TCG83

Oh man. Just got my jig confidence this year. Now I’m obsessed. I got a mega bass 7’5” Braillist and love it. I use a Lew’s 7.5:1 reel. But here’s the reel awesomeness. Sunline flippin fluorocarbon. It’s 18LB test and has alternating hi-vis chartreuse, and clear sections. Hi vis so you can see those faint bites, and clear sections to tie too. Love the setup so far. As far as jigs I love Geralds ballin out ball head jigs. Wow. Dead thread. Whoops

I have been faced with your exact situation on my highland reservoirs here in WEstern NC. I have seen whitetail shiners and blueback herring skipping all about. Balled up. Have thrown every baitfish imitator I know, and they won’t touch it sometimes. When this happens, I think crawfish. Look for hard structure of any kind and drag a jig past and see what happens. Skip them under your docks. I am convinced bass prefer crawfish to baitfish when they are active.

Agreed 100%!! I just gained confidence with the jig this year for this exact reason. I have come to observe that bass even prefer crawfish to blueback herring when the crawfish are active. Or at least that’s what it seems on Glenville. After rain they will hit jigs but won’t touch any baitfish imitators. I have done extensive research on the forage fish of these lakes as well as Glenville. Because everyone I asked said something different. I finally got with the NCDWL fisheries biologist for this district and have been pelting him with questions. In Glenville and the 4 on the east fork there are whitetail shiners from Tuck. Those must be the ones you are talking about that could take on a gold hue. Or are there other ones you have seen? thanks for your response!! Oh, and what is Hudd sir?

Thank you all so much for responding. Sorry it’s taken me so long to get back. I need to set up email alerts. Largemouth and smallmouth WRB! Yes sir Tnriver46, on the east fork of the tuck there are 4 lakes. Wolf Creek lake, Bear lake, Cedar cliff, and tannasee creek. They are hatchery supported for trout and some walleye have been stocked, but they have some good bass populations. I do have sonar. Hummingbird helix 7 side and down. Love that side imaging for finding structure. Since I originally posted this, jigs have been the bite. Been a lot of rain. And yes, water is very clear except right after rains.

Hello friends. I’m Aaron and new to the forum. Let me thank you all in advance for your time. I’m fishing a chain on the Tuckasegee river in Western NC. The particular impoundment I like to frequent has no shad or bluebacks. 183 acres. I love it for the lack of crowds. Just Bluegill, Crappie, Yellow Perch, and all the fry they make. And the stocked trout of course. And the craws. Recently I found a jig pattern after all the heavy rain that was on and popping. Bites galore all day. It seems to have turned off though. I wander how you guys would attack this. The lake is over 100’ deep and is very rocky. Lots of lay downs and minimal vegetation. A little grass in the main river mouth. My main question is, do Bass move up shallow in a shadless lake with no “bait balls” in the fall, or do they stay in the sporadic summer positioning? I need to stay graph disciplined more!!! Any thoughts you guys have on this are much appreciated!