Lake Burton Fishing Reports – March 2021

Burton: Level: 4 feet below full pool. Temp: 44 degrees. Clarity: Slight stain.

Bass: Capt. Wes Carlton reports, “The bass bite has been strong the last few days. There seems to be plenty of bluebacks this year for the fish. We have been having our best luck fishing before the fronts or a couple of days after. Midway back in the creeks in secondary pockets seem to be the ticket. Bream-colored crankbaits and pumpkin-seed Creepy Crawlers have been working best. We have caught both largemouth and spotted bass using these techniques. Typically once you’ve found a fish, there are several more close by. This pattern should continue for the next few weeks as we head toward March.” 

Trout: Capt. Wes Carlton reports, “The trout bite has gotten better the last couple of days. We have caught a few fish sight casting to surfacing fish mid-lake. The fish seem to be feeding on debris from the recent rains floating down the lake. This is a good time to throw a small spoon like a Kastmaster and retrieve quickly. We have also caught some fish in the backs of the creeks  Look for the brown trout bite to pick up quickly as we head into early spring.”

Walleye: Capt. Wes Carlton reports, “The walleye bite has been a little tough this year with all the flooding rains we’ve had. These fish live most of their lives close to the bottom, only coming up to eat on passing bait schools. Late February and early March is spawning time for walleye. This gives anglers the opportunity to catch these fish very shallow. The key to catching walleye this time of year is intersecting the fish on their way to spawn or coming back from spawning. Try setting up and fishing creek and river channels. These are the best locations to target these fish. Casting and trolling Rapalas are good techniques for catching these fish. I normally fish an 8- to 18-foot bottom this time of year. Look for this pattern to continue for the next several weeks.”