwater bait like a Sammy or a Spook. And he
warns to keep it ready at all times.  Bass school on top this time of
year and may suddenly come up near you.  A quick cast to the activity
will usually result in a hit.
    A  crankbait is one of Brian’s favorite baits to fish in  the fall and he
keeps a couple ready.  A Series 3 and a Series 5 Strike King bait in shad
colors will cover different depths. Brian usually starts with the smaller
bait since it matches the size of the shad and will usually run the depth
he wants to fish this time of year. But, if he is catching smaller bass
on the Series 3 he will throw the bigger bait in the same area. Since it
gets deeper it will often catch bigger bass.
A spinnerbait works well in the same areas Brian throws a crankbait,
especially if there is some wind rippling the surface. He likes the
Hildebrandt or Strike King in white and chartreuse bait with one sliver
blade and one gold blade.  It can be run across points just like
crankbaits, but can be fished at different depths depending on the
conditions.
A quarter ounce punisher jig teamed with a Paca Chunk or Zoom chunk works
well when flipped and pitched around docks and heavy cover on sunny days.
Bright sun will push the bass into shade and they will ambush anything
that looks like food.   Brian likes the smaller profile of the quarter
ounce jig but goes to a bigger three-eighths ounce one if the wind is a
problem or if he wants a faster fall.
    A shaky head jig is Brian’s “Goto”  bait and it will catch bass when
other baits fail.  He uses custom made jigs teamed with a four inch
Finesse worm in Green pumpkin. For a bigger profile he puts a Trick worm
in the same color on his jig head.  It is fished on eight pound
fluorocarbon line and a spinning outfit.
    Brian showed me the following ten spots for October bass a couple of
weeks ago.  Smaller largemouth were on them then but the bigger fish will
have moved onto them by now. We also spotted a lot of schooling activity
and Brian got our biggest bass of the day when a school came up nearby.
1. N 33 21.101 – W 85 30.887 – Headed downstream from Wedowee Marina and
the Highway 431 Bridge you will go into a big “S” bend with Pineywood
Creek in the outside of the first bend.  The outside of the next bend has
a double cove on the right then a single cove at the end of the bluff
wall. You will see a single, small dock with a tin roof back in it.  Stop
on the upstream point of the pocket with the dock and start fishing,.
Keep your boat out in the channel and throw across the point.   Imagine
the bluff wall continues on out underwater and you will have a good idea
of the way the drop runs, with a sharp drop into the old river channel on
the outside. Bass hold along this drop and move up to feed.  Cast across
it with a crankbait and spinnerbait, covering the water from three to
about12 feet deep.
Brian says bass also move along the right bank going back into this cove
following the shad, so work on back into the cove casting your crankbait
and spinnerbait to the bank and working any cover you see. Cast across the
secondary points as you come to them.  Keep working back into the cove
until you run out of bass or baitfish.  It would be worth your time to
fish back out with a shaky head, especially if you caught fish going in.
2.  N 33 21.295 – W 85 31.650 – Run down past the mouth of
Wedowee Creek on your left and the channel straightens out.  Before it
bends back to the left you will see Rice Pavilion on the left on the water
and a small cove then a big one on the right across the river from them.
You want to fish the upstream point of the upstream smaller cove. It is
very rocky on the river side but more clay on the back side.
This point is another river ledge that goes from an above water bluff to
an underwater point. It runs downstream, parallel to the bank across the
mouth of the cove, like hole#1.  Brian likes to get out on the point in 25
feet of water and cast his crankbait up onto the point, working it along
the drop.
There are flat rocks on this point that sit vertically off the bottom,
forming holes the bass hide in. You want your crankbait to tip the rocks
as it runs along the drop, bouncing off them to attract the bass. Do the
same with your spinnerbait, slow rolling it along just bumping the rocks.
Fish around the point, hitting it at different angles.  You can also work
a shaky head along this point, letting it fall into the holes between the
rocks to get to inactive bass that will not come up to hit a faster moving
bait. The rocks are fairly flat and smooth so you won’t get hung up as
much as you would expect.
3.  N 33 21.315 – W 85 31.715 – The pocket downstream of hole# 2 makes a
double dip then a long clay point runs out on the upstream side of the big
cove.  This point runs straight out toward the channel, not parallel to it
like the one above it. There is an old roadbed on the upstream side of
that point and bass stack up on it and move up onto the point to feed.
They also hold here before following the shad back into the big cove.
Brian says he pulled in here as a bad storm hit a few years ago and caught
bass “left and right” while the storm raged.
Sit out on the point and cast to the bank at the roadbed, working all
around the point with all your baits.  Try different angles and speeds to
vary your bait.  As on other places like this, wind and current make it
better. If there is any current running down the river the bass will bite
better so hit it hard.  Work your bait with the current as much as
possible.  Bass expect to see baitfish moving with the current so make
your lure move as naturally as possible.
4.  N 33 21.376 – W 85 32.910 – Just before the river turns back to the
left going downstream a big creek enters on the left.  Just upstream of
the main creek point a small ridge like point runs out. It has riprap on
the outside and is very narrow. There is a single tree out on the end of
it and it runs parallel to the seawall and bank going out to the main
point between the creek and river.
There is an old rock quarry off this point and there is a flat on the
upstream side of the narrow point.  Stay way out and get even with the end
of the narrow point, and cast up toward it.  If the sun is out you will
see some big rocks in the shallows just upstream of the end of the narrow
point. Work them and the flat above them with all your baits.
This and other places mentioned are all good places to hit early in the
morning with a topwater bait.  Brian likes a Zara Spook, Jr.  and works it
fast across the points and flats, searching for active bass.  You may see
bass hitting on top or baitfish moving on the surface, a good sign, but
you can draw strikes from roaming bass by working a topwater bait over the
area.  Brian says he always fishes topwater the first hour or so of
daylight since it often produces a big fish.
This is a good schooling spot where bass push shad upon the flat and
attack them so keep a watch for that kind of activity.  Brian will throw a
topwater bait or crankbait to feeding fish and he says it can happen on
any of these spots at any time of day.  Be ready.
5.  N 33 20.141 – 85 32.153 – Round the bend to your left and you will
pass a public boat ramp on your left. The bank runs straight a good ways
here and there are several small pockets on it.  About half way down to
the next bend watch for the two deepest pockets on your left. Between them
is a trailer with a dock with lots of metal  posts on it on the upstream
side and a wood dock on the downstream side.  Just upstream of the dock on
the downstream side is some brush and trees out in the water about even
with the left corner when facing it.
Brian will keep his boat out in 25 foot deep water and cast up toward the
bank to hit the brush.  Stay downstream of the dock a little, about even
with the boat ramp on that side, and cast upstream.  He will run a
topwater then crankbait across it, then slow down with a jig head or
Carolina rigged Finesse worm.  Brian says a Carolina rig can be fished on
most of these spots where you fish a shaky head but heavier sinkers will
get hung up more often in the rocks.
6.  N  33 19.583 – W 85 33.260 – For a change of pace, especially later in
the month when the shad are further back in the creeks, run downstream
around two big bends and go into Allen Branch.  You will see a big open
yard running down to the water on your left not far into the creek. Stop
just past it on the small  point with riprap on it and start working into
the creek. Fish all the way to the next main point with riprap on it, just
downstream of the powerlines.
Brian says shad follow this bank as they move into the creek and hold on
any cover like rocks or brush they come to, waiting on passing shad.  A
crankbait or spinnerbait casts toward the bank all along here will draw
strikes.  Follow up with Carolina rig or shaky head in the same areas.
7.  N 33 19.661 – W 85 34.001 – Run downstream and where the river makes
big bend to the left a long shallow point runs way out from the bank.  The
river channel swings along on the upstream side and it drops off fast.
There is a danger buoy out on it and bass hold and school on it all year
long.  It is a good spot to fish any of your baits.
Stay on the upstream side of the long point and fish from the bank all the
way out to and around the end marked by the buoy. Try all your baits,
casting from deep water up onto the shallow point and fishing them back.
When you get past the buoy swing around and fish back toward the bank.
Brian says the fish are usually on the upstream side but he had caught
them on the downstream side, so fish it before leaving.
While fishing here Brian’s prediction about schooling bass came true.  He
spotted surface activity across the river on a point between two pockets
of standing timber.  After easing over there he landed a good keeper
largemouth, over the 16 inch slot, on a Spook.  Like he said, it is always
a good idea to keep something ready for schooling fish.
8. N 33 18.973 – W 85 34.868 – Go to the mouth of the Tallapoosa and start
upstream in it.  Stop on the upstream point of the first big cove on your
left. This point runs way out toward the river channel and drops off into
it, so bass use it to move to the cove. They will feed all along this
shallow point during October. Stop way out on it and move in slowly until
you see how far the point runs out.
Brian likes to fish up one side then down the other, covering the point
from both sides.  This is a good crankbait and Carolina rig point and he
will use both to cover it from end to end.  There are rocks, stumps and
brush on the clay point to hold bass.
9.  N 33 18.190 – W 85 34.842 – Go under the Highway 48 Bridge and watch
for the second pocket on your right past the bridge.  This is another
bluff that turns into an underwater ledge running across the mouth of a
cove.  There is a small dip in the bank then a big clay point where the
bigger cove opens up.  Both are excellent places for bass to hold as
baitfish move into the cove.  There is good deep water on both sides.
Fish all around the points with both your baits, and try the blowdowns
around them, too. Pitch a jig and pig into them and bump it over every
limb. If the sun is bright bass will hold in the shade of the limbs and
the trunk and wait on an easy meal.
10.  N  33 17.811 – W 85 34.560 – Go into the big cove on the left just
downstream of Triplett Creek, the one with three arms. Go to the back of
the center arm and stop at the last dock on your right.  This is a good
place to find bass later in the month because large numbers of shad move
back in here and the bass follow them.  Wind blowing out of the west moves
shad in here year round so it is always good but gets even better in late
October.
Start at the dock on your right and fish the right bank all the way to the
back with crankbait and spinnerbait.  Brian says this is the best side but
he catches fish on the left bank, too. If there are a lot of shad back in
here you can circle the back until you stop catching bass.
These spots show you the kinds of places Brian catches October bass on
Wedowee. Check them out, see how they look and how the bass relate to them
and you can find many more just like them all over the lake.
To get first hand view of how Brian fishes the lake go to his web site and
arrange a trip with him at www.lakewedoweefishing.com or email him at
[email protected]

