Res fishing

[Steve Craig]

In the deep water thread, I made a comment that anyone that wanted me to post a question for them, that I would be happy to do so. It seems it didnt take long.

A lurker asks:
" in any manmade lake, where there is a large sweeping bend of the original channel, leaving a long flat a quarter to one half mile wide, in the inside bend, or any flat area for that manner. The depths of the flat are dropping off into the main channel at 12 to 20 feet or so, and there are several cuts, not feeders, cutting across the flats toward the shallows. Will or can the fish(bass) or other species use these cuts to migrate to the shallows along the shoreline?"

OK you more experienced Spoonpluggers. How about an answer for this guy ?!!!

[Gary Schiffner]

Not sure anyone could say for sure. It would just take basic Spoonplugging procedures to see if it was a productive structure. Making a good map, and fishing it will give you the answer. There are no definite Yes or No answers to those kind of questions. What looks good on a map, may never be as good as the map shows or places on a map may not look good and upon trolling it you find things. There are no simple easy short cuts to telling if a structure is productive, it's all about time and effort. The more you put into it the more you get out of it. You may not catch a fish on it the first time, the tenth time, or ever, it's all about figuring it out!

[Bob Rives]

To a lunker. In Lake Ray Hubbard there is a area with a river bend apx.1/4 Mi from a levee. The flat is 20ft+ The top of the levee is 11/12ft on top. No cuts,No creeks but it is a jungle down there A lot of trees(breaks). Several spoonpluggers took MANY bass on top of the levee from 1980 till 1990 then it shut down. I think it was a change in the water color. Bob

[phillip szafranski]

Gary is correct in stating that you need to let the lures and fish tell you if this is a productive area. My interpretation of THIS fishing situation posed is as follows: The question indicated that these cuts flow from the channel toward the shallows. If the cut actually goes to 8 to 10 feet or less, all species could use this area if it has suitable breaks. If these cuts end deeper than the 8 to 10 foot depth, bass would most likely eliminate this area but other species could be here, if suitable breaks occur. If these cuts are used, I suspect they will be utilized during the summer months. As the fishing situation is described in the question, I believe the cuts will be softer in nature and the harder bottom will obviously be in the bend of the channel area. The cuts should be considered as trolling water until they are proven producers of quality fish.

[Steve Craig]

Very good answers, and I hope Lurker has his questions answered. If not he needs to post or get back to me one way or the other, please.

Lurker#2 asks.......

When working the upper portions of the resevoir at the head waters for walleye and pike, in early spring after the ice goes off, with more than35 foot of water in the channel, and the top edges have 25 feet and nothing but big flats on each side, should he be running the top edge of the channel with an 800 SP with Nobo. He says there are no feeders coming in in this area, but there are downstream where the water depths are deeper. Will the pike and the walleyes still use the creek channel if no feeders are present in this area? There are no sharp bends in the river channel either. Would this be all "trolling" water? There are short points or bars, but they do not go all the way to the channel. He guesses that this is a flatland res.

[phillip szafranski]

Lurker 2,

You should expect both species to use a channel for their seasonal movements into their spawning areas. Once you have identified which coves or areas offer spawning preferences by each species, I would concentrate your efforts there. These areas should be productive season after season. The locations of where the ice fishermen are fishing near ice out should give you a starting point. Anticipate speed control being near or at zero for the immediate ice out condition. I would begin my efforts by concentrating on breaks near the channel area of these coves in less than 10 feet of water by casting with jigs/live bait. These fish could be using the channel breakline in as little as 2 feet, if a channel still exists at this depth. At this time of year you can never be fishing too shallow.

I would approach your fishing situation as follows: I would make one trolling pass along the channel breaklines starting from the deepest part of the channel breakline that I could effectively present lures heading into the back of the cove to check depth and speed control. Once in the back of the cove, concentrate on the breaks as described above with the slower speed. When you believe you have worked the shallows effectively, troll your way back on the channel breakline opposite of your first trolling pass, noting any specific breaks as you work your way down. Upon completing this, work your way back into the shallows of the opposite breakline and work the shallows again in the same manner as before. When you feel the need to work your way out, attempt to cast the deeper breaks on the breakline but do not get caught up spending an inordinate amount of time. We as Spoonpluggers can sometimes fall in love with the idea of catching deep fish. This time of year, most of your fish will be taken from casting positions shallower.
Hope this helps!

Phil