Fishing Report Archives

Hello from the Excel 230 Elite.

Will we ever get a break from this wind? March was supposed to go out like a lamb but that poor little lamb would be threadbare if it tried to follow my boat around recently. A guide friend said today he is sick of having to wear insulated coveralls. Enough already!

The mid-week cold snap has set things back and dropped the surface temperatures about 4 degrees. That doesn’t sound like much but it’s everything for the start of the major spawn push for crappie. Reports from Adam Martin of Kentucky Fish & Wildlife indicate some bass fry have already hatched. Let’s hope they survive this cold snap.

Early week found us catching some crappie and big white bass trolling jigs in 5-6 feet of water when the wind allowed. Today those fish were deeper and very scattered. I am yet to see a crappie that appears to have spawned. The lake levels are approaching the 358 mark. This is great if TVA will allow it to stay close to that or even allow it to go ahead and rise to summer pool. The more cover the new game fish minnows have to hide in, the better their chances of survival.

With the winds come hard times when trying to troll shallow flats with 1/16oz jigs so I’ve been putting the spinning tackle up and breaking out the line counter reels and crankbaits. It is much easier to control the boat when you have decent forward momentum.

I’ve also been pulling some shallow runners as well as medium runners. Lots of big crappie will be in deep water areas but only a very few feet below the surface. Watching your electronics will show you all you need to know as to how deep to fish crankbaits.

We caught our first saugers of the season and started off with a bang! A 19.5 inch monster started us off. An 18 incher came soon after. These sauger both came on medium runner cranks fished over 15-20 feet of water. I would suspect our baits were no more than 12 feet deep. You don’t have to plow a furrow on the bottom with your bait to catch sauger.

The water is very clear for this time of the year due to dry conditions. The forecast shows several days of rain early next week. Some muddy water will help the surface temps rise faster and it will allow a closer approach to fish-holding shallow areas. Muddy water doesn’t keep the fish from biting but it sure does make for a good excuse for a less than productive trip to the lake.

We have been catching some two pound-plus white bass. They hit like a freight train and will tangle every line in the water but I still love to catch them and once the red meat along the lateral line is removed, eat them. They are right in amongst the crappie and sauger. Bright patterns like chartreuse, bone, and silvers have accounted for a lot of catches.

There is starting to be a good bit of floating trash so keep that in mind. Fouled lines don’t catch fish.

Miss Vicki lost her Dad, Mac Tucker, last Friday. It was a shock but we were allowed a couple of extra decades with him after an illness that might have taken a lesser man. He was a trooper. A wise business man who was respectful and honest. He was a great Father-in-Law, Father, Grandfather and great-Grandfather. He will be missed but he suffers no more. He only fished with me a couple of times in the 5 decades I have been around his family. It just wasn’t his thing. Golf was!

Be careful out there. Be respectful and courteous of those who share fishing areas with you. Help those who need it. The eclipse is happing today so keep those special glasses handy. The best viewing will be north of our local area.

Thursday-Saturday, April 11-13 will be the Cornfield Fishing Gear Demo Days at Moor’s Resort and Marina. Folks, this is going to be a big deal and will give you a chance to talk to and ask questions of many pro fishermen from crappie to bass to catfish about tactics and see how they use their equipment to catch fish. Many pro boats will be in the water all 3 days at Moor’s. There will be schedules of events and such on social media. Come out and see us!

Welcome to Our Slice of Heaven!