25
June 2009
WATER
CONDITIONS
The
water elevation is 1,021.2-feet, which is 6-inches higher than it was last
week. The water level is expected to drop 4.6-inches over the next two days.
Heavy storms which rolled through the area over several days have muddied
some of the streams and the headwaters of the river arms. Shoreline
vegetation is flooded. High water has caused shoreline debris, logs,
branches and other objects to float into the middle of the lake. Boaters
need to be careful. Floating debris is especially heavy above Point 31, on
the Clinch.
The
surface temperature, taken in the afternoon, is 83 to 84 degrees in most
locations; the creeks and shallow areas are warmer on sunny days. Most areas
of the lake are clear.
SUMMARY
Strong
thunderstorms with some heavy downpours and higher water have flooded the
shoreline brush, providing both color and cover for bass and panfish.
Anglers targeting the brush have been doing well on both.
SMALLMOUTH BASS are hitting close to the bottom at 18 to 25 feet on the
humps and off points. LARGEMOUTH BASS and SPOTTED BASS are hitting topwater
plugs, jerk baits, and watermelon and pumpkin lizards and worms in the
shallows, close to the shoreline brush at the break of day. Late afternoons
have seen some catches on topwater, also. CRAPPIE catches were good under
the lanterns at night, on the Clinch arm above Point 29, especially. STRIPED
BASS continues to be good at about 20 feet deep during the morning hours.
WALLEYE catches are still slow, but some are being caught at dusk and at
night. Some of the walleye which were caught were big fish.
Along the rocky banks where there is flooded brush, SHELLCRACKERS are
hitting redworms, crickets, nightcrawlers, and occasionally small crankbaits
from Mill Creek to Poor Land Creek. They were in the brush at less than
5-feet deep. BLUEGILL improved on crickets, popping bugs and waxworms. Some
of the bluegill caught have been quite large. Bluegill have been popping the
surface in the afternoon hours, on shady, rocky banks. CATFISH are in the
slab rocks, hitting nightcrawlers fished at about 5 feet deep in the early
morning hours.
*****
STRIPED BASS
Fair
20 to
35-feet.
Most
have been caught at about the 20-foot depth on live shad or alewife
tightlined to 20-feet, occasionally to 35-feet.
Live
shad/alewife tightlined to 20 to 35-feet in schools of baitfish, or slowly
trolled with downriggers. In the breaks, use small jerkbaits, swim baits, or
shiners. Lost Creek, Bear Hole, Crooked Creek, and the islands near Hickory
Star produced fish. Cove Creek improved a bit at dawn.
LARGEMOUTH & SPOTTED BASS
Good.
Surface to 10-feet
Some
surface action is still going on for those out at dawn with jerkbaits,
buzzbaits and topwater plugs. Topwater action is mainly in the hollows and
flooded timber and brush along almost any shoreline.
Watermelon/chartreuse, green pumpkin and redbug plastic worms are taking
some nice fish on Carolina rigs at 15 to 20 feet.
In the
rear of the hollows where the water is warmer, near wood structure, plastic
and shallow crankbaits have taken some largemouth and a few spotted bass.
Bandits, SexyShad, Model-A Bombers in stained areas upriver and in larger
creeks such as Sycamore, have done well on spotted bass.
SMALLMOUTH BASS
Moderate
20 to
25-feet, on the deep humps in mid-lake.
Some
of the smallmouth caught have come from water which is less than 15-feet
deep, but the majority of those fish have been small.
¼ to
3/8th ounce hair jigs, tipped with minnows or plastic grubs, are
taking fish on the humps, but so are plastic lizards/worms and jigging
spoons. Small crankbaits and jerkbaits, Salty Tube jigs, swim baits or
flukes cast to the points, close to brush and wood structure. Redbug, or
equivalent color slider worms (or equivalent in 4-inch size) on Shaky Head
jigs, on the long points as deep as 25 feet.
For
live bait fishermen: Large shiners fished with a split shot, but no float,
allowing the bait to drift deep along main channel rocks. The best catches
have come on 3/8 ounce, or smaller leadhead hair jigs (dark green has been
best), tipped with a live minnow and fished slow and steady along the
bottom.
CRAPPIE
Moderate to good at night, under lights.
5 to
10-feet deep in brush. In early morning or in stained water, as shallow as
2-feet.
Some
good crappie are being taken on steep, broken rock main channel banks near
flooded trees, at night under lights with tuffy minnows as bait.
Tightline or drift lures into deep, main channel brush on the bottom and
into shoreline brush on steep banks. On high barometer days, slowly troll or
drift tube jigs or hair jigs tipped with minnows along the bottom, near
brush.
Drop
popeye flies or small tube jigs into the submerged tree tops or deep brush.
Use medium tuffy minnows or 1-inch tube jigs or 1/32 oz or 1/64 oz popeye
flies tightlined into the brush.
WALLEYE
Fair
18 to
25 feet deep, on the bottom
They’ve been slow to hit, but the quality has been excellent, with fish
exceeding 20-inches being caught.
At
dusk and at night, cast Thundersticks, RedFins or ShadRaps into the flooded
timber, at the base of flooded tree trunks. After dark, when walleye are
feeding on baitfish near the shoreline, cast Zara Spooks and Pups, Rogues,
near flooded timber and brush. Some have been caught on nightcrawlers fished
beneath floats, or cast to the brush, near the shoreline. Trolling with
spinner/nightcrawler rigs has produced some fish, but it has been slow.
Chrome blades with a line of orange beads are working in the clear water
sections for those trolling during the daytime. The Loyston Sea section has
seen the most walleye caught.
SHELLCRACKER
Good
2 to
10-feet deep.
Near
brush and rocky outcroppings from Mill Creek to Lost Creek and Poor Land
Creek. In hollows near flats adjacent to deeper water.
Nightcrawlers, redworms, waxworms, small spinners, and small crankbaits.
Fish live bait under a float, or cast with small splitshot and no float.
See
the Fishing Regulations booklet for an ID of this fish, or go to
www.tnfish.org to see a photo.
BLUEGILL
Good
5 to
15-feet deep.
Crickets, waxworms, BeetleSpins, popping bugs, along steep, shady, rocky
banks.
Good fishing from NorrisLakeInfo.com!!