I'm gong to Pickwick to practice for our big get together tomorrow and Saturday.  I bought the topo map but I wondered if you good folks have any suggestions about where to start and what baits to use.

I plan on getting one of the 16' 9.9 hp rental boats but they may not have one.  Otherwise, I'll just be in my float, starting from the State Park landing.

My plan is to find drop offs and rocks and run deeper diving crankbaits and if that doesn't get em going, go to a carolina rig worm.  After that then finesse worms from the bank to the boat.  I am thinking surface baits will not be so good except for early or late, when I most likely will not have the boat.

This may need to be posted on a different section but regardless, any help you folks can provide will certainly be appreciated.

Hey, I might catch my first smallie!

You will be very limited, but there are lots of fish

in the marina cove, out to the main lake. Then move

towards the dam where you will notice a significant

hump and transition from shallow to deep. Fish just

to the point where you can see the swimming beach.

Don't waste your time around the beach.

Fish back towards the marina and on deeper into the

main cove. Spend some time just inside the opening

near the first docks. There is a hump across the bay

that always holds fish, but gets fished to death!

My next suggestion is to drive over to the ramp next to

the Shell station and fish that cove. It's very productive,

but it is so convenient, it too gets fished to death.

Good luck!

8-)

Thanks, RW.  That's almost exactly what I did.  I spoke to Bob, the harbor master and he told me to fish the marina then go left to the rip/rap.  

I camped out over in the Bunton primitive sites, which are on the water.  About 2pm on Friday, I put my float in and started finesse fishing worms in the hydrillia near the boat ramp.  Bang!  My new PB LMB!  At 21 inches, the calculator goes 5.26.  I have attached the photo of that one.

Today (Saturday) I got the 14' 9.9 jon boat from the marina and just went to the end of the docks and around to the right.  I picked up a 14" LMB on a silver lipless and then noticed fish tearing up the surface for shad.  

I cast a topwater plug, silver and gold, and caught another nice LMB.  After a bit of a slow spell, I was still casting that topwater near the opening of the marina into the cove and an aggressive fish hit the plug, missed it and I kept it moving, and he hit it again, hard.  I set the hook with the 8# test on a medium lite 6'6" St. Croix.  What a fight I had going!  Man, I figured I had an eight pound LMB.  When I got him to the surface, it was a Small Mouth Bass!  What a beauty!  18 inches long and perfect body in every way.

This was my very first Smallie and what a nice one to start a trend.  Anyway, Pickwich was GREAT fun.  I can't wait until May to go back.