September 10 Bass at Wheeler Lake with Brent Crow

    Like the light at the end of a tunnel, September promises better things ahead for bass fishermen.  Days are finally noticeably shorter and the air is slightly cooler. Bass respond by getting active and feeding in more shallow water as the temperature starts to drop. Wheeler Lake is a great place to take advantage of this improving fishing.

    Wheeler is a TVA lake on the Tennessee River north of Birmingham and is the second biggest lake in the state.  It runs 60 miles from its dam to the Guntersville Dam and covers huge flats starting around Decatur.  Largemouth are the dominate species but smallmouth fishing is good and there are a good many northern strain spotted bass in the lake, too.

    According to the BAIT survey, in tournaments on Wheeler in 2008 average bass size was good at 1.69 pounds and the average big fish was 4.10 pounds.  Over 87 percent of tournament anglers landed at least one keeper and the average number of keepers per angler was 4.14, just short of a limit.

    Wheeler was known for its big bass in the grass a few years ago but the grass seemed to disappear and so did the fantastic catches.  The lake remained good but not up to its past standards. Right now it seems Wheeler is making a comeback in bass population numbers and size although much of the grass is still missing.

    Brent Crow grew up in the area and now lives ten minutes from the lake.  As a youth he fished ponds and creeks with a friend.  When he was a teenager, he got interested in bass fishing and tournament fishing from watching shows on TV and was a charter member of the University of Alabama Bass Association, a tournament club formed of students, faculty and staff. 

    Fishing those club draw tournaments helped Brent learn about bass fishing and gave him his start in tournaments.  He fished the Federation in 2000 then, in his first BFL in 2002, finished second on Guntersville. That fired him up and he went on to fish many more tournaments.

    For three years Brent fished the FLW Tour but this past year he concentrated his fishing on Wheeler and other Tennessee River Lakes as well as Smith Lake.  He guides on all those lakes and fishes many pot, charity and local trail tournaments on them. 

    In June and July Brent landed big fish in a weekly night tournament on Wheeler four weeks in a row, weighing in a seven pounder, then a six pounder, followed by a five pounder then another six pounder.

    “September is the month I go from having two rods on my deck to having ten,” Brent said.  The bass move up and there are several good patterns working every day. Some work better in certain areas of the lake, but there are many ways to catch bass anywhere you want to fish.

    On the lower lake largemouth move into pockets and creeks following shad and feed on them in three to four feet of water.  That is an exciting way to fish because you are seeing activity most of the time and casting topwater baits to the fish.  In the same area, smallmouth bass are feeding very shallow on main lake rocky points, especially later in the month and you can catch them on crankbaits.

    Further up the lake the river ledges on the Decatur Flats hold quality bass as do the humps back off the river on the flats. A somewhat specialized pattern is fishing barge tie-ups in the area since shad get around them and attract bass. And finally, the point at the railroad bridge creates a current break where bass will stack up and feed.

    For the largemouth in the pockets, Brent will throw a Lucky Craft Gunfish topwater lure and a Zoom Super Fluke when the fish are up and feeding, then fan cast the area with a Lavender Shad Norman Baby Deep N and a white and chartreuse War Eagle half-ounce spinnerbait.

    Out on the rocky points Brent likes the Fluke and Gunfish thrown right on the bank. He says you can’t cast too shallow and you will catch some quality smallmouth doing this.  You won’t get as as many bites but the ones you do get will be good fish, and the pattern holds up all day long.

    On the river ledges and humps Brent will throw a three quarter ounce Tight Line football head jig in rusty craw or black and blue and tip it with a Paca Chunk in some brown color.  He will also keep a Netbait 11 inch worm Texas rigged on a three eights to one half ounce lead, depending on the current.

    A Carolina rig will also work on these ledges and humps and a Brush Hog or Baby Brush Hog in Junebug or green pumpkin is a good bet.  Brent uses a three quarters ounce sinker on his Carolina rig.    All these baits are thrown on heavy P-Line fluorocarbon.

    In this area, always keep a Gunfish tied on and ready to throw to schooling fish, too. They will often come up chasing shad on the humps and ledges and a quick cast to the school can produce some good fish.

    On the barge tie-up pilings, Brent rigs a jig head worm on a spinning outfit to fish them.  A crankbait run by them will catch fish, too. Both those baits work well when fishing the railroad bridge, too.

    The following ten spots will all be good this month. Give them a try then look for similar places on the lake.

    1.  N 34 39.189 – W 87 01.871 – If you put in at the big ramp in Decatur, come out of the bay and head downstream.  On your right you will see two big signs out in the middle of the lake, just off the north side of the channel, marking a gas line crossing.  Go to the second green channel marker on your right downstream of those signs, just downstream of the mouth of Bakers Creek on the south side of the river.

    Watch your depthfinder and idle toward the bank. The river will be over 20 feet deep then come up on the river ledge to four or five feet deep.  Keep your boat out in 20 feet of water and work upstream, casting your baits to the top of the ledge and working them back with the current.  Fish for about 100 yards upstream of the channel marker.

