Try these tips for making winter trips successful.
It was the middle of January, and most anglers had put away their fishing gear and were stuck watching outdoor shows on TV, tinkering in the basement or going shopping with the wife.
On the other hand, guide Drew Montgomery of Denver had already landed a respectable 12-pound sack of bass and was re-positioning his boat for another cast toward a private boat ramp. It was his 15th stop of the day, and after a couple of cranks, the rod double over as a 4-pound bass grabbed hold.
With the air temperature hovering in the 40s and water temperature in the low 50s, the bite action was on crankbaits in shallow water. Surprisingly, the bite was no fluke, but the kind of “offseason” fishing that anglers keyed into Lake Norman often experience.
It’s no secret that Norman has a “hot-hole bite” associated with the two power-plant discharges.
Lake water is pulled in to cool the turbines or reactors, significantly warmed in the process, then returned to the lake, where it attracts baitfish and provides a comfortable environment for gamefish to remain active and feed. If there’s one place to find anglers when the mercury drops, it’s those discharge channels, where fishing can be very good for smaller largemouth and spotted bass.
The area showcases a topwater bite as bass slash and tear into schools of baitfish, and Montgomery suggests using small topwater lure such as a Pop-R or 3-inch floating Rapala for breaking fish. He also suggests staying in one place instead of chasing the breaking fish.
“Position the boat in the path of the approaching fish, bumping the trolling motor to stay in the zone,” he said. “Use light lines and long casts to keep from putting the fish down.”
The bite is not always a gimme and can be erratic or unpredictable. Montgomery said that the timing of warm-water discharge can be just as important, or more important, than the difference in temperature between the discharge and surrounding areas
Shane Lehew, a tournament fisherman from Charlotte, hits the area early and late to pick up a quick limit or finish off a limit. He suggests the topwater strategy as well if the fish are up, but relies on finesse baits on drop-shot rigs as well.
“Most of the fish are little, and plenty of tournaments have been lost here as anglers are reluctant to leave biting fish or have put the whole day’s hope of a big weight into the hot-hole,” he said.
If you’re looking for lunkers, this pattern is not going to hold up, but if you’re looking for numbers, aggressive strikes or just fun and quality winter sunshine, the hot holes are just the ticket.
While fishing the hot holes is a primary option, many fishermen fail to recognize other opportunities the warm-water discharges create. Depending on the wind direction, warm water disperses into the main lake, then into smaller creeks and coves.
Montgomery and Lehew both like Ramsey Creek on the lower end and McCrary Creek at mid-lake; the mouths of those creeks are across the main channel from the discharges.
Wind creates current, and the warm water is going to follow the path of least resistance, allowing fishermen to track changes in the water temperature upstream, downstream or across the lake from the discharges.
“A few degrees’ differences can make one creek very good versus another that is slightly cooler,” said Montgomery, who knows that changes in weather patterns can change the location of the warmer water in a short period of time. “Keep moving into creeks, looking for any bait and keep moving until you find fish. Slow it down when you do.”
The warmer water and bait is a sign that you’re in the right place. Also, seeing topwater action from breaking fish or birds diving at the surface is a good sign. You won’t get as many bites as you will in the discharge channels, but the fish will generally be larger.
The bite in these creeks can be real good on shallow crankbaits around rock, and some docks will indeed hold fish that respond to a jig.
“Shallow-running crankbaits with tight-wobbles are best triggering bass in cold-water,” Montgomery said. “Few anglers get onto this bite and usually will fish deep all day, missing some great chances at a big fish.
“The dock bite is always popular, but some days they just do not bite well on docks. If the dock bite is not happening, anglers cannot keep pounding docks — a common fault.”
Montgomery said to pay close attention to the bites you get.
“Look for very specific characteristics when you do get a hit in these warmer creeks, and go from there,” he said. “You must be intuitive to recognize exact patterns.”
With each hit, think where the boat was positioned in relation to the cover, what your retrieve speed was and where the fish was positioned in relation the cover. Once you get a few bites, you just keep hitting similar areas. Any angler who has never really gotten into a precise pattern when fishing is going to be shocked at how precise cold-water fishing can be.
The vast majority of fishermen, according to Montgomery, are going to miss out on the pattern that produces the biggest catches. The key is finding areas where the water temperature is between 49 and 52 degrees.
“Big bass are homebodies and are not going to migrate around the lake. You may only get five bites the whole day, but when you do, it’s going to be quality fish for Norman,” said Montgomery, who knows he has to take advantage of every bite he gets.
“With limited opportunities, you have to get the fish in the boat,” he said. “Once you get one bite, the biggest piece of the puzzle is in place.”
Montgomery fishes very specific types of banks with crankbaits when he finds the right kind of water. His cold-water plan for lunkers with water in the low 50s goes like this:
“If the bite is real tough, a lot of work goes into figure out the situation/timing,” he said. “Bear down with a shallow crankbait on very specific types of clay banks early and plan on moving around a great deal — which stinks in 20-degree weather, but fish are extremely scattered.
“When the crankbait bite has been weak, I’ve been able to manage a bite or two on a jig in the right situation. During the warmest part of the day, I’ll be mixing it up with a crankbait and jig.”
Banks with clay or natural rock hold and radiate heat, attracting bass like campers around a campfire. Rock can be natural, rip-rap, bridge pilings or old boat ramps. Crankbaits must deflect off the rocks to produce reaction bites.
“Having 10 or 20 spots like this is like knowing where the Easter eggs are before the hunt begins,” said Montgomery, who looks upstream from the NC 150 bridge or in Davidson or Gambles creeks for those kinds of places.
Lehew also fishes upriver because, “the sloping rocky banks allow bass to change depth easily in cold water. Banks are steeper up north and offer more specific fish-holding areas.
“Bass upriver will hold behind any current break or in eddies, similar to a trout using little energy to eat passing prey,” he said.
Slightly deeper-running crankbaits may be needed on these steeper banks to get lures deflecting off the rocks.
“Stained or darker water is okay upriver, but muddy and cold is futile,” he said. “After a lot of rain, those same clay banks will muddy upper sections quickly, and anglers will need to find cleaner water down the lake.
Montgomery likes to go upriver when the lake level is fluctuating, but he avoids muddy water at all costs.
“The effects of fluctuating water is lessened above Stumpy Creek,” he said.
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