We got on the water around noon and decided to start in the cove where the 58 marina is located. While fishing the docks, we noticed a lot of bass rigs heading into the marina...weigh-in time. Two of them stopped out on the inner edge of the channel, made a couple of casts, and boated a bass before following the others. Not above scavenging, we checked it out and found the end of a long point that had a rocky ledge dropping from 9 to 12 feet and a bait ball at the transition. Using a drop-shot soft jerkbait and a spinnerbait, we caught spots until 3:00 and then they just disappeared. It was cloudy with a light breeze, so we chose not to spend midday pitching laydowns. Instead, we moved downriver to the backside of Hiwassee Island and threw Horny Toads and Senkos to the outside weedlines for more spots. At 6 we ran back upriver to our first stop in hopes of finding a spotted bass feeding frenzy, but they were nowhere to be found. We blew an hour of prime-time searching and then decided to finish up on the rip-rap near the ramp. That turned out to be a good choice (actually it was more like luck) because we found the spots schooling along the rock wall near the bridge. Then, with only minutes of daylight left, the Horny Toad ended my near zero on largemouth with a lamprey infested 3 1/2 pounder.
All in all, it added up to a fun day on the river. Although the majority of the spotted bass we caught were under 15", the quantity and their feisty nature made up for it.
All in all, it added up to a fun day on the river. Although the majority of the spotted bass we caught were under 15", the quantity and their feisty nature made up for it.
