Lanier Striper and Bass Report

Scout'nStripers

Senior Member
I've been doing a good bit of fishing this week, both stripers and bass. For the stripers, it's pretty short and sweet. I've been running out over deep water on the south end around mid day and it hasn't taken long to find a few fish. Once I find a few suspended fish on the sonar I drop the spoon and get it going up and down. I think the flash of the spoon on sunny days attracts more fish and pretty soon you have a whole school under the boat wondering what all the flashing is about. Then they'll all get worked up swimming up and down the water column trying to find the bait making all the flash and then they start hammering the spoon. That's pretty much the way it goes down right now. Find the stripers over deep water, drop the big spoon through the fish, reel up and repeat till one hammers it then hang on and enjoy the ride.

For the bass, it's been a little more complicated but you can catch a few nice ones if you have patience and fish the right areas. I started the week on the south end trying to find a good early morning bass pattern and after playing with the finicky suspended fish over my brush piles I started looking for shallow fish. I had pretty good luck with a craw on the shaky head for bigger fish but I probably missed more fish than I caught on the shaky head. I made my shaky heads jigs in the shop and I didn't use a wider gap hook which cost me some fish. Early in the week I was throwing the crankbait but not getting a whole bunch but on Friday my partner and I fished up on the north end of the lake so I hit my crankbait holes up there and it was absolutely ripe for crankbaits on shallow rocks. The fish were running threads up into the shallows and whacking them right on the bank very early in the morning. Several times we saw bass pushing bait in less than a foot of water so hitting them shallow with the cranks was the ticket. As the day progressed a lot of the fish were backing off the shallows but you could still hit a few cruising the rocks during the afternoon. Our biggest fish came in a couple feet of water around 1pm and we caught a few more nice fish after lunch on both days. I did the unthinkable and didn't clear the scuffed up flouro after I wrapped it around a dock cable. Two casts later I hooked a good one and the line broke right at the scuffed up area. It was a heart breaker but I probably won't make that mistake again.

Today we fished the Shriners bass tournament out of Little Hall and they had a great turn out of around 40+ boats to raise money for the Shriners Children's Hospital. I think we finished in 7th place with 11.88 and I think the winners had around 16. We just missed big fish by a couple ounces. Both yesterday and today just about all of our fish came off cranks fished very shallow. Here's a couple videos from yesterday and today and a couple pics from some afternoon striper spooning on Thursday.

 

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Worley

Senior Member
Fish

Jim those are fine fish my friend. I don't think the fish stand a chance when u around. Great job!
 

Scout'nStripers

Senior Member
Jim those are fine fish my friend. I don't think the fish stand a chance when u around. Great job!
Man, I try Worley. I'll bet I made at least 10,000+ casts over the last week trying to figure out these bass. It's a grind for sure but I ain't complaining my friend.:cool:
 

Scout'nStripers

Senior Member
Good stuff!
Thanks BB. We're looking forward to your upcoming tournament and I'm happy to see these fish getting shallow. It should make for a good tournament and some big sacks.
Great job. That spoon could be used as a rear view mirror.:rofl:
Thanks riprap. That spoon is one big heavy piece of metal. I can't remember having this much fun with stripers and artificials in recent years. The only thing that comes close is getting them in the spring on topwater.:cheers:
 
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33788

Senior Member
Thanks as always for sharing the report, pictures, and videos. I'm camping at Shady Grove Thursday - Sunday. Going to get in at least 1-2 days straight to figuring out that spoon bite. My last trip Labor Day was a bust could not find any schools of fishes. I hope this will be much better with a week day trip. My plans are to target mouths of creeks on the south end in 50-100ft. Will be burning lots of gas to idle if I'm unable to locate fishes.
 

Scout'nStripers

Senior Member
Thanks as always for sharing the report, pictures, and videos. I'm camping at Shady Grove Thursday - Sunday. Going to get in at least 1-2 days straight to figuring out that spoon bite. My last trip Labor Day was a bust could not find any schools of fishes. I hope this will be much better with a week day trip. My plans are to target mouths of creeks on the south end in 50-100ft. Will be burning lots of gas to idle if I'm unable to locate fishes.
To be perfectly honest, I haven't been looking for "schools" of stripers. Right now, if I find a few (3-5) on my screen at one time over deep water I'm dropping on them. All you need is just a few over deep water and once you get that spoon going up and down and spinning and flashing others will usually come in if they are anywhere near. My screen doesn't usually load up with fish till after I get the spoon working up and down.
 

StriperrHunterr

Senior Member
To be perfectly honest, I haven't been looking for "schools" of stripers. Right now, if I find a few (3-5) on my screen at one time over deep water I'm dropping on them. All you need is just a few over deep water and once you get that spoon going up and down and spinning and flashing others will usually come in if they are anywhere near. My screen doesn't usually load up with fish till after I get the spoon working up and down.

Yep. More than once on Saturday we didn't actually see anything on the graph until we hooked one up, and then the screen lit up.
 

33788

Senior Member
To be perfectly honest, I haven't been looking for "schools" of stripers. Right now, if I find a few (3-5) on my screen at one time over deep water I'm dropping on them. All you need is just a few over deep water and once you get that spoon going up and down and spinning and flashing others will usually come in if they are anywhere near. My screen doesn't usually load up with fish till after I get the spoon working up and down.