    This is a typical river ledge. It runs for a long distance and you want to work along it, probing for a hard bottom. Shell beds are a key and bass will stack up in a small area on the right bottom. That is why a big football head jig is a good bait. You can cover water quickly with it to find the schools of fish.

    2.  N 34 38.918 – 87 01.408 – Run upstream to the last green marker on your left downstream of the signs, the next one upstream.  Stop near the marker and start fishing, working all the way upstream to the gas line signs.  Remember, the channel marker sits off the ledge so you will be inside it toward the bank.  A good depthfinder is a big help in staying just off the ledge.

    When throwing a football head jig Brent cast upstream. He lets it hit bottom then drags it along with a sweeping sideways motion with his rod. He keeps his rod low and immediately sets the hook if he feels a fish.  He says if you “go on point” and try to drop your rod tip then set the hook you will miss the fish.  If the bass knocks slack in your line, coming toward you, reel fast as you sweep your rod tip.

    You can fish a Carolina rig or Texas rig on these ledges, too, but it is faster to cover them with the football head jig. When you catch a bass make repeated casts to the same spot.  Bass will hold on a very small area along a long ledge so concentrate on the spot when you get bit.

    Current really helps make the bass bite on these ledges and you should always work upstream, which gives you better boat control, and work your bait with the current, which is a more natural movement.  If the current is slack sometimes a passing barge will turn the bass on by moving the water, so be aware of them as they go behind you.

    3.  N 34 39.100 – W 87 01.407.  Do not run from the river channel across the ledges, especially if the water is a little low.  With only three or four feet on top and stumps on them, they eat lower units. Idle across the shallow ledge until the water drops off behind them to about eight feet deep. Then go to this hump.  It is about half way between holes 1 and 2 back well off the ledge. There are many humps back on the flats like this one, topping out about five feet deep on top with nine to 10 feet of water around them. Many are shown on maps and on a good GPS chip. Any of them can hold fish so it is a good idea to fish as many as possible to find them.

    When you get to this or other humps circle it throwing a football head jig, Work all the way around it, covering it from all angles. Current helps here, too, so the best angle if from downstream, casting upstream, but it is worth fishing all the way around these humps.

    4.  N 34 38.794 – W 87 00.705 – Stay parallel to the river channel and go upstream until you are just upstream of the gas line signs. You will be behind them and straight across from the big Monsanto Plant on the south side. Brent says this is another good hump to fish. 

    Fish all the way around it but watch for the deepest water as you circle it and concentrate your cast to come from the shallows on the hump down that drop.  Drag your football head, Carolina and Texas rig across it and down the drop. Brent says he almost always keeps his boat in deep water and casts shallow.

    Another bait worth a try here and on other humps and ledges is a crankbait like a Lucky Craft RC 2.5 in the bull bream color.  Cast it to the shallow water and fish it back across the drop.  You can fish it fast.

    Always watch for schooling fish when fishing humps and ledges. A Gunfish is a good lure to throw to fish breaking on top since it is big and you can cast it a long way.  Brent caught a couple of fat hybrids the day we fished but the largemouth were not on top.

    5.  N 34 38.206 – W 87 01.110 – This pattern is a little different but pays off well. There are dozens of barge piling tie-ups along the bank between Fox Creek to the Interstate, about eight miles of river.  Most of these tie-ups are right on the river ledge so their position is perfect, and they create a current break baitfish love.

    Go to the tie-ups just downstream of the mouth of Betty Creek.  The best pilings are like this one where the channel side has 20 feet of water but it is less then ten feet deep on the bank side. Shad draw bass in to feed and Brent says all the tie-ups can be good at some time.

    These are a good place to catch numbers of bass but they also produce some quality fish.  Brent fishes them with a three-sixteenths ounce jig head and a green pumpkin or June bug Trick worm tied on a spinning outfit. He uses 14 pound test braid for his main line with 15 pound P-Line fluorocarbon leader.  A crankbait is good when run by the pilings with the current, too.

    Keep your boat downsream of the round piling and cast your jig head right to the side of it, letting it fall to the bottom.  The shallow side is usually the best since bass hold near the bottom to feed. Work your jig head worm a couple of hops when it hits bottom then reel in and make another cast.

    You will see shad around the best tie-ups and all the activity makes a crankbait work well. Cast it past the piling and run it right beside it.  Make repeated casts at different angles to cover it, especially the shallow side.

    6.  N 34 37.209 – W 86 58.721 – Run up to the railroad bridge and stop on the left side before you get to the bridge. The riprap and point comes out and makes a current break on this side where bass stack up and feed. Brent says he sat here and caught 100 bass one day last year.

    Position your boat downstream and behind the point in about 15 feet of water. You want to cast up toward the point parallel to it where the current comes around and sweeps down the side of it.  Throw your jig head worm up into about two feet of water and work it back with the current to ten feet deep.  Keep a tight line and let the current move your bait like something washing down with the current.

    A Baby Deep N works well fishing this spot, too. Brent likes the lavender shad color and he works it at about the same speed as the current, moving it just fast enough to get it down near the bottom.

    7. N 34 47.750 – W 87 22.644 – You may want to trailer down to this area since it is a long run.  Going toward the dam on your left the last pocket has a warming sign on its point.  Go back into the pocket and watch for activity on top. Shad move back into pockets like this in September and largemouth follow to gorge on them in the shallow water.

    Throw a topwater bait or Fluke to any activity you see.  This pocket has deeper water than some but there is a sunken barge or wall of some kind in the back and the shad will go up against it and the bass will follow.  You will be fishing shallow, only three or four feet deep most of the time.  Bass will hit both the topwater and Fluke while chasing shad.

    Fish all around the back of the cove, watching for activity. If nothing is hitting on top Brent will fan cast  a spinnerbait or shallow running crankbait all around the back of the cove to draw strikes from bass lurking near cover waiting a a passing shad.

    8. N 34 47.478 – W 87 21.900 – Back out on the main river run up to the next cove and stop on the rocky point on it. This point is on the second pocket upstream of the boat ramp on that side of the lake.  It is a double cove that has two arms not far off the river.  This is a good example of the type rocky points Brent looks for in this area.

    The best points are on the main river run and drop off fast.  Keep your boat out as far as you can and still cast right on the bank. Cast a topwater bait or Fluke to the very edge of the water. Brent says you can’t cast too shallow fishing like this.

    On these points current does not make as much difference as it does on ledges and humps, but wind blowing into the point does help.  When fishing the Fluke, fish it fast and make it jump out of the water.  The more wind the more commotion Brent tries to make with his topwater baits.

    9.  N 34 45.466 – W 87 18.857 – Going upstream watch for another double pocket on your right. It is the third pocket downstream of the Champion Mill paper plant.  The rocky point on it is another good one to fish with topwater and Flukes. 

    Brent says you won’t get a lot of hits on each point fishing this pattern, but he catches some good smallmouth on it.  Rocky points like this may have only one bass feeding up real shallow but it is likely to be a good on. Run the rocky points in this area and work as many as you can.

    10.  N 34 44.317 – W 87 14.743 – Run up to Goldfield Branch and go back to the causeway in it.  Water near it will be five feet deep or so and it is a good area to find schooling largemouth chasing shad.  You will be fishing in the middle of these pockets, not the bank. Bass will hold out in any cover like stumps in the middle of the pocket and wait on shad.

    Fish this area with topwater for fish you see then try a spinnerbait or crankbait for others you don’t see.  I asked Brent why he picked certain pockets and points in this area and he said he used to net shad for bait and realized certain places held them consistently. When asked what brought the shad to these places, he said “only the shad know.”

    Check out these patterns and spots. There are many similar places all over this big lake to catch bass this month.  Use these as a guide to find similar places to catch them.

    For a guide trip on Wheeler or other area lakes to see first hand how Brent catches bass, you can call him at 256-466-9965 or visit his web site at http://northalabamabass.wordpress.com/reports/ for contact info and fishing reports.

