Carters Lake Fishing Report – May 2010

Carters: Level: 4.2 feet above full pool after heavy storms. Temp: 65-70 degrees. Clarity: Stained up the river.

Bass: Excellent. Louie Bartenfield reports, “Fish are in all three stages of the spawn and in all water columns. There is a great topwater bite the first couple of hours. I’m having my best luck early using buzzbaits around the back half of pockets and Pop-Rs, Spook Jrs, and jerkbaits. After the morning bite, a 3/16-oz. jig head rigged with a Big Bite Baits Squirrel Tail worm has produced great numbers throughout the day. Most of these fish are buck fish in the 1- to 2-lb. range, but there have been a few big ones mixed in. To target the bigger fish, I’m throwing spinnerbaits, jerkbaits and Fish Head Spins over open-water structure. Humps, points and brush in 12 to 25 feet of water on the main lake are holding postspawn spots, and they’re easier to catch than you might think. The evening bite has been good as well. Keep your eyes open for schooling activity during the evenings. The easiest way to catch the schooling fish for me has been with a jerk shad type bait worked aggressively close to the surface.”

Linesides: Fair and improving. Eric Crowley reports, “Find the bait, and find the fish. Look in Fisher Creek and Camp Branch — both have had a good amount of bait in them in the early morning hours. Try to see if it is threadfin or gizzard shad. If you are fishing the wrong baits, they won’t get a second look, so match the hatch. Some nice fish are schooling around Stumpy Island in the afternoon and evening hours. Start shallow, and work your way out to 40 feet of water. Downline live bait with light fluorocarbon leaders and a 2/0 or 3/0 hook. Watch for the rising temps to make these fish want to school up and feed on a schedule. Find out when they are feeding, and you can stay on them for a while. Some smaller fish have been caught up river. Small shad fished on flatlines should get the attention of these smaller fish. Try to anchor up and drift them back in a slight current. If the shad want to stay on top, try adding a small split-shot about 5 feet up the line, and remember small and light is the way to go for terminal tackle when fishing in the clear water.

Catfish: Eric said, “Look for the catfish to move up river this month. Try cut bait or chicken livers fished on the bottom. Some nice fish have been caught, and it should only get better as we get into May.”