Lake Seminole Fishing Report – March 2008

Seminole: Level: Full pool. Temp: 62-65 degrees. Clarity: Muddy.

Bass: Good. “The fish have been on the beds for a couple of weeks and the major move up will come on the next full moon,” said tournament angler Butch Tucker. “What’s been coming up in the last few weeks have been just some scattered early fish. If the cold fronts quit coming in, though, it will get pretty wild soon.” Right now, the early spawning fish can be caught on the beds, but targeting staging fish is also a good option. Butch said to fish grass points and ledges for fish holding in 10 to 20 feet of water near deeper water. Throw a deep-running crankbait like a DD22, a Mann’s 20+ or a Strike King Series 5 or 6 to grass points or ditches. Shad-colored baits are working, as the bass are keying on shad. Butch likes a lavender-shad DD22. A Carolina rig is also a good way to target these fish, and Butch will also throw a mojo-rigged fluke in watermelon. With the water muddy, find some clearer water in some of the backwater pockets on the Florida side, areas like Cypress Pond or the Fish Pond Drain. If you want to target the early bedding fish, try an 8-inch lizard Texas rigged on a 3/16-oz. lead. Pitch it to visible beds in sandy backwater sloughs, where the water is warmer. Some cruising fish can also be caught in these areas with a Speed Worm or by swimming a jig. In the next few weeks, following the major move onto the beds, it will be time to target the shallow-water sandbars for bedding fish, Butch said.

Crappie: Good. According to Jack Wingate’s report, the crappie are laying eggs, and people are bringing in good catches of crappie caught on minnows. Some of the fish are full of eggs, and some have already laid.

Bream: Jack’s report said the shellcrackers have been seen near the bedding sites. The cracker fishing should be good soon.