Feb-March
If you can find a good day, now is the time to fish lake Jocassee. Good numbers of both Brown and Rainbows are being taken from the surface down to 45 feet. Trolling Sutton spoons, small shad colored crankbaits, and drifting live or dead bait are all producing. Remember the key is to match the bait-fish! (size & color) We have been jigging up big browns and smallmouth using megabait 1 & 2 oz jigs and dropshots with long leaders & gulp minnows. Locate and jig just under schools of baitfish marked on sonar. Between the mouth of the 3 rivers and the JOR area is producing well. Smallmouth are hit or miss right now. Finesse 3 inch worms and grubs on 1/32 oz jig heads, worked slowly, are getting bit. Suspending jerk-baits are also producing around humps, points and bluffs. Look for things to really heat up soon as the big females start making their way toward spawning flats. 60 degrees is the magic number, so March will be all about the Pre-Spawn. However, if you are looking for the Hawg, focus on the larger early spawners when the water temp reaches 55 degrees. I will defiantly be fishing the full moon on March 30. This is the time to load up on some real HEAVY stringers.
May – June
Start looking for post spawn patterns in may and into June. The all day bite will slow down and the evening and morning bite will really pick up. By mid to late June start focusing on evening and night bites. Fish will start to locate on point, humps or other structure near the main lake or deep channels. Deep diving crank bait will become more popular with jigs and vertical producing as well. Try top water in the morning and evening . Bass tend to group up this time of year and if you can find a nice school of fish you can really put a boat load of big fish in the boat. Bass should be food oriented now. After not eating for several months during spawn they are hungry. Fallow bait schools and you will find bass. Try jigging spoons just below bait balls if you mark any arks under the pods or throw plastic jerk baits. Happy fishing.
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Pre-spawn, Pre-spawn, Pre-spawn
Us fellow bass fishermen have been waiting for this for months. No more dreaming or watching florida bass fishing on TV. It is time to start speeding things up! As the water temperature eases past 50 and into the 60′s by mid-April the bass will be getting ready to spawn. They fallow natural coridors on their way to shallow spawning areas. However on some of the high mountain lakes the shallow is realitive. In alot of cases bass, expecially small mouth, will spawn in 10-18 feet of water. Look for some kind of linear structure adjacent to deep water. Creek channels, bluffs, ditches and the outside of vegetation are all likly travel coridors this time of year. Start by covering alot of water till you find how close the bass are relating to structure, then narow in you search. Water clarity plays a big role in this. The Clearer the water the more likely bass will suspend further away from structure.
Fontana and Jocassee Lake
The bass are coming out of winter hungry and trying to stock up on whatever they can in preparation for the spawn. These clear waters can be tough year around but use environmental facters to your advantage! In the Spring there are numerous fronts moving in carring alot of rain and weather. One can use this to their advantage. Up all rivers and most of the creeks there are fresh water streams empting into the lakes. After a hard rain, expecially on a warm front, the water become a little dirty in the back of the creeks. This dirty water will be the first to warm when the sun hits and will often times bring food along with it. Even a degree or two will make a huge difference this time of year. It is not uncommon to fish up to 20 or 30 of these areas in a day. Lipless crankbaits and spinnerbaits are deadly with this pattern and it is worth trying!
Walleye
Walleye are coming out of spawn right now on Fontana and Lake James. However there is still some straglers. The water temp should be around 53-57 degrees. Look for fine gravel banks that stair steps next to deep water. Try in the back of the rivers and creeks. Anywhere near flowing water. Idle around till you mark fish or bait and you have found them. This is no time of year to be trolling for the toothy fish. Throw small jigs with live or dead bait to the shallows and hang on. (gulp 2 in minnow grubs, Yum 3 inch curly tails and powerbaits all work well on a jig head) Try different sizes and colors till you get bit. Also feel out travel corridors coming into spawning areas.
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