August Bass at Alabama River with Mike Presley

     The singing bass that was so popular a few years ago begged you to “Take me to the river.”  Maybe it knew something.  In the heat of August you would be wise to take yourself to the Alabama River for some fast action for largemouth and spotted bass.

     Officially named R.E. Bob Woodruff Lake but also known at Jones Bluff, most locals simply call the long, winding backwaters above the Robert F. Henry Lock and Dam “the river” or “the Alabama River.” 

     Starting near Prattville, the lake runs through Montgomery all the way to its headwaters where the Coosa and Tallapoosa join.  It is a narrow river lake so any power generation at the dam quickly creates current that puts bass in a feeding mood and positions them on structure and cover the whole length of the lake.

     As the uppermost of the Alabama River Lakes, Woodruff is the most river-like lake and winds its way for 80 miles and covers about 12,800 acres.  There are 11 Corps of Engineers parks with various facilities like campgrounds and boat ramps as well as several other private and public facilities on the water, so the lake is readily accessible for all of its length.  Last year there were over 2 million visitors to Woodruff.

     There are some good largemouth in Woodruff but spotted bass will make up most of your catch.  In the 2008 Bass Anglers Information Team (BAIT) report there were only three club tournaments reported on Woodruff but the success rate was very good at 89.80 percent. Club anglers averaged just over four bass a day in tournaments. That does not sound high, but it was one of only seven out of 29 lakes over four fish per day in the survey.  The average bass weigh was 1.63 pounds, respectable for a lake with a 12 inch limit, and about two thirds of the bass weighed in were spots.

     Mike Presley has lived in the area most of his life and loves bass fishing. He was hooked on the river when, at five years old, he caught a 4.5 pound spotted bass while fishing with his dad.  Until they moved to Florida Mike was Tournament Manager for the Bass Angler’s Sportsman Society. Now he works in the area and fishes as many tournaments as he can on the river.

     In early summer Mike had a streak going of two first place wins, a second and two third place finishes in six tournaments on the river.  He fishes the Fishers Of Men trail, the Weekend Angler Tournament Trail, the BASS Weekend Series and as many local tournaments on the river as he can.

     “In August you can average a 2.5 pound per bass stinger pretty easily,” Mike said.  It takes a string of 16 of 18 pounds to win most tournaments, so you need a couple of kicker four to five pound bass to do well.  And the river can produce big fish. Mike’s best spot from the river weighed six pounds, he landed a 7.5 pound largemouth there, and his best tournament catch of five bass pulled the scales down to 24 pounds.

     “In August most of the bass are set up on deep structure and relate to the current,” Mike told me.  You can always catch a few good bass shallow by flipping heavy cover, and many times your kicker fish will come that way, but for numbers you will be fishing the main river structure.

     Mike has a wide variety of baits rigged and ready to cover any situation he finds on the water each day in August. He will have a half to three quarters ounce football head jig in green pumpkin with a green pumpkin trailer, a deep diving crankbait, a shaky head jig and finesse worm tied on his rods.  Those baits allow him to cover the deep structure quickly.  He also keeps a flipping jig on a heavy rod ready to probe shallow cover for a kicker fish.

     Fluorocarbon line is a key to getting bites in clear water and Mike rigs all his plastics and jigs on it, even when flipping pads.  He also runs his deep diving crankbaits on it since it will allow them to run a little deeper and the lack of stretch makes them work better.

     We fished the following ten spots a few weeks ago and bass were on them.  Most of the morning we tried smaller baits and got a couple of small bass, but, as predicted, the bigger fish started hitting after the current turned on at noon.  Within an hour we put three largemouth in the boat that would have pulled the scales to about 12 pounds. That shows how important the current can be.

     Check the following places Mike likes to fish on the upper river. You can put in a Cooter’s Pond and fish them without too much running. There are similar spots all over the river but if you want to fish the lower lake it would be easier to trailer down to Swift Creek since it is a long run in a boat.

     1.  N 32 23.590 – W 86 19.132 – Just north of the amphitheater on the river in Montgomery, Northern Boulevard crosses the river and the bridge pilings on the right going upstream are usually good for a keeper fish, according to Mike.  Fish around the pilings with a jig head worm and a jig and pig.  Work the eddies behind each piling carefully. There was a tree hung up at the upstream piling when we fished and wood cover there can be a key, so fish any you see from different angles.

     Mike throws his Davis Shaky Head on a spinning rod loaded with eight to ten pound test fluorocarbon line.  He likes a one-eight ounce head and puts a Finesse or Trick worm on it.  Green pumpkin, Bama Bug or June Bug are all good colors.  He will also flip a black and blue Arkie style  jig and pig around the pilings, letting it fall and move with the current.

     2.   N 32 22.997 – W 85 18.811 – In front of the amphitheater in Montgomery the river makes a bend and there is a ledge out from the seawall.  It is on your left going downstream.  This was a some-what secret hot spot for local fishermen until a pro was filmed catching fish on it in a big tournament. Mike says it produces good catches at times and you should fish it when in the area.

     Stop out in front of the seawall about even with the end of the walkway part and keep your boat out in 18 feet of water or so. Cast up toward the seawall and you will be casting into six feet or less about 20 feet off the bank.  There is lots of rocks and rubble here on the flat out to the drop and fish hold all in it.

     Work from the pier out to the end of the point.  Try your big crankbiat then follow it up with a jig head worm. You will get hung up a good bit here but the bass hold in the cover so you need to get into it.  Cover on spots like this is important and you should always probe for sweet spots where the bass hold.  Once you hit the cover on structure, concentrate your casts to that area.

     3.  N 32 24.517 – W 86 21.920 – Running down the river, go under the I-65 Bridge and you will see powerlines crossing way ahead of you after the river straightens out. Watch for a small opening on your right about half way down this straight-away.  The opening goes back into an old oxbow lake.  There is a water depth post on the upstream point and you can see the sand on it when the river is down a little.

     Mike says you can pull up on this point and catch 50 bass when the current is right. Sit out in 15 feet of water and cast up toward the point on the upstream side of the cut.  Work a football head jig, jig head worm and big crankbait across the drop. There is some good cover out on the point and it drops into the river. Fan cast all the way around the point.

     When fishing a football head jig, Mike goes as light as the current allows.  He starts with a half-ounce jig with a green pumpkin Netbait chunk on it and dies the tips of the chunk tails chartreuse with JJ’s Magic.  Go to a three quarter ounce jig if the current is strong and fish the jig on the bottom with a sliding motion, much like fishing a Carolina rig. 

     4.  N 32 24.837 – W 86 22.071 – Run down to the power line pilings on the left and fish them.   Mike says this vertical structure holds bass and the depth of the water around the pilings means they stay here all summer. Wood hung up on the pilings provides additional cover and makes them better.

     You will be in 25 feet of water on the river side of the pilings.  Throw your jig head worm up to the pilings and let it fall down the face of them. Count it down – if you get hit at a certain depth there is a good chance other bass are holding at that depth.  Run a crankbait across the face of the pilings, too. Try to bump it as it works along the concrete.

     Fish all the way around the pilings, hitting them at different angles with jig head worm and crankbait. When the current is strong work your bait from the current into the eddies like a baitfish moving with the current. Bass will usually hold in the eddies waiting on an easy meal.

     5.  N 32 25.868 – 86 22/071 – Run downstream to where the big opening going back into Cooters Pond starts on your right. Stop on the upstream point of this opening. There is a ledge that runs all the way across the mouth of this big opening and bass hold all along it.  Mike says you will catch a lot of keeper size bass here.

