Lake Jackson Fishing Report – September 2007

Jackson: Level: 2.8 feet below full pool. Temp: 90-92 degrees. Clarity: The lake is mostly clear.

Bass: Tough. It took 7.72 pounds to win a recent Tuesday night Berry’s tournament. Aaron Batson and his partner finished second; they had 7.21 pounds. “The winners also had big fish at 1.92 pounds; it was tough to say the least,” said Aaron. “We have been fishing deep drops and ledges in 25 to 30 foot of water working a big, 1/2- or 3/4-oz. jig from Net Boy Baits in the black/blue color tipped with a green-pumpkin chunk. I really don’t think color matters this deep though. We haven’t found a strong pattern on any one thing, but rock and brush are two fairly consistent areas to key on. I have seen some small schoolers way down the lake near the dam, but they’re mostly 12-inch spots.” For schoolers, throw Pop-Rs or Zara Spook Puppys. Chrome seems to be working. “The late-night bite (midnight or later) is the best bet,” said Aaron. “Bigger fish will pull shallow and eat a big worm like a junebug-colored Ol Monster or a 1/4-oz Net Boy Bait jig tipped with a black Zoom chunk. Late in September the topwater bite should get hot. Work deep seawalls with buzzbaits and Sammys near the dam for some magnum spots.” Eric Perkins said September can really turn some fish on if we get some cooler evenings and nights. “It makes the bait go shallow, and the fish will follow,” said Eric. “You can’t go wrong with a white spinnerbait. I like either a Stanley or a War Eagle with nickel willowleaf blades and a variety of shallow- to medium-diving crankbaits. I like Lucky Craft’s Flat CB Series in chartreuse-shad. I also like a Norman Deep Little N in lavender shad and the old faithful chrome/blue Rat-L-Trap in a 1/4-oz. If we get the cooler weather, topwater will fire back up, and I target deeper main-lake pockets with docks and expect the fish to be halfway back. If the wind blows straight in the back of these pockets, you can fan cast the center of these pockets and catch a mixture of largemouth, spots and hybrids feeding on bait.”