Carters Lake Fishing Report June 2011

Carters: Level: 0.4 feet above full pool. Temp: 73-76 degrees. Clarity: 2 to 3 feet of visibility.

Spotted Bass: Good. Guide Louie Bartenfield reports, “The bite on Carters is strong for both spots and stripers. We’ve been getting a good topwater bite with Pop-Rs and Super Spooks the first two hours. Then we’re moving out in the 18- to 30-foot range to fish shaky heads and Texas rigs. As we get into June, look for a good football-jig and Carolina-rig bite to start up. I also love the deep crankbait when they are generating water.” Eric Crowley, of Lake and Stream Guide Service reports, “The spots have been holding on the edges of the deep water ’til just recently, and now they are up a little shallower. Look for fish to start to congregate near structure, whether it’s trees, rocks or drop-offs in water from 6 to 16 feet. Warmer water means these fish will chase a bait down and hammer it, so don’t think you have to fish slow to catch ’em. Try ripping a spoon or small swimbait in and around this structure, and watch for the spots to explode on it. Don’t spend too much time fishing any one thing, as there are plenty of trees down from recent storms.” Eric’s favorite colors for spots this month are chrome and white and a bluegill pattern with the bluegill spawn under way.

Linesides: Very good. Eric reports, “We have been putting both good numbers and good size fish in the boat. Stripers and hybrids seem to be keying on bait in the 3- to 5-inch range for the postspawn bite. Gizzards, threads or alewives in this size can be fished on flatlines, planer boards or downlines on just about any point on the lake right now to produce fish. Start looking in 30 feet of water, and work your way up shallow. Some days the stripers are in a foot or two of water, and some days they are out in the deeper areas off the points. An hour before sunrise until about 11 a.m. seems the best time to be on the water, but don’t count out the night bite. Fishing with a light this time of year can really produce fish. Look for bait on the sonar, and drop the light in that area just at dusk. It won’t take long for the school of bait to move over and start swarming your light.” Louie reports, “Stripers can be caught early freelining shad or bluegills. After the morning bite, I’m downlining 20 to 30 feet deep and staying on the move a lot. From the Doll Mountain area up to Ridgeway has been a great place for numbers of both hybrids and stripes.”