September 30, 2010
Lake Amistad bass fishing continues to be productive for some and tough for others. Fall is in the air this week and many of the bass should be heading to the bank as I write this report. The water is still about 2 feet above conservation pool and the water temps are in the high 70’s at dawn and rise to the low 80’s in the afternoon. The most productive time to go fishing this week continues to be in the early morning and late afternoon. I was on the lake both days this past weekend and there were quite a few club tournaments in town that reported fishing to be fair. My team tournament partner Olin Jensen and I were fortunate to come away with a win at the Angler’s Lodge Summer Series Championship this past Saturday at Diablo East. We weighed in a 3 fish limit for 13.92 lbs to narrowly surpass second place finishers Britten and Rusty Gambrel by a less than a pound.
Current Patterns -
Shallow: This is where you want to fish to catch numbers. The duck weed grass continues to be the key to productivity in the shallow water. I have been fishing lots of plastics such as El Grande Hatch-Match sticks and 6 inch finesse worms. Working plastic baits slowly entices the most strikes. The frog bite continues to produce sporadically and success comes primarily in very shallow water, 1-3 feet. This past week we have seen an increase in fish chasing spinnerbait lures in shallow waters as well. I have found ½ oz spinnerbaits with tandem willow leaf blades have been generating the most violent strikes.
Mid-Depth: The bigger fish seems to be in the 15-25 foot zone and working baits like Power Tackle’s new Lateral Shad have been busting some big fish in the hydrilla. I have been catching quality fish texas rigging straight tail worms over the hydrilla that is adjacent to creek channels as well. If you are able to locate some thick hydrilla in this depth zone you may try to punch small lures with heavy 1oz weights to catch the fish relating to the bottom of the water column in the hydrilla. Crankbaