# Where to catch gizzard shad?



## JetJon (Apr 20, 2016)

Where is best places to cast net gizzard shad now and through out  the summer months? I'm on the East side of Atlanta but will travel. PM if you want.


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## JetJon (Apr 22, 2016)

*Gizzards*

I know somebody has to a gizzard wizard. Please help me out with some info on good places to cast net gizzard shad.


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## seabolt (Apr 23, 2016)

Good luck.hit the back of the creeks.boat ramps at day light


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## Thunder Head (Apr 25, 2016)

If you find out let me know. I cannot catch them on a regular basis. 
 I have caught them in the backs of creeks on occasion.


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## Dustin Pate (Apr 25, 2016)

I love shallow, muddy flats. You will make a mess of your boat, but you will get gizzards.


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## fishingga (Apr 25, 2016)

Almost every lake stream or river in east GA/ATL has shad.

Lake Jackson has a decent amount but hard to keep them alive from there in the summer.  Oconee has a good number, look in upper lake, backs of creeks or around golf courses if they have fertilized recently.  Chattahoochee river has them, look for creeks coming into the river.  The rivers above and below every lake have some if you have a jet boat.  Go right before daylight or at dusk and look for them flipping on the surface and you will have better success.  During the day is more exercise.  Dirty water usually holds more and are easier to catch than clear water.  
There are some areas in metro ATL that you can catch some very large gizzards but do you own homework to find them.


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## JetJon (Apr 26, 2016)

Thanks for info. I'll keep looking till they are found! LOL


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## snapdog (Apr 26, 2016)

As Dustin said gizzards like very shallow muddy flats preferably with some grass close by.


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## j_seph (Apr 26, 2016)

Takes a lot of net throwing


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## 3ringer (Apr 26, 2016)

Can gizzard shad be caught on bait and hook. What do they eat.


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## j_seph (Apr 26, 2016)

3ringer said:


> Can gizzard shad be caught on bait and hook. What do they eat.


plankton alagee


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## 3ringer (Apr 26, 2016)

j_seph said:


> plankton alagee



I don't think I have hooks small enough for plankton or algae lol. I stuck a Gopro under our dock and saw about a half dozen fish swimming together that kinda looked like piranha. I figured they must be gizzard shad.


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## j_seph (Apr 26, 2016)

3ringer said:


> I don't think I have hooks small enough for plankton or algae lol. I stuck a Gopro under our dock and saw about a half dozen fish swimming together that kinda looked like piranha. I figured they must be gizzard shad.


Post coordinates for your dock please


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## BendItBig (Apr 26, 2016)

j_seph said:


> Post coordinates for your dock please



x2 I can come show you how to catch them!


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## JetJon (Apr 27, 2016)

I'm good at cast net throwing. I've caught gizzards many times. I have a 1100 gallon tank with filter system just like striper soup uses that I got off craig's list last fall. I'm trying to find places to cast net lots of gizzards.


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## fishingdave (Apr 27, 2016)

Brushy branch is where alot of people go.


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## TwinStick (Apr 27, 2016)

I caught one on a spinnerbait today at lanier. My dad caught one just after on a crank bait. Was a first for me.


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## Dustin Pate (Apr 27, 2016)

TwinStick said:


> I caught one on a spinnerbait today at lanier. My dad caught one just after on a crank bait. Was a first for me.



That isn't a gizzard shad. That is a blue back. It was probably trying to spawn with you bait and snagged a hook.


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## jeremyledford (Apr 27, 2016)

Dustin Pate said:


> That isn't a gizzard shad. That is a blue back. It was probably trying to spawn with you bait and snagged a hook.



I catch em at times. At that point I'm throwing a 5-8"swimbait trying to match the shad(or in this case herring). The big boys are amongst them if they're thick enough to snag while fishing. That's some of my favorite fishing right there.


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## Schro4dave (Apr 27, 2016)

I just stocked a pond with them. I always get them out of brushy branch. You can load up there


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## Schro4dave (Apr 27, 2016)

I just stocked a pond with them. I always get them out of brushy branch. You can load up there


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## TwinStick (Apr 27, 2016)

Dustin Pate said:


> That isn't a gizzard shad. That is a blue back. It was probably trying to spawn with you bait and snagged a hook.



Good to know, thanks.


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## dsgbqc (Apr 27, 2016)

fishingdave said:


> Brushy branch is where alot of people go.



Is brushy branch at Lake Allatoona?


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## Msteele (Apr 27, 2016)

Go to Lake Acworth to get your gizzards and thread fin.  It's free to launch and there are lots and lots of free bait in there.


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## ryork (Apr 27, 2016)

> Is brushy branch at Lake Allatoona?



No, it's the very upper end backwaters of Lake Weiss on the Coosa River between Rome and the Alabama line. There is a boat ramp there. It is typically loaded with shad. Is shallow and more often than not stained, so makes the netting a little easier.


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## dsgbqc (Apr 27, 2016)

We should make this thread a sticky. I don't think sharing locations for catching shads is the same as giving out fishing honey hole. Really how many of us can/want to throw a net for hours just to get all wet and the boat dirty? Its not like you gonna pull up to a cove and see a dozen boats throwing cast nets lol. We spend a hour and half at Ringer trying to catch a dozen shads just to have them die before reaching our fishing spot. So thanks to all that share so we can spend more time fishing.


