Lake Seminole Fishing Report April 2018

Seminole: Level: 0.4 low. Temp: Spring Creek and Fish Pond Drain are clear and 60-64 degrees. The Flint and Chattahoochee rivers are stained and 60-65 degrees. Some shallow back ponds are gin clear with 65-75 degree water.

Bass: Tournament angler Matt Baty reports, “Fair. The bass are in all three stages of the spawn right now with quite a few fish already spawned out. There are empty beds and bass fry all over the lake, but there’s still plenty of bass that have yet to spawn, so the bite is in between and can be tough on certain days. Fishing shallow around spawning areas is the best consistent pattern for catching fish. If you’re in the backwaters, throw a topwater hollow-body frog around visible cover such as hydrilla and peanut grass. Also keep your eyes open for fish busting shad. You can catch these on an umbrella rig with 3.5-inch Big Bite Baits in ss shad. Out in the main lake, the deal is sand. You need to either be on the sand or on the edge of it. If you’re on the edge of it, you can either fish a bladed jig or a lipless crankbait. For the bladed jig, check out Buddha Bait Company’s new Head Banger Swagger Jig. This bait is awesome as the blade bangs the head, making an awesome sound. Pair this with a 4-inch Big Bite Baits Cane Thumper. Green pumpkin is the best color for both clear and stained water. For the lipless, use a Jenko Rip Knocker 75 in citrus shad. Both the jig and the lipless can be thrown on 16-lb. Sunline FC Sniper, a Lews Custom Pro and a 7-3 medium/heavy moderate-action Buddha Stick. As the weather continues to warm, look for more fish to become postspawn and start schooling back up on deeper grass and shellbeds. Then, it’s time to use the Lowrance Down and StructureScan to find the schools of bass.”

Misc: Guide Aaron Crews reports, “There are a few bass that will bed into April. From Oscar Baily, there are some bedding crappie in 2 to 7 feet of water. Minnows are taking crappie. The panfish are moving in shallow and should be bedding in April and May. Trotlines and bush hooks are catching catfish. Hybrids are being caught, according to Westside Bait and Tackle. Chain pickerel are hitting white spinnerbaits and silver spoons with white trailers. In the future, I believe the bass will start hitting buzzbaits, frogs and toads.”