I'm doing a tournament this weekend and the projection for the current is 140,000 CFS. I have no clue how to fish this. Anyone got some tips on what to look for or what to try? Thanks. 

Main points.  Jigs, Rage Hawg T-rigged & Carolina rigged.

 

Points and setbacks, Jig and Lobster, Swimbait, C-Rigged Rooster. Find rocky points and fish the downstream side casting up. Grass will hold fish as well, but it's touchy with that much water moving. 

Points and setbacks, Jig and Lobster, Swimbait, C-Rigged Rooster. Find rocky points and fish the downstream side casting up. Grass will hold fish as well, but it's touchy with that much water moving. 

 

Edit:  Approach it like fishing a river, not like a lake- if that makes sense. There's good weeds and bad weeds, if you find fish reliably holding in one kind anywhere on the lake, you will find them in the same stuff all the way around. 

Thanks for the tips guys. 

Alaska, this month's issue of Bass Times has a great article on Swift Water Bass fishing.

 

If you do not subscribe to Bass Times you may want to try to find the article on the Internet.

 

The author is a Mark Hicks.

 

Basics of fishing fast water is discussed and the article is a great reference.

 

Good luck in your tournament.

Thanks Sam. I'll let y'all know how it goes. 

On 5/8/2017 at 2:55 PM, Hooligan said:

 

Edit:  Approach it like fishing a river, not like a lake- if that makes sense. There's good weeds and bad weeds, if you find fish reliably holding in one kind anywhere on the lake, you will find them in the same stuff all the way around. 

^^^^This. I've never fished Dardanelle but if they are pulling a lot of water out that is how it is gonna fish. My advice is similar to others. Fish the back side of rocky points. Also anything in the water can be a "current break". Including stumps and logs. 

Haven't fished Dardenelle this spring, but, I would expect it to be similar to Arkansas river here in the Little Rock pool, which i fish a couple times a week. I've been catching them way off the main current (like 4 or 5 miles up a back water) in shallow weeds/pads. My best baits have been swim jig in blue gill, swim jig in white, and a white buzz bait. Catching them around spawning bream and some fry gaurding. Havent really seen the shad spawn I would expect but the white swim jig is still working. If i were going, I'd start looking up the Illinois Bayou in the shallow grass, there are also some strip pits up there that will have cleaner water in case everything else is chocolate milk.