Lake Weiss Fishing Report January 2011

Weiss: Level: 4.3 feet below full pool. Temp: Low 40s. Clarity: Lightly stained.

Bass: Fair to slow. Guide Warren Barnes reports, “Both largemouths and spotted bass are scattered out on the deeper river ledges. The main baits I have been using to catch these fish are a 1/4- to 1/2-oz. Tackle Doctor finesse jigs worked along the edges of the river ledges in about 15 to 22 feet of water. I have also been catching these fish by slowing down and finessing a Jackall Flickshake or shaky-head rig on the bottom. The largemouths have been keying on wood structure in the river, while the spotted bass seem to be keying on harder bottoms. These bites have been extremely light, so a high-quality fluorocarbon such as the Japanese Toray high grade or the Sunline fluorocarbon is a must. In February, I look for these patterns to still be producing, but if we have any warm spells I would look for the crankbait and jerkbait bites to start picking up. Try baits like the Jackall Muscle Deep15+ crankbait, and on windy days try using a jerkbait like the Jackall Squirrel.”

Stripes: Good. This time of year trolling along the river channel ledges works well for good numbers for stripes. The forage base for Weiss stripes consists mostly of shad, so think smaller baits than you might use on other stripe lakes. Productive lures in January include crankbaits like Bomber’s Fat Free Fingerling, Model A or Fat Free Shad, white bucktail jigs tipped with white finesse worms, Rat-L-Traps and Sassy Shads threaded on 1/4-oz. jig heads. See page 64 for an article on this technique.