Lake Chatuge Fishing Report – June 2007

Chatuge: Level: Down 4.9 feet below full pool. Temp: Mid 70s. Clarity: Clear.

Bass: In June, the bass at Chatuge are still fairly shallow, said John Hembree. “I’d probably be throwing an unweighted fluke around boat docks and any wood structure — blowdowns or brushpiles. If you are fishing brush, the fish will be in the brushpiles 10 or 12 feet deep. When the water temperature rises into the mid 80s, the fish will move off into brush in the 12- to 15-foot range, and then by July and August they will be in brush in the 20- to 25-foot range.” John said he would likely have a spinnerbait tied on in June, and he would be hitting any wood cover back in the pockets. He said he fishes either a 3/8- or 1/2-oz. spinnerbait in chartreuse/white or a solid white skirt with white blades. “I usually use a 3/8-oz. spinnerbait, but if I am fishing the deep end of a blowdown that might reach out over 15 feet of water I will use a 1/2-oz.” he said. The fallback for Chatuge is worm fishing. John prefers a Zoom Finesse worm in green pumpkin or watermelon seed worked through brushpiles. For nighttime fishing he uses a spinnerbait almost exclusively, and targets any cover around dock lights or streetlights shining on the water.