     On the upstream point there is a danger marker sitting downstream of the point and Mike will start at the bank and work out past the danger marker.  Stay out in the deeper water in the river channel and cast up onto the ledge, working your bait from shallow to deep. Mike likes to run his Fat Free shad so it bumps the bottom shallow then runs off the bottom at the drop.   Citrus Shad and white are his favorite colors in this bait.

     If the crankbait doesn’t draw a strike work the area again with a slower moving bait like a jig head worm or football head jig. Current makes this spot much better and you can catch fish all the way across it. Mike likes the upstream point best but if bass are hitting keep working the ledge all the way across.

     6.  N 32 24.971 – W 86 26.601 – Running downstream the river is fairly straight below the Highway 31 bridge.  Before you get to the bend you will see a pasture on your right and a small creek enters the river at the end of the pasture.  Stop and fish the upstream point of this small creek.  There are a couple of big stumps on it that usually hold bass. Then fish the downsteam side, working the flatter point with the sandbar on it on that side.

     Fish both sides with a crankbait then work your jigs across them.  With the jig head worm, Mike likes to shake it in one place with his rod tip. This often makes sluggish bass hit.  Try to keep your bait in one spot and make it wiggle and shake there. This action is where the name “shaky head” came from and it works well, especially on spotted bass.

     7.  N 32 24.416 – W 86 27.399 – Right in the bend of the river not far downstream of hole 6 Autauga Creek enters on the right going downstream.  It is just downstream of a water intake tower on the edge of the river.  Mike likes to fish the downstream point of this creek. There is a big dead tree on the point.

     A good ledge forms here from the river and the creek mouth with good drops to fish and mike says bass stack up on this point.  He fishes it with a jig head worm.  If you like to throw a Caroliana Rig, this is a great spot for that, too. Mike says right a finesse or Trick worm in the same colors as you use on the jig head and drag it along the bottom. Fan  cast the point, covering it from different angles and work you bait down the drops.

     8.  N 32 23.224 – W 86 27.680 – Downstream of the mouth of Autauga Creek the river runs straight and there is some water off the river channel on your left going downstream.  You will pass a small island then see an opening across a shallow flat that goes into a small creek.  A river ledge runs from downstream of that island downstream.  Further downstream is a red channel marker.

     Start fishing near the island, staying out in the river and casting up onto the ledge with crankbaits, jig head worms and football head jigs.  Work the area probing for cover.  If the current is running strong it will be easier to start down past the mouth of the ditch near the red buoy and work up toward the island. Fishing into the current helps you control the boat and allows you to angle your casts upstream so your bait has a more natural movement with the current.

     Mike says he found this placed accidentally when idling across the river ledge going into the small creek. It was a good accident – he caught enough bass here to come in second in a tournament.   This is a long ledge and the bass may be holding anywhere along it, so work it thoroughly.

     9. N 32 22.555 – W 86 27.810 – Further downstream Catoma Creek enters the river on your left going downstream.  Mike says bass stack up on the points of this creek since it is the biggest creek on the river.  The downstream point comes almost straight up out of the river and tops out at about 7 feet well off the bank.  This is the side where Mike expects to catch the most bass.

     Stay out in 20 feet of water and cast up onto the point. There are stumps on it to hold the bass. Work a crankbait across it then follow up with slower moving baits.  When you hit a stump, make several casts to it with different baits.  Mike checks this point every time he is near it during the day since current may start moving and turn the bass on.\

     10. N 32 26.415 – W 86 23.406 – For a change of pace for a kicker fish, go all the way back into Cooters Pond.  Be careful running once you get off the river, there are stumps and shallows, but you want to get back and go under the golf cart bridge.  Past it the water is full of lily pads, cypress trees and grass and several islands break up the area. 

     Mike likes to flip a big jig and pig into the pads. He says you won’t get many bites but the ones you do get will be from grown bass. One or two bass in here after you get a limit on the river ledges will give you the kickers you need to win tournaments.

     Flip a black and blue jig with a blue twin tail trailer on a heavy rod.  Mike sticks with fluorocarbon line even in heavy cover like this. He thinks the invisible line gives you a slight edge in getting strikes, even when flipping.

     Work all around the islands and fish as many of the pads as you can. The water in the channels is deep enough to keep bass in here all year long, and big largemouth love this kind of cover.

     These spots give you an idea of the kinds of places Mike fishes in tournaments. Check them out and see how they look, then you can find many other similar spots all over the river.

     To give you an idea how important current is, Mike told me we needed current to turn on the fish. He called 334-682-4896 and found out they were turning on one generator at noon.  Sure enough, within 15 minutes Mike got a solid 4.5 pound bass, then I got a three pounder, then Mike got another four pound plus fish.  We left soon after that to get out of the heat. You can call and plan your trip around the generation schedule.

April Bass at Lake Guntersville

with Curt Staley

    Most bass fishermen would pick April as the best month of the year for fishing. And most bass fishermen would pick Lake Guntersville as the best bass lake in Alabama for an incredible catch. So, put the two together and pick Guntersville as your lake to fish every chance you get right now.

    Guntersville is an incredible bass fishery with most major tournament trails scheduling events on it each year.  State trails, local pot tournaments and club tournaments are held there every week.  The lake is often covered with tournament fishermen practicing or fishing an event and hundreds of other bass fishermen are on the lake testing its waters.

    Built in 1939 on the Tennessee River, Guntersville is a Tennessee Valley Authority lake with 67,900 acres of bass filled waters and has 890 miles of shoreline.  But the shoreline is not as critical as it is on other lakes since the lake has vast shallow flats and grass beds even in the middle along the old river channel.  Guntersville is definitely a bass factory.

    In the 2008 Bass Information Team Report, (BAIT) Guntersville showed the highest average weight for a bass in tournaments and also was the lake where it took the least amount of time to catch a bass weighing over five pounds. 

    But it can be tough fishing. Guntersville ranked 19^th out of 20 lakes in the survey in percent of success and dead last in the number of bass caught per angler day. Part of those low numbers are due to the 15 inch size limit, making it harder to bring in a keeper bass in a tournament.

    So, you have a better chance of catching a five pound plus bass on Guntersville than any other lake in the state but you will not catch a lot of keeper bass. The ones you do catch will be fat and healthy, and the 15 inch size limit insures a good future supply of bigger bass, but there will be frustrating days where the catch rate is very low.

    Good advice will help you catch more bass this month on Guntersville and Curt Staley can provide the information you need.  Curt moved to the Guntersville area as a teenager 16 years ago when his father moved there for a job. Since Curt has been fishing since he was big enough to walk, and his father was a bass tournament fisherman, competing on the old Redman trail as well as others, it was like throwing a rabbit into a briar patch.  It was a perfect fit.

    Curt took advantage of living near the lake and studied it carefully.  For the past ten years he has been guiding on Guntersville as well as fishing as many tournaments there as possible.  He fishes about 290 days a year and 240 of them are on Guntersville, so he knows the movements of bass there very well.

    Last year Curt placed second in the BASS Weekend Series Alabama North circuit, after winning the points race in 2008 on that trail.  He placed third in the regionals and then came in 18^th in the nationals in 2008 and 9^th in 2009.  Curt is on the Triton Pro Staff through The Boat House in Athens and is a tough competitor, and Guntersville is his favorite lake.

    “Our major spawn on Guntersville is in mid-April, but waves of bass move into the spawning flats from late March to May,” Curt said.  He expects to catch bass shallow from now through April, and will catch prespawn fish, fish on the beds and post spawn fish.

    One great thing about Guntersville is the way you can find huge spawning flats that may contain hundreds of bass at any time this month.  You can start on the contact points where the prespawn fish first move in and where they hold in post spawn, and go just a short distance and find others on the bed.

    Curt fishes shallow this time of year, fishing water two to six feet deep. But he slows down.  Curt says the bass are less aggressive now, especially the bigger ones, so gone are the rattle baits and other fast moving baits. He will have a split shot Baby Brush Hog, a Senko, and a Lil Hustler jig and Zoom Craw rigged up for catching fish now.

