bslatton
Senior Member
I caught this one a couple years ago. It seemed to be sick or have some kind of disease. Had a really nasty looking spot on the other side of it.
I caught this one a couple years ago. It seemed to be sick or have some kind of disease. Had a really nasty looking spot on the other side of it.
yup!it wasn't always an electric only lake....it used to have a 10hp limit....and, you can still put a gasoline powered boat in there as long as you don't crank it....so, any and everybody can go there....
It didn't used to get near the pressure it does now....but, someone wanted his name in print, so they did an article on it in gon a few years back, and brother, that was all it took...
Plus, a couple of the jonboat trails hit it a few times a year....
I used to enjoy fishing down there when i didn't have a whole day to fish, but, now, i just avoid it...i went once this year and twice last year....and, i could tell a big difference..
I find it sorta ironic that gas motors aren't allowed, but, they have ski and wakeboard comeptitions down there...
In small systems, research has shown gizzards and carp will reduce reproduction. I tend to agree that this isn't the main cause of the reduction in quality and quantity of the bass in Acworth. That's why the title to my response was "Crappie." If you had any idea how many stunted crappie were in there, you would be astounded. I have pulled in net load after net load of them. What do they eat? Small fish of any specie. It's very obvious to me what the issue is. Recruitment of lmb is next to nothing. Has the lake's fish population been surveyed lately? It's obviously not properly managed.
i hate to tell you this....but, the little, tiny crappie have been there for years and years, too.....i used to take my kids down there to catch them....and, my kids are grown now, with kids of their own.....and, there are a lot of HUGE crappie in the lake, too....
so, maybe it's not as obvious as you think...
the DNR does electro-fishing surveys down there once in a while, too....but, from the way i've seen them do their shock studies, and what they've told me, they don't get anywhere NEAR an accurate representation of what's in the lake...
again....i'm more familiar with that lake than most people....that is where i learned to fish....and, i've seen it so low that i've launched my boat into the creek channel, and even been able to motor into it from Allatoona.....and, seen it 90% frozen over....which, by the way, didn't seem to hurt the fishing one iota the next year... or, for years after...
but, i do know the 2 things have have made a HUGE difference....
So with all your wisdom, do you have a solution besides stop everybody from fishing the lake because that isn't going to happen. Without removing unwanted predators, there's only one way I know of to replenish the missing bass.
I understand you've been fishing THAT lake almost as long as I've been alive, but I have been fishing almost as long as I've been alive. I have a degree in fisheries, and work with people who manage ponds for bass.
The poor fishing may be a climactic cycle and it will return like lots of systems. There's always ebbs and flows in fish populations and the quality of a fishery based on broad weather patterns.
well..i've fished it for 32 years, so i am somewhat familiar with it....
but, this is just a small sample of what i used to expect down there...even on half day trips....
but, you won't do that now..
For awhile my grandparents lived on Ragsdale road,in the big house with the 2 huge oak trees in the yard.
I've been fishing this lake since the 70's.
When I wasn't fishing it,I was running thru the woods around it hunting squirrels with a pellet gun.
And I work on the back side of it now.
My point being, I have seen all the changes take place around this lake.
I'm betting the most detrimental change is all the silt that came in with all the building.Plus all the fertilizer from the golf course.
Yeah I couldn't believe how much silt had washed in,dern carp bumping the bottom of my old jon boat..then, our paths have probably crossed several times.....i used to use the ramp on the south side most of the time..
you're correct....the upper end of the lake is probably at least 1 foot or more shallower than it used to be.....and, i think i mentioned it in another thread, but 30 years ago, you could cross the upper end with your trolling motor all the way down, even idle across with your outboard.....you sure can't do that now....
and, i'm sure that the runoff from the golf course isn't beneficial...but, more folks with big bucks play golf than fish....so, there you go...