Gnatsville is more like it...those little critters tore our elbows and ankles up
. If you haven't been to the G in a while, it is quickly turning into a monstrous, gnat filled weedbed. However, the bass love the weeds and I love the bass so all is good.</p>
We put in around 1:00 and headed straight to KVD's winning hotspot, which Polo had been kind enough to map out for me. You guys remember what Mud Creek looked like in early Spring? It was unreal. We pulled up and counted 13 boats battling for a piece of it. I made one cast with a Fat Free Shad and set the hook...on another guy's C-rig
. At that point my friend Jim stowed the trolling motor and said "Now what?" The whole trip had been planned out to target areas that were hot in the recent Bassmaster Tx. Unfortunately, everyone practicing for the Big Bass Splash had the same itinerary. Luckily, I had spent some time on the BFHP the night before and had made a few notes based on the guide reports. We broke out the Guntersville map and headed back downriver to fish some ledges.</p>
We started just up from the Hwy 35 bridge and fished the 'green-buoy' side of the channel. The channel edge butts up against a thick weedline and the bass were hanging on the outside around fast drops. Without GPS and very little knowledge of the channel, we used the map to approximate and just fished until we got bit. When you found the bass, there were usually several to be caught in one little spot. After experimenting with worms and jigs with mixed results, I tied on a Fluke and started getting bit. Just as the Fluke or Dinger would disappear out of sight, your line would barely jump or straighten and you either set the hook on a bass or a weed stalk. The bite was so light that you couldn't take a chance and assume that it was 'just another weed'. I'm sure we looked liked amateurs out there setting the hook on every little bump or tick of the line
. According to the TVA hotline, both Nickajack and Guntersville would be generating from 12 to 9. However, the flow stopped around 4:00 and the river became dead calm as the clouds cleared...and took our bite with them.</p>
With the full sun and flat water, we loaded up and decided to do some flipping. We settled on a stretch of lily pads on what many of you guys have referred to as the 'Miracle Mile'. After flipping the pads for an hour or so with only two short fish, I picked up a good one under the boat while talking on the phone. We backed off the pads and found that we were sitting on a weedline like the one we had fished earlier
. The bass were a little deeper and holding tighter than before and they needed a faster fall to make them bite. We tried several weights before finding that 5/16 was just right; 1/8oz was too slow to trigger a reaction bite and 1/2oz got you buried in the weeds if you overshot. Although the guide reports said they wanted 10" worms, I outfished my partner's Ol' Monster 3:1 with a Smallie Beaver in the 'sprayed grass' pattern. Oddly enough, I would not have tried that particular lure if it were not for a huge bloated beaver stuck in the middle of the pads. There is nothing quite like the putrid stench of rotting flesh in the blazing sun
. At the end of the lily pad section, the bite slowed and we headed back towards the Jackson County ramp to get in some evening topwater.</p>
Once again, I broke out my notes and we tied on 'walking' style baits. Nothing. Then we tried poppers and chuggers. Still no takers. It took a blow up and miss on a Horny Toad to convince me to try a buzzbait. The water was still flat and not what you would consider buzzbait worthy but that is what they wanted...fast and loud. In fact, I caught 3 of our best bass of the day on a Cavitron along the point by the ramp from where all the tourneys launch from...the one just down from the Jackson Co. Park ramp. </p>
We ended the day with 22 bass, all but two measuring, with a best five total of 23lbs-3ozs. Although we had several over 4lbs and one just under 6lbs, the average size was 2.5 - 3lbs. If a couple of weekend warriors can squeak out 23lbs from sheer luck and reading fishing reports, I would expect 30lbs or better in the upcoming Big Bass Splash. A good topwater spot for the morning plus a milk-run of main channel ledges should result in several 30+lb sacks. </p>
We put in around 1:00 and headed straight to KVD's winning hotspot, which Polo had been kind enough to map out for me. You guys remember what Mud Creek looked like in early Spring? It was unreal. We pulled up and counted 13 boats battling for a piece of it. I made one cast with a Fat Free Shad and set the hook...on another guy's C-rig
We started just up from the Hwy 35 bridge and fished the 'green-buoy' side of the channel. The channel edge butts up against a thick weedline and the bass were hanging on the outside around fast drops. Without GPS and very little knowledge of the channel, we used the map to approximate and just fished until we got bit. When you found the bass, there were usually several to be caught in one little spot. After experimenting with worms and jigs with mixed results, I tied on a Fluke and started getting bit. Just as the Fluke or Dinger would disappear out of sight, your line would barely jump or straighten and you either set the hook on a bass or a weed stalk. The bite was so light that you couldn't take a chance and assume that it was 'just another weed'. I'm sure we looked liked amateurs out there setting the hook on every little bump or tick of the line
With the full sun and flat water, we loaded up and decided to do some flipping. We settled on a stretch of lily pads on what many of you guys have referred to as the 'Miracle Mile'. After flipping the pads for an hour or so with only two short fish, I picked up a good one under the boat while talking on the phone. We backed off the pads and found that we were sitting on a weedline like the one we had fished earlier
Once again, I broke out my notes and we tied on 'walking' style baits. Nothing. Then we tried poppers and chuggers. Still no takers. It took a blow up and miss on a Horny Toad to convince me to try a buzzbait. The water was still flat and not what you would consider buzzbait worthy but that is what they wanted...fast and loud. In fact, I caught 3 of our best bass of the day on a Cavitron along the point by the ramp from where all the tourneys launch from...the one just down from the Jackson Co. Park ramp. </p>
We ended the day with 22 bass, all but two measuring, with a best five total of 23lbs-3ozs. Although we had several over 4lbs and one just under 6lbs, the average size was 2.5 - 3lbs. If a couple of weekend warriors can squeak out 23lbs from sheer luck and reading fishing reports, I would expect 30lbs or better in the upcoming Big Bass Splash. A good topwater spot for the morning plus a milk-run of main channel ledges should result in several 30+lb sacks. </p>