    Curt does not look for bass on the bed to sight fish for them but will cast to them if he spots a big female.  His methods catch bedding bass but it is often hard to spot the beds on Guntersville so he fishes the bedding flats knowing he will drag his bait across beds.

    He will also watch for light spots that indicate a hole in the grass on them, It might be a bed, it might be a stump, or it might just be a hole in the grass where the bottom is hard, but bass will be there no matter what caused it.

    On a cold, windy day the last weekend in February Curt showed me some of his best spots on the lake for April bass. The bass were still in the winter pattern but a few were trying to move up to the pre spawn areas even that early.  Check out these ten spots now, they all be loaded with fish.

    If you put in at the ramp across from Waterfront Grocery and Fishing Tackle you will be in the middle of all these spots and can get everything you need from tackle to grub at the store. The day we put in there were several tournaments out of this ramp and both parking lots were full, but a trailer set up there provided some fantastic BBQ for hungry fishermen.

    1.  N 34 31,513 – W 86 09.825 – Run up to Preston Creek and stop at the middle point between the two forks. It is a steep point with riprap around it and nice houses on the hill.  Curt likes to start on the point where the rock seawall ends and the riprap starts and work to the right, toward the fork of the creek with the small island in the mouth of it.

    “Bass move into this creek by the thousands to spawn,” Curt said.  They will hit this main point and the island then move on back on both forks to spawn.  After the spawn they move back out to the point and island on the way back to deeper water, so you can catch them coming and going off the point and island and on the beds back in the shallow flats.

    Keep your boat out in about ten feet of water and work a jig and pig, Senko or Baby Brush Hog on the rocks around the point. Concentrate on the areas where there are bigger rocks and also the wood cover.  Fish around the docks carefully, bass often hold on them. Jump over to the island and fish around it, too, working the shallows where there are rocks and blowdowns.

    After hitting these areas work on into the back of the creek, slowly working each of your baits along the bottom, dragging them through the beds that will be there even if you don’t see them. The bass will bed all over the right fork in two to six feet of water so don’t just cast to the bank, work the whole flat in those depths.

    2.  N 34 30.756 – W 86 08.419 – Across the lake you will see a line of islands across the mouth of a big slough. There is a church in the back so this is called Church House Slough and it a major spawning area.  The bass will hold around the islands then move back into the slough to bed.

    Start out in front of the islands and work them, fishing through the grass beds with one of your slower moving baits for bigger bass. We got a good keeper here the day we fished and bass will feed around the islands year round, so it is a good spot to hit.

    Work on back into the slough, fishing slowly and looking for light spots in the grass in two to six feet of water.  If you cast and hit a stump, work it hard.  Hit it from all anglers. Curt says he is sure there is at least one bass beside every stump this time or year so he does everything he can to make it hit.

    It is not unusual to catch more than one bass off a stump, too. Curt says he often takes three or four good fish off the same stump, so don’t move too fast.  Give the bass a chance to bite. Remember that these bass tend to get sluggish near the spawn, so even if they are holding in the same areas where a rattle bait worked a few weeks ago you will do better now by slowing down.

    3.  N 34 29.293 – W 86 09.654 – Head down the lake to the next big slough on your left.  Curt says this is Murphy Hill and it is just downstream of a big island. There is a small island in the mouth of Murphy Hill.

    The downsream point of this slough has some rocks and as you go into the slough on that side there are a lot of blowdowns on the right bank back in the slough.  Bass often hold in the wood cover to feed both pre and post spawn and will spawn around the trees, too.

    All over the cove in the middle you will see lily pad stems sticking up and bass will feed and spawn around them, too. Work all around these shallow flats, probing for stumps and casting to light spots. Fan cast the whole area to drag your bait by a bedding bass.

    Curt says one of his tricks it to rig the Baby Brush Hog on a split shot rig. He crimps two small split shots about 12 inches up the line from his bait and fishes it slowly over the flats. He says the split shot rig seems to catch more bass than either Texas or Carolina rigged baits. The light shot come through the grass and also makes you slow down.

    4.  N 34 29.019 – W 86 10.576 – Run downstream and you will pass two riprap points that run well off the bank. Past the second one a slough will open up on your left just past a duck blind on the point.  Go into the slough and start fishing just inside the duckblind.

    Curt said last year he and a partner fished this slough for three hours and landed 65 bass in April.  That gives you an idea of the numbers of fish that can be spawning in these coves.  This one has a little deeper water in it that some others and seems to attract bigger bass.

    One of the reasons Curt likes this slough so much is he landed his best Guntersville bass here. He caught a 12 pound, 4 ounce beauty here in April and released it to spawn, and possibly be caught again.

    As you fish this slough work both arms of it. As you round the middle flat point with another duck blind on it, you will see a refrigerator on the bank, which will tell you this is the right area to be working.  There are also some blowdowns on the bank past it toward the river that hold fish.

    5.  N 34 28.172 – W 86 11.321 – A little further downstream a string of islands sits out from Mountain Lakes Resorts and you want to fish around them.  Go in behind the first island, the one out from the campground, and fish the back side of it up to the firs gap. Work the gap, especially if some wind is blowing through it. Wind will move the baitfish through gaps like this and bass will follow to feed on them.

    Fish the front side of the next island and work it carefully. Wind blowing in on this bank will improve the fishing it is not too strong.  Keep your boat well off the band make long casts, probing for underwater cover like rocks.

    Behind the islands look for shallow flat points running out and you will find bass spawning on them.  Fan cast all over shallows you find here.  Stumps hold bass here as in other places.

    Curt likes to fish his Lil Hustler jig on 17 to 20 pound fluorocarbon line and uses 15 pound fluorocarbon on his split shot Baby Brush Hog and Senko. The heavier line is necessary for the big fish you will hook and the grass they can get into.  But the clearer line helps you get more bites.

    6.  N 34 33.605 – W 86 07.947 – Head back up the river on the other side to the first opening into Mink Creek.  There are several islands across the mouth of the creek and the main channel is upstream, but go in through the first gap you come to running upstream.

    Ahead of you when you come through the gap you will see a shallow flat point with a two door beige boat house to the left of it.  Out on the end of the point there are several stumps and rootballs piled up on the bank right at the water’s edge.

    There are lots of shallow flat points covered with stumps in this area.  Curt starts at the boathouse, fishing around it then working out onto the big flat point.  Work all around it, staying way out on one pass then closer in on the next. Try to cover all the water two to six feet deep in the area.

    There are some incredible five-fish limits caught at Guntersville each April.  Curt’s best was five weighing 27 pounds, nine ounces and he sees 30 pound plus limits in many tournaments.  Fishing areas like this are where many such limits are caught.

    7.  N 34 34.644 – W 86 07.255 – Go to the bridge and under the tunnel in Mink Creek and start fishing the riprap on your right. Work it to the bank, crawling your jig and pig along the rocks and grass in this area. The riprap holds both pre and post spawn fish.

    When you get to the bank fish across the mouth of the small inlet and up the bank past the area where people fish from the bank. Further up the bank you will see an old boat filled with tires in the shallow water. Fish past it, working the grass. Curt got two nice keepers here on his jig and pig and a smaller keeper on a rattle bait the day we fished.

    Toward the bank of the creek you will see a power line crossing and on the right bank there is a sign about dredging.  If you head toward the sign, as a 90 degree angle to the power lines, you will find a spring.  You can see it by the green water coming out of it.  The bottom around it is two to four feet deep but it drops to 15 feet in the spring. 

    The GPS coordinates on the spring are N 34 34.885 – W 86 07.335.  Fish all around the spring.  Fish often hold in the deep hole and feed on the edges, and the water coming out is a stable temperature.

    After fishing this hole ease toward the power lines there is another hole that drops to over 20 feet deep. There is no water flow here to see but fish still hold in the deep water and come to the edges to feed. The holes are just a few yards across so you may have to look hard to find them.

    8. N 34 32.266 – W 86 06.314 – Run across to South Sauty Creek and go in between the upstream bank and the first island. The main channel is downstream and there will be big open water to your right past the island.

    Ahead of you there is a group of houses then banks with trees and some pockets with reeds in the back.  Curt starts fishing on the clay point on the left  across from the last house and works around the point, then across the big flat. Fish into the pockets with reeds in the back. Bass bed all over these flats and in the pockets between the clay point and the houses.

    If the water is fairly clear Curt likes a watermelon, watermelon/purple flake and watermelon candy Baby Brush hog on his split shot rig. He will use a black and blue jig in stained water but go to a watermelon jig and trailer in clear water. For his Senko fishing Curt usually uses green pumpkin or black.

    9.  N 34 31.723 – W 86 06.573 – Out in the middle of the big open water the creek channel makes a sharp bend around a four foot deep hump and bass hold on the channel and feed on the hump, and will bed around it, too.  To find the hump line up the last downstream island out in the mouth of the creek with the red boat house on the far bank.  Also look to the bridge and line it up with the last upstream gap in the islands. That will put you near the hump.

    Fish all around this area, watching your depthfinder until you find the shallow hump. Then work around it, fishing the edges of the channel and on top of the hump, too.  This area is especially good when water is being pulled at the dam and current moves across it.

    10.  N 34 31.154 – W 86 05.252 – Run to the bridge in South Sauty Creek and go under it. To your left you will see a campground on a big point across from a big two story house sitting by itself on a flat bank. Go toward the front of the house and look for a seawall just to the right of it, going into the big cove there.  There are two big trees standing in the open behind the seawall.

    The seawall is hard to see but you need to start fishing out in front of it and work all the way around the cover to your right.   Fish to the big shallow point on the other side of the cove. Bass will hold on the points and bed all over this shallow area.

    These ten spots will give you a starting point for catching April Guntersville bass. Fish them and get an idea of the kinds of places Curt likes to fish, then you can find similar places all over the lake, from the day all the way up the river.  Get in on some of the fabled spring fishing at Guntersville right now.

    To book a trip with Curt to see how he fishes the lake call him at 256-990-0376 or visit his website and email him through it at ww.gundervillebass.com. 

March Bass at Tuscaloosa with Brandon Ligon

     March is a magical month when the world seems to be waking up after a long winter nap. Signs of spring are slowly emerging as the days get longer and warmer. And best of all, bass are becoming more and more active and getting easier to catch.  Lake Tuscaloosa, a nice surprise in a small package, is a great place to take advantage of those active bass right now.

     Lake Tuscaloosa is five miles north of the cities of Northport and Tuscaloosa and covers 5885 acres with 177 miles of shoreline.  It was created at a water supply reservoir for Tuscaloosa and Northport by damming the North River in 1971.

     The lower lake has steep rocky shorelines and the water is usually extremely clear.  All the rain this year has put a little stain in it, making it a little easier to catch the spots that predominate in that area. 

     The upper lake is more river-like and the water is usually a little stained and more fertile than the lower lake.  You can catch more largemouth the further up the river you go, and you will find more shallow water cover to fish.

     Although there were only five tournaments sent in from there, the Bass Angler Information Team survey shows Tuscaloosa as the second highest lake in the state as far as angler percent success, so you can catch a lot of bass there.  In tournaments it ranks first in bass per angler day of all Alabama lakes in the survey, so catching large numbers of bass is not a problem on the lake.

     But the bass tend to be small, with an average bass caught in a tournament weighing only 1.47 pounds, 16^th of the 20 lakes in the survey.  Just over half the bass weighed in are largemouth but that is skewed by the fact tournament fishermen target the heavier largemouth and cull spots with largemouth.

     It may surprise many anglers that it takes less time to catch a bass weighing over five pounds in a tournament on Tuscaloosa than many other more well known lakes.  Tuscaloosa ranks above Lay Lake, Weiss, Logan Martin, Jordan and several other lakes in the amount of hours an angler has to fish to catch a five pound plus bass.

     If you go to Tuscaloosa expect to catch a lot of small spots and largemouth, but if you target bigger largemouth you can catch a five pound plus bass.  For those reasons Tuscaloosa ranks fifth in the state in the overall value ranking on the BAIT survey.

     Brandon Ligon grew up just five minutes from Lake Tuscaloosa and still lives there. He considers Tuscaloosa his home lake and has fished it all his life, making many trips there when very young with his father.  He has become an accomplished tournament fisherman and does well in pot and charity tournaments on the lake. 

     For years Brandon would fish Tuscaloosa several times each week, hitting it after school and at night, and fishing all the local tournaments on it. He keeps up with the bass there and knows where to find them.

     After fishing a few tournaments with the West Alabama Bass Club Brandon started concentrating on pot tournaments on other lakes, too. He became a member of the Grammer Marine Fishing Team and fishes many local tournaments and trails. Last year he slowed down some while he built a house, but the year before he won the Woods and Waters Solo Trail point standings and has done well in many other tournaments on Tuscaloosa.

     A five fish limit over 16 pounds is Brandon’s best weigh-in at Tuscaloosa and he has landed a five pound plus spot and a couple of seven pound largemouth from the lake.  He says a 15 pound five-fish limit is a good catch here and most limits will weigh less than ten pounds since most will be small spots. 

     “In late February the bass here start the transition from deep water toward the spawning areas,” Brandon said.  The bass move up shallower on points and into the first parts of the creeks. Warm days make them move up more but a cold spell can move them back, so they tend to hold near deep water.

     As the days get warmer into March this movement becomes more pronounced and greater numbers of bass can be found shallow. By the end of the month you will catch more bass but they will still be in the same areas, feeding and getting ready for the spawn.

     There are grass beds all over the lake and they are a prime feeding area for bass, even before its starts greening up and growing. Baitfish are attracted to the old brown grass to feed and bass follow. As the grass puts out new growth it just gets better.

     Rocks are common and rocky points and bluff banks hold bass year round. They move up toward the points at the ends of bluff banks and then up onto the shallow areas of the points as they make their seasonal migration.  And wood cover like blowdowns, stumps and logs hold them on those points and other shallow areas.

     A variety of baits will catch bass right now and Brandon will have several rigged and ready.  A crankbait like a Bandit 200 or 300 series works well on the points, especially early in the morning.   In the clear lower lake Brandon will throw a natural color but switches to chartreuse in the stained water.

     In late February and early March a jerk bait will often pay off in the clear water, too. Brandon likes a Rogue but says your favorite jerk bait will catch fish, so use the one you have the most confidence in.  Rattlebaits like a half-ounce Rat-L-Trap or an XR 50 also catch a lot of fish this time of year.

     For slower fishing Brandon says a Carolina rig is hard to beat and will catch a lot of spots on the lake.  He likes a Zoom Finesse worm or small lizard in watermelon, green pumpkin or pumpkin in the clear water or something with chartreuse in it if the water is stained.  He also throws a small worm on a shaky head a lot on the lower lake and says spots love it.

     For a kicker fish up the lake, Brandon will use a jig and pig and flip or pitch it around heavy cover for largemouth.  Since the water is usually stained a black and blue combination of jig and trailer usually works well.

     Brandon showed me around Lake Tuscaloosa a couple of weeks ago on a cold, sunny day.  We hit the following ten spots and fish were on several of them and more will move onto them now.

     1. N 33 17.493 – W 87 30.671 – If you put in at the dam run up to the first bend to your left and  you will see the North River Yacht Club back in a cove on your right.  The up stream point of this cove runs way out and is very shallow on top, only five feet deep 50 yards off the bank. It is a perfect place for bass to move up to feed this time of year since it runs out to very deep water, is shallow on top and leads into a good spawning cove.

