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DEL.ICIO.USTrout fishing for bass
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
It looked like trout water. Fast-moving, full of rocks and rather cool water and with wader-wearing anglers stepping through it all to get to the fish.
But a trip last week with Chattahoochee River guide Rob Smith (River Through Atlanta Guide Service) was for black bass. The shoal bass, the river cousin of Georgia’s favorite freshwater species, the largemouth bass, is abundant in the Hooch. And with some typical bass lures like spinnerbaits and flukes, the shoalies are pretty easy to catch. Shoalies on the fly can be very productive, too.
The shoalie population from Morgan Falls past U.S. 41 is at an all-time high.
That’s thanks to a five-year stocking program by the state Wildlife Resources Division that aimed to bolster sportfishing in a stretch of river that has become too warm because of development for trout to survive through the summer. There’s still trout - Smith caught a nice brown on a fluke in the Cochran Shoals area on the recent trip - but most of those are fish stocked for the delayed-harvest portion of the river.
The warmer temperatures suit the shoalies, which are common in bigger numbers and sizes in the Flint River in middle and south Georgia.
“I’ve been fishing down here since 1970,” Smith said. “We used to catch them every now and then. We thought they were smallmouths. Now, you can go out there and target them.”
State fisheries biologist Chris Martin says 211,000 fingerling shoal bass were stocked in the river in a five-year program that ended in 2007, and indications are that they are doing well, with fish in the 2-to-3-pound range showing up in electrofishing samplings.
“They’re pretty spread out,” Martin said. “From Cochran Shoals to Thornton Shoals to below Highway 41. And they go further than that.”
The next step is seeing whether the shoal bass is able to reproduce and sustain the population. Martin said samplings this summer will look for fry shoal bass, proof that they’re able to spawn.
On the recent trip, Smith targeted the deeper holes in the Cochran Shoals, catching six or seven bass. At one point, he was getting a strike on almost every cast.
Working the lures aren’t much different than using them on a lake or pond. The big difference is accounting for the river current. But a spinnerbait ripped through the current still drew several strikes on the recent trip.
The brown trout hit the fluke while Smith was casting his way back to the shoreline.
“It seems that every time I go bass fishing, I catch a trout on a bass lure,” said Smith, who also works at the Fish Hawk fly shop in Buckhead. “I want to stay and fish.”
Comments
By Tom Branch Jr
May 14, 2008 5:52 PM | Link to this
A friend of mine has been trying to get me on the river for bass for a few years. Just the other day he sent me this link http://georgiariverfishing.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=6676 I think it is time for a river fishing show by someone, hey O’Neill you want to go?
By Mike
May 16, 2008 1:57 PM | Link to this
Scott,
What kind of rod/reel set ups were you guys using for the shoal bass spin or baitcast? Were you wading, shore, or boat fishing? Where did you put in for Cochran Shoals (Columns Drive or Interstate Parkway)? I’d like to go out this weekend.
Thanks, Mike
By trey
May 17, 2008 1:39 AM | Link to this
Great read, I might just have to try catching some of these shoal bass this summer!
By Nauti Dawg
May 17, 2008 11:11 AM | Link to this
Years ago I was fishing below the Roswell Rd. Bridge out of my jon boat for trout with no success. Thankfully I had a bass rod rigged with a pumkinseed crawfish texas style and cast below one of the pylons and picked up three 2.5 lbs shoal bass. Good fighters they are!!!Lots of fun. Thanks for the heads up. Ask rob about the 44 lbs. striper he nailed in the hooche north of Lake Lanier. Great story if he tells all.
By City Slicker
May 17, 2008 4:57 PM | Link to this
Wow, look at all those reponses!! Where are all the rednecks? What say ye about fishin’?
By SC Boy in GA
May 19, 2008 12:18 PM | Link to this
I found some information on shoal bass fishing in the Georgia Sportsman magazine. The article also said to contact the Fly Box in Kennesaw. One question, over the years I have stayed away from the river because of the reports of bad water quality. Has this improved and is the river safe to wade in and keep some of the fish that swim there? With gas cost going up daily, I am looking for fishing places closer to home, but not at the risk of my health and safety.
By Scott Bernarde
May 19, 2008 3:38 PM | Link to this
Mike,
We used spinning gear. I had 8-lb tests spooled. Was able to fish either lure pretty well. Spinnerbait I used was 3/8th ounce. There’s plenty of room to use a baitcaster out around the shoals. I’m just more comfortable with a spinning rod and reel in this circumstance.
Wading is the way to go.
By Mike
May 22, 2008 10:39 AM | Link to this
Scott,
Please forgive my persistence on this subject, but I’m new to wading & fishing on the Hooch. Where specifically should I go to wade to catch Shoal Bass? Cochran Shoals is very large between Columns Dr & Interstate N parkway. Which lot should I park? Is it necessary to hike? Thanks for your help.
Mike