Lake Seminole Fishing Report – July 2008

Seminole: Level: 0.8 feet below full pool. Temp: 85-87 degrees. Clarity: Slight stain on the main lake, clear on the banks where the hydrilla has filtered out the sediment.

Bass: Good. Mike Sloan, a guide out of Wingate’s Lunker Lodge said the the bite has been good but hit-or-miss. Topwater early and late on the grass lines in 8 to 12 feet of water has been good. “The evening bite has been better than the morning bite for topwater,” he said. Buzzbaits in white/chartreuse have been the go-to bait for the topwater bite, and frogs have been working well also. Mike suggested a Zoom Horny Toad, and he said a frog with a green back and an orange belly has been working best lately. “Something with a little orange in it has been working better,” he said. “I guess it’s because of all the redbelly bream.” The grass at Seminole is a little late this year, and Mike said some of it is still a foot or so from the surface. This opens up more water to topwater baits. Once the topwater bite dies in the mornings, it’s time to pick up a spinnerbait. Mike said to move away from the grass walls and to target isolated grass patches off the grass lines. “Bring it through the grass patch until it hangs up,” he said. “Then break it loose. That’s when they’ll hit it. Mike’s favorite spinnerbait is a 1/2-oz. tandem No. 4 willowleaf and No. 2 Colorado in chartreuse/white. Now that they’re in their summer pattern, you can also catch them on a Carolina rig or a Texas rig.

Crappie: Good. Mike said the speckled perch are still biting shallow on the grass, and that they can also be caught deep on the stump fields. On the grass lines, the fish will be in 8 to 12 feet of water, and they can be caught on minnows and also on chartreuse or black/chartreuse jigs with a slow retrieve. The stump-field fish will be in 22 to 25 feet, and minnows are a good bet. “You’ll catch them throwing a spinnerbait on the grass,” Mike said. “You know, when they take a 1/2-oz. spinnerbait, you can do pretty good if you come back with jigs.”

Bream: On fire. Mike said the bream are bedding everywhere. Boats have been pulling up to the docks with huge catches of hand-sized bream. “They’re absolutely everywhere,” Mike said. “They’re anywhere there’s a sandbar on the Flint River, and I’m sure they’re in the Chattahoochee, too. But I’m not as familiar with that side. Crickets seem to be the food of choice.”

Catfish: Slow. Mike is surprised that the catfish bite is so slow. He thinks it might be because they’re not moving the water much. Anglers have not been catching them on the channels like they usually do this time of year.