     You will see some picnic tables on the bank on the point and there is a dock on the upstream side of it where it transitions into a bluff bank. The dock had a rusty tin roof on it.  The water near the bank in shallow but it drops  off very deep on both sides out on the point.  

     Brandon says you can catch a thousand small spots here on any day but he got a nice two pound plus spot here the day we fished. It hit his Bandit crankbait and Brandon said he would love to have a limit of them in the tournament he was fishing the next weekend.

     Start well off the point and work all the way around it, casting a crankbait over the shallow water and covering it at all angles. Then go back over it with a jig head or Carolina rigged worm. Work from shallow to deep then try deep to shallow.

     Before you leave fish up the bluff bank, casting a jerk bait near the rock wall and working it back to the boat. Bass will often hold along this bluff bank and this pattern will often catch fish on all the bluff banks on the lake, but the ones that end in a shallow point near a spawning cove are better this time of year.

     2. N 33 18.696 – W 87 31.787 – Running up the river it makes a big sharp bend back to your left. If you go straight ahead and a little to your left you will see a green boathouse with two white doors on the water and a green house on the bank ahead of you. Just upstream is a nice brick house on the bank. Start fishing at the green dock and fish toward the point to your left.

     The bottom here is clay and sand but there are good grass beds in the shallows that attract baitfish and bass.  Brandon says spots will pull up to the edge of the grass to feed and largemouth will get back in the grass and feed, especially on a warm sunny day. The sun hits this bank all day long, warming the water.

     Fish a crankbait or rattlebait along the edges of the grass then work a worm or jig through the grass, hitting holes and pocket in it.   Fish all the way out to the point and a little ways around it, as long as there is grass to fish.

     3.  N 33 20.051 – W 87 32.490 – Run upstream past the two creeks that enter the lake, one on each side, and slow down just before the river makes a hard left turn.  Downstream of the point on your left you will see a cove with a no wake buoy in it and a dock with a big “Private No Trespassing” sign on it. There is a gazebo on the flat area of the point and a boat ramp on the bank, too.

     Start fishing upstream of this cove, near the point. There is a lot of grass here to fish and you will see a metal post in the water near the point. Fish the shallow grass to the point then work out from the bank, following the point.  It drops off fast on the upstream side so cover the drop, then work back to the bank and hit the grass there, too. It does not run too far up that bank and it turns into a bluff bank rock wall.     

     This point is a good example of the type place Brandon likes to fish from both directions. He says sometimes Tuscaloosa bass will orient one way or the other and want a bait coming shallow to deep or deep to shallow.  It is not because of current since there is seldom a current here.  But you need to try all directions and let the bass let you know what they want that day.

     4.  N 33 21.318 – W 87 33.024 – Run up the river to the Highway 69 Bridge and go to the small creek just downstream of it on your right. There is a bluff bank on the last point on the upstream side of the creek and a roadbed comes out off a bank across a small cove from the bluff bank. The roadbed has a danger buoy on it and there is a dock on the bluff bank side.

     The road bed runs out shallow from the bank where a barricade has been put up and there is a stop sign there.  After the road crosses the cove it runs along the bluff bank, making a shelf off it.  The roadbed holds bass from the bluff bank all the way to where it comes out of the water.

     Fish from the end of the bluff bank across the cove and out on the shallow area around the danger marker with a jig head worm of small jig and pig like a Bitsy Bug rigged with a small chunk.  Green pumpkin and brown colors are best. Work your bait along the bottom of the whole area. Brandon says a these baits are the most effective way to fish this spot.

     5. N 33 21.326 – W 37 36.184 – Further up the river the Tierce Patton Road bridge has a long causeway on the right side going upstream.  Brandon says if he had to catch a bass on the lake this would be where he would go. Riprap on bridges is almost perfect cover and structure and bass hold and feed on it.  There is deep water off the rocks on both sides and the sun warms the rocks, attracting baitfish and bass this time of year.

     Keep your boat out from the rocks and cast to them. Brandon says he has tried paralleling the rocks, but there is a good bit of wood cover out from them so it is best to make cast that cover the water from the rocks out to the boat well off them.   There is also grass along parts of the rocks to fish. Fish both sides of the riprap like this.

     Brandon will start with a crankbait and fish it on both sides of the bridge then work the area with a jig head worm or small jig and pig for less active bass.  Some tournament fishermen work this riprap all day, knowing the bass will bite at some time.

     6.  N 33 21.469 – W 87 36.286 – Just upstream of the bridge is a creek on your left.  The upstream point of this creek has an A-Frame house with a red metal roof on it and there is a cut rock seawall running around the point. There is a little pocket just upstream of this seawall where is ends and a dock is in the pocket. The upstream point of the pocket is a block seawall and is rocky.

     Brandon will start in front of the A-Frame house and fish a jerk bait up to the next point, casting it right to the seawall and working it back. He will also cover the area with a crankbait and jig head worm. We caught one keeper spot here when we fished and missed a couple of hits so they are already holding on this point.  Brandon will hit it quick to see if they are feeding then move on.

     7.  N 33 22.069 – W 87 35.313 – A little further up the river opens up and makes a bend to your left. There is a big flat point on your left at the bend and it has four danger markers on it. The point runs way out, forming an underwater island, and has some big stumps on it that hold bass. We got one keeper here when we fished and missed several bites.

     Back well off the danger markers and make long casts up onto the top of the point and island.  Fish the edges of it all the way around the area, probing for the stumps. When you hit one make repeated casts to it.  Use all your baits. Brandon says crankbaits, Carolina rigs, and shaky heads all catch fish here. The bass hold here year-round and move up into the shallows in the early spring.

     8.  N 33 22.821 – W 87 35.323 – Across the open water to the right you will see two big islands. The river channel swings around them to the right on the upstream side of them.  There is a channel between them but Brandon says it is full of stumps so don’t try to run it. You can go between the bank and the island closest to it, but you want to fish that island, and you need to fish all around it.

     The upstream side of the second island going up is sometimes is a little better and that is where we took the GPS reading, but Brandon will fish all the way around this island, working his jig and crankbait on all the little points and pockets, and fishing the grassbeds and wood cover hard.  

     This is a big area and you can stay on it all day, going round and round and catching bass. Fish will move into the cover and start feeding all day long so you can keep working it and keep catching fish in the spring.

     9.  N 33 23.264 – W 87 34.682 – Go up across the big open water toward where the river comes in and you will see a sail boat club back on your left in a cove right where the lake narrows down.  From that cove upstream there is a flat bank on your left to the next small pocket.  There is a lot of wood and grass to fish along this bank.

     Start on either end and fish the whole bank. Wind may make it easier to fish it going one way or the other, and wind sometimes helps when it blows on grassbeds like you will find here.  Fish the whole bank with a crankbait and a jig and pig. This is a good area to catch largemouth.

      10. N 33 24.088 – W 87 34.826 – Run up above the Highway 69 Bridge and the river will stay to your left. To your right is a creek coming in and you want to go into the mouth of it. A point on ahead of you where two arms split has a “Swimming Water Quality” sign on it that was green the day we were there, but the color can change.

     Start near the sign and work all around the island it is on. There are lots of logs and blowdowns to fish here and this is the kind of area Brandon would look for a kicker fish. Flip or pitch your jig and pig to each piece of cover and work it hard. Also fish the grass beds, working points and dips in them, as well as fishing back in them.

     These places will show you the kind of spots Brandon catches late February and March bass on Tuscaloosa, and the way he fishes them. There are many other good spots on the lake you can find if you check these out and then look for similar places. You will catch a lot of bass, and there could well be a five pounder in the mix.