Lake Blackshear Fishing Report – November 2006

Blackshear: Level: Full pool. Temp: Low 70s. Clarity: Clear.

Bass: Clint Brownlee and Jerry Gray won the Blackshear Buddies tournament on Saturday, October 21 with a sack that weighed 16.3 pounds. Second place weighed in 16.1 pounds, so the bite has improved. Clint said they fished up the river and culled from a dozen keepers. They threw spinnerbaits, flukes and shallow-running crankbaits around any break in the current. The bite down the lake has also improved. “Last year we were catching them about halfway back in the creeks throwing crankbaits around boat docks and cypress trees,” Clint said. He likes the Bandit crankbait that runs four to six feet deep. “The water is real clear, and we have been throwing natural patterns,” he said.

Crappie: Good, said Rusty Parker. “It’s not excellent, but they are biting pretty good.” The fish are still in deep brush in the 12- to 18-foot range. Rusty likes to target lone trees near the river channel. “If I find a lone tree, I’ll go to it,” he said. “They will usually hold a few fish. There is one in about 18 feet of water in Collins Branch, and another one across the lake from Cedar Creek that usually holds fish.” Rusty said he will cast or slingshot a RAG-Fly jig past the tree, let it sink to the bottom, then reel it back slowly, trying to come as close to the tree trunk as he can. “The bites are subtle,” he said. “You have to be a line-watcher.”