Lake Eufaula Fishing Report – December 2010

Eufaula: Level: Full pool. Temp: Mid to high 60s. Clarity: Slight stain on the upper end; clear below the causeway.

Bass: Good. Stephen McCord said he’s tickled to be catching five fish a day right now for sacks that weigh 14 to 18 pounds. He’s sticking with two patterns, and he really hasn’t needed to try anything else. Early in the morning, the lipless crankbait bite has been hot and heavy on flats adjacent to creek channels, where the bass have moved in to feed. Stephen likes Bruin rods and a 1/2-oz. XCalibur XR50 in chrome blue when there’s sun to reflect, and he’ll fish sexy shad or ghost shad when it’s overcast. He’ll fish the bait around any stumps or brush on the flats he can find. Once he finds feeding fish with the crankbait, he’ll slow down with a big 10-inch worm in red-shad-green on a Carolina rig or on a Texas rig to penetrate the brush. He’ll also keep a Spook tied on because some bigger fish have been schooling sporadically on top. Once the sun gets up, Stephen will move out to the points and creek mouths to fish shallow blowdowns and brush with a spinnerbait or a buzzbait. The grass bite wasn’t doing much when he gave his report, but he said if the water gets up, fish will probably move into the grass. Then he’ll run a Chatterbait or spinnerbait along the grass or punch into it with an Edge tube in black/blue or green pumpkin depending on the clarity. A creature bait like a Brush Hog is also a good choice for the grass. Stephen will stick to these patterns until water temps drop into the 50s. When they do, he might try moving out to the first breaks to fish a Spro John Crews deep diver in natural shad, or he’ll try a chartreuse color called spring craw if it’s muddy. Stephen said he likes the bait because it runs straight even when it bounces off cover, and it gets down to about 15 feet on 10-lb. test.