LAY LAKE APRIL 2006

Date Fished: 4/25/2006
Water Temperature: 76
Water Clarity: 1 foot

Well, since I am not fishing this weekend and going to Neely Henry for a birthday party for the kids this weekend, I thought I would help all you guys out for your big tourney this weekend. Launched at Beeswax first thing this morning and decided to run up river to a few cuts before the islands where I had been catching some nice heads (scum frogs early, then swimming jigs, and flipping when the sun got up). That pattern has been holding all week on "dollar weed.” When you find it, pound it because there are plenty of big fish in there you just have to find what they want and where they are positioned. For some reason, they have not been biting well in the "alligator weeds" or "willow weeds." I thought they would be active early but wrong. I ran down to Cedar Creek around 9 am without a bite. I decided to head back up river (water up river has a better stain right now) and swim a jig in the dollar weeds again in Beeswax and up river again on the cuts and that was the ticket. The swimming jig bite did not turn on until about 11am, but once it started it was on for the rest of the afternoon. They wanted it burned and they were slamming it. Best colors were white and yellow. I missed one very nice fish flipping a black brush hog and it was a “toad”, it picked it up as soon as it hit the water, flashed, and spit it out before I could set up on it. I ending up catching about 15 fish (all Largemouths, except for one Coosa Red Eye). I did not fish for spots, but they were pulling water, so I image that the ledge bite was on also. All fish were caught in less than 3 feet of water. Best fish went 5.5lb and best five went about 19lbs. I do believe a sack of heads will win it and it will take over 20lbs, so I would swim a jig and flip all day if it were me.