Carters Lake Fishing Report – July 2010

Carters: Level: 1.8 feet below full pool. Temp: Mid to upper 80s. Clarity: Very clear.

Bass: Louie Bartenfield reports, “The bite has been slow but good for big spots throughout the day and into the evening. Early morning I’ve been getting a very strong Scrounger bite on the main lake, this bite is mostly over open water around the humps and point tips. Some of these spots have been in excess of 5 pounds, so this is a big-fish pattern along with the numbers. I’ve struggled anytime I’ve tried topwater. If you’re just coming up for a day, I’d leave the topwater at home and replace it with a Scrounger or small-bladed spinnerbait. After the morning bite is finished, the rest of the day slows down, but the big spots are still biting. I’ve been targeting standing-timber edges or points and high spots in the timber with drop shots, 1/8-oz. jig-head worms and Carolina rigs fished from 10 to 30 feet deep. I’ve had some 15-lb. plus trips lately, so the quality is very much there; however, most days we’re only catching 10 to 12 fish. The evening has probably been the best time to get bit overall. Most evenings you can just keep the trolling motor in the water and fish with any moving bait that will reach 8 to 12 feet. Fish slow, but cover a lot of water, and you’ll get bit. I’m using 1/4-oz. medium- and long-billed Scroungers rigged with 4-inch Big Bite Bait minnows. A very slow retrieve has been the way to get bit. The night bite has been very hit or miss. The nights I got bit it was with a 3/4-oz. spinnerbait and a 3/16-oz. Texas-rigged worm from 10 to 20 feet of water. The river bite has been a bit more consistent for me at night.”

Linesides: Eric Crowley reports, “Fishing has either been hot, or not. It seems like the fish are keying on a certain bait on each day. Some days they will only eat threadfins; the next day only gizzards; some days they seem like they won’t eat anything. Some nice fish have been caught around the main river island from 18 to 37 feet of water. Also down at the dam some fish are holding in and around the points and coves. The bigger hybrids are schooled up and feeding pretty good, as well. Look for them on humps and the lower end of the lake. There have been no busting fish to speak of, but the downline bite is pretty good. A new lake record hybrid was caught last month and is just under 12 pounds, but I bet it gets broken this summer. There are some big hybrids in this lake, and they seem to be really healthy. The best bite seems to be from just before sunrise to about 9 a.m., but you can pick up fish till 11 a.m. on most days.”