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--The arctic blasts we’ve had over the past month or so have really made fishing on Sam tough. Water temps are running low to mid 50’s and most of the lake is stained with muddy, cold runoff.
I’ve been having the best luck fishing deeper water, 18-30 feet, on ledges, points and brushtops. For areas with a lot of cover, Carolina rigs and drops shots are the best choice. Just about any soft plastic bait will work, Lizards, French Fries and Trick worms are all working well. Best colors have been watermelon/chartreuse and Black Blue. Found a good school of bass on a long sloping point with very little cover but lots of bait. Went Old School and broke out a half ounce hammered Cotton Cordell spoon and worked em over pretty good. Not a lot of size, mostly 12-15 inch fish but there were a few 3 pounders mixed in as well.
As the water warms up or if you just like to chunk and wind, the lipless crank is still working well. You will need to cover a lot of water, but when you find em they’re usually stacked up. Everyone has they’re favorite bait. Rattletraps, Cordell Spots, Lucky Crafts, Yozuris, and Sebilles are just a few that will get the job done. They all have a little bit different sound and wobble. One may work better one day and another next. Colors are just as varied. Shades of red and orange are always a good start, but I like the bleeding shiner and natural colors just as well, if not better.
One more bit of advice. Don’t overlook all the new soft swimbaits on the market. The craze hit on lakes down south and out west where huge baits were the norm. Obviously we don’t have the big gizzard shad, tilapia and rainbow trout that these mega baits mimic. But the manufacturers are listening to requests from fisherman wanting the versatility of a soft weedless swimbait, without the monster size. I had a great fall and have already started using the newer 3 and 4 inch sizes. Match em with a quarter ounce weighted swimbait hook in 3/0 or 4/0 and get to work. You can swim them over, around, and through a grass bed or timber line without getting hung up. Vary your retrieve and stick to colors that work for you in traditional cranks. Chartreuse/blue, blue/green/glimmer, sexy shad, and bream patterns all work well.
I’m booking up fast for summer crappie trips. The pontoon trips are becoming very popular with families, corporate and church groups as well as just a group of friends looking to spend a morning on the lake catching slabs. If you wanna book a trip, or just talk fishing, give me a call at 409-379-3474 Set the Hook Hard
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