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## ryork (Apr 28, 2016)

> We spend a hour and half at Ringer trying to catch a dozen shads just to have them die before reaching our fishing spot. So thanks to all that share so we can spend more time fishing.



Do a search on here about keeping shad alive, there are a lot of helpful ideas. Devil is in the details. Keep a five gallon bucket of lake water in the boat and as soon as you net some put them in there and let them purge themselves in that before putting in the tank.


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## j_seph (Apr 28, 2016)

dsgbqc said:


> We should make this thread a sticky. I don't think sharing locations for catching shads is the same as giving out fishing honey hole. Really how many of us can/want to throw a net for hours just to get all wet and the boat dirty? Its not like you gonna pull up to a cove and see a dozen boats throwing cast nets lol. We spend a hour and half at Ringer trying to catch a dozen shads just to have them die before reaching our fishing spot. So thanks to all that share so we can spend more time fishing.


Actually I have a hole that I can (could) go catch enough for a trip, as well as you could and several others could through the week. One greedy person decided to take it upon himself to go there and wipe them out to the point you can not. A buddy went and spent an hour and a half to catch 3. Normally through the last 15 years you could throw the net 3 times and have enough for a fishing trip.  So I make a move instead of this post getting pinned for locations that it get removed.


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## Msteele (Apr 28, 2016)

j_seph said:


> Actually I have a hole that I can (could) go catch enough for a trip, as well as you could and several others could through the week. One greedy person decided to take it upon himself to go there and wipe them out to the point you can not. A buddy went and spent an hour and a half to catch 3. Normally through the last 15 years you could throw the net 3 times and have enough for a fishing trip.  So I make a move instead of this post getting pinned for locations that it get removed.



Bingo!  Striper fishing is 85% of having good bait in my book. Lake Acworth was 5 throws and done. Not anymore. Just delete this thread. I will sell my boat before I purchase parking lot bait!


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## fishingdave (Apr 28, 2016)

Lake Aubrey was a good gizzard spot unit it was closed to the public.


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## Msteele (Apr 28, 2016)

fishingdave said:


> Lake Aubrey was a good gizzard spot unit it was closed to the public.



That lake was full of green vegetation and small gizzards. I used it when I would do a quick float down the Etowah.  A few guides used it frequently.  I really don't miss it though.


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## JetJon (Apr 29, 2016)

1675 views and all we got is Brushy Branch and Lake Acworth. True fishermen take info to the grave. LOL. Thanks for all the input and help. Good luck on y'alls next fishing trip.


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## j_seph (Apr 29, 2016)

JetJon said:


> 1675 views and all we got is Brushy Branch and Lake Acworth. True fishermen take info to the grave. LOL. Thanks for all the input and help. Good luck on y'alls next fishing trip.


If wd can find some bait to go with


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## Msteele (Apr 29, 2016)

JetJon said:


> 1675 views and all we got is Brushy Branch and Lake Acworth. True fishermen take info to the grave. LOL. Thanks for all the input and help. Good luck on y'alls next fishing trip.



Go ask that same question about bait on some of the striper forums. You might just get removed. Haha.  Good luck.


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## madchemist (May 14, 2016)

I can get you as many as you need on a 160 acre drinking water resivior I lived on. from 6- 13 inches long too.


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## King.Of.Anglers.Jeremiah (May 14, 2016)

baitfish like shad swim up against dams and dam tailrace areas all the time. get up close to a dam somewhere on the Chattahoochee and net them


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## snapdog (May 14, 2016)

Quote:
Actually I have a hole that I can (could) go catch enough for a trip, as well as you could and several others could through the week. One greedy person decided to take it upon himself to go there and wipe them out to the point you can not. A buddy went and spent an hour and a half to catch 3. Normally through the last 15 years you could throw the net 3 times and have enough for a fishing trip. So I make a move instead of this post getting pinned for locations that it get removed. 
__________________
"The nation behaves well if 

I had a place like that at west point years ago. A couple of my buddy's had trouble finding bait so I told them. Then they told their buddy's and so on. Within a short time every time I went  there to this spot there was someone catching bait there. Not long after I stopped fishing west point and headed for the ......


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## dsgbqc (May 14, 2016)

madchemist said:


> I can get you as many as you need on a 160 acre drinking water resivior I lived on. from 6- 13 inches long too.



Why are there shads in a drinking water reservior? Why would anyone throw a net with lead weights in a drinking water reservior?


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## BendItBig (May 16, 2016)

dsgbqc said:


> We should make this thread a sticky. I don't think sharing locations for catching shads is the same as giving out fishing honey hole. Really how many of us can/want to throw a net for hours just to get all wet and the boat dirty? Its not like you gonna pull up to a cove and see a dozen boats throwing cast nets lol. We spend a hour and half at Ringer trying to catch a dozen shads just to have them die before reaching our fishing spot. So thanks to all that share so we can spend more time fishing.



A wet shirt and dirty boat is a small price for a net full of fresh native bait! There could not be a more backwards way to look at it and yes you would pull up to a cove and see more than a dozen boats out there throwing the net. Give out one location for catching bait and it will be wiped clean out! Take the average weekend fisherman who catches their own bait and add on top of that people who go out and catch bait for a living. A consistent spot to catch bait is far more valuable than any honey hole to catch fish in. If you are loosing all of your shad before you get to your fishing spot you need a larger bait tank with a good filtration system and aeration.


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