EARLY JANUARY ON GUNTERSVILLE LAKE
Cold fronts roll in and out this time of year on Alabama's massive Guntersville Lake. But no matter how cold it gets these often tempermental largemouth bass will still hit one lure, a suspending jerkbait.
Especially when the better side of this equation takes place following a severe cold front...when warm fronts move in.
A recent guided trip with Reeds Guide Service to Guntersville lake's lower end "rang in the New Year" with 3 nice big bass, all weighing over 5 pounds each (one maybe 6-7 pounds), all caught on Tim Horton's signature series Heddon suspending jerkbaits,(blue back with orange belly), in water temps ranging from 49-52 degrees!
EQUIPMENT
We used 7 foot med-action Tiger Rods (See: www.tigerodz.com) and wide-spooled ABU Garcia 5500 reels, loaded with Trilene Big Game green 15 pound test monofilament line. For casting these lures maximum distances and allowing some line stretch on the hook set.
We also had changed out the middle hook and back hook on our jerkbaits, to a # 4 Gamakatsu round bend treble hook, leaving the smaller original front hook on, to avoid three oversized hooks from hanging together.
OTHER LURES
This was the end results, especially in one spot after we had tried jig combos, spinnerbaits, small finesse plastics on jig heads, rattle traps and shallow running, flat-sided crankbaits.
All of which usually produce quality strikes during these early January conditions on most previous wintertime outings to the lower lake, which is always clearer than upriver!
LOCATIONS
In all we must have had 40 bites and caught at least 30 bass! Our five best bass that day would have easily weighed 23-24 pounds. Most bass came in that 5-6 foot drop along weed edges, along both sides of points and the ends of long, tapering main lake points, all the way to the dam.
Some of our more quality sized bass were on points in creek mouths and we had a few on secondary points in creeks fishing down on the lower end of the lake in Browns Creek, Spring Creek and Honeycomb Creek.
RETRIEVES
* Slow retrieves after cranking down the suspending jerkbait a few turns of the reel and then pausing the lure as much as 5-10 seconds triggered most of our bigger bass bites (one bass hit after a client picked out a small backlash!)
WEATHER
Look for a continuing warming trend this week
with daytime highs in the low to mid 60's, rain and partly cloudy skies all week and much more coopertive big bass in shallow water!
(Might even Spook up a few this week!)
Guided trips available!
Thanks,
Reed Montgomery / Reeds Guide Service
Website: www.fishingalabama.com
E-mail: alabassgyd@aol.com
Phone (205) 787-5133