That's great we did see a few of those the last trip Sunday Labor Day weekend around 50-80+ ft but when we dropped nothing really happened besides the occasional getting stuck in the timber hehe. But these darn things are so heavy if it's stuck at the hook a little vertical jigging or line snap gets them undone. I'll definitely take your suggestions to heart. I need to get these kiddos on some drag pulling fishes. They're just not digging the crappie fishing like they use to when they were all under 10. I've been hyping them up for the past 2 weeks with your videos they're thirsty for some rod benders and drag pullers.

Yep. More than once on Saturday we didn't actually see anything on the graph until we hooked one up, and then the screen lit up.

Awesome details I'll be sure to drop as much as possible these few days I'm out. Plus my 2 older kids should not have a problem handling these bigger combos and if so lucky catch some bigger fishes.

From all you guys experience do you have more luck on the fall or on the reel up. Also do you reel all the way up then drop back or just reel past where you think the fishes are then drop again while under water? I'm using my a-rig setups which has 50# power pro braid hopefully that doesn't scare them.
 

Scout'nStripers

Senior Member
From all you guys experience do you have more luck on the fall or on the reel up. Also do you reel all the way up then drop back or just reel past where you think the fishes are then drop again while under water? I'm using my a-rig setups which has 50# power pro braid hopefully that doesn't scare them.
For me it's usually on the way up but sometimes my line will go slack on the drop and I know one has it and more than likely swimming up with it.
I like to pinch my line a little as the spoon is free falling down. I put just enough resistance on the line to keep the jig vertical so it get's down deep faster and I can watch it in the cone of my front graph. If I don't put resistance on the line the spoon will start fluttering down and not in a straight line. I like to try and keep the boat directly over the jig when it's dropping, that way I can watch it on the graph and if there are trees I can stop it just above the trees or go into a small opening in the trees. I also think a better presentation is vertical rather than at an angle.
 

StriperrHunterr

Senior Member
For me it's usually on the way up but sometimes my line will go slack on the drop and I know one has it and more than likely swimming up with it.
I like to pinch my line a little as the spoon is free falling down. I put just enough resistance on the line to keep the jig vertical so it get's down deep faster and I can watch it in the cone of my front graph. If I don't put resistance on the line the spoon will start fluttering down and not in a straight line. I like to try and keep the boat directly over the jig when it's dropping, that way I can watch it on the graph and if there are trees I can stop it just above the trees or go into a small opening in the trees. I also think a better presentation is vertical rather than at an angle.

This. I've not had one take it on the drop that I'm aware of yet.
 

33788

Senior Member
For me it's usually on the way up but sometimes my line will go slack on the drop and I know one has it and more than likely swimming up with it.
I like to pinch my line a little as the spoon is free falling down. I put just enough resistance on the line to keep the jig vertical so it get's down deep faster and I can watch it in the cone of my front graph. If I don't put resistance on the line the spoon will start fluttering down and not in a straight line. I like to try and keep the boat directly over the jig when it's dropping, that way I can watch it on the graph and if there are trees I can stop it just above the trees or go into a small opening in the trees. I also think a better presentation is vertical rather than at an angle.

That could explain why it was nearly impossible to see my spoons on the fall. They were fluttering out of the cone. I'd see them once they're on the bottom and on the way up but not going down. Little tricks of the trade thanks for sharing again. I have 8 Ben Parker spoons to try not and break off in the timber. None of them has been broken in yet this trip I vow to make a difference hehe
 

chw

Member
I did have several hits on the way down the last two times out last week, It feels like a sledge hammer hitting the big spoon, so hold that pole tight on the way down too.
 

Scout'nStripers

Senior Member
Great post Jim!
Congrats on the 7th place finish in the tourney!
Hey Rick, thanks! I don't think I've ever been more excited about a 7th place finish in anything, but as you well know it's a process. I just have to work a little harder.
 
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Rabun

Senior Member
Great stuff Scoutin! I've got to try that spoon'in. Will be transitioning my boat back to home and start fishing Lanier again. It's been a while since I've been on that pond.

Thanks for your reports, pics and videos! Always enjoy them!
 

33788

Senior Member
Thanks all for the feedback. I got out camping last Thursday - Sunday as planned but didn't plan for the weather to be so bad. Basically I didn't bother fishing with so much rain and wind until Sunday afternoon. It rained so bad Thursday and Friday I had to run out to get an extra tarp for our tents. Then from my camp site view the wind was howling I didn't bother putting the boat with kids into the drink until Sunday. When we did get out Sunday with the wind and dark clouds the Parker bite was non existing. Spent 3 hours around 6 Mile and Bald Ridge without a nibble.

However I did get on the green fish for 2 hours straight. Probably picked up 12+ of them spots before it got dark and called it a trip. I was fishing secondary points and shoals just deep cranking a Lucky Craft D20 in Blue/Chart. I was sitting in 30 ft. making long casts to shore and cranking back they were biting in the 10-15 ft range. Each area I picked up 1-3 fishes no magnums but just a bunch of 1-3+ # spots.
 

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