Carters Lake Fishing Reports – April 2020

Carters: Level: 1.1 feet below full pool. Temp: 60 degrees. Clarity: Down to 3 feet.

Stripers: Capt. Eric Crowley reports, “Carters Lake in the spring is my favorite place to be. Stripers chasing bait and feeding early, walleye making the trip upriver, spots are packing on the pounds and bait is thick. The linesides are on good planer and flatline bites. Big baits, long leaders and circle hooks are my setup. I like fresh, frisky bait caught under the Hydro Glow the day of the trip. I prefer to start with 6-inch-plus size baits. Alewife, gizzards or big threadfin fresh from the Humpback cast net can be the trick for a good day. We are pulling boards in all the creeks. Half way back is a good place to start looking for fish. Cover lots of water, and keep the baits fresh. I run 50 to 60 feet of line past the boards on the outside and 100 feet back on the flatlines. The spots are in the creeks following the giant schools of bait 25 to 35 feet deep near cover or creek channel edges. We have been catching the big ones striper fishing with big baits. They can’t seem to let a big slow bait go by without trying to eat it. We have also been catching spots on lures trolling for walleye in 30 to 35 feet of water.”

Walleye: Capt. Eric Crowley reports, “The walleye are scattered in the river and the creek arms. Look for change in depth contour or heavy cover near any current. Live bait or artificial tactics will both catch fish this month. Slow trolling crankbaits or live baits 1.5 to 2.5 mph right off the bottom has been the best bite. If you’re not getting bites early, try the midday bite in the same area, just a little deeper. Good luck, and I hope everyone has a great spring.”

Read archived fishing articles on GON’s Carters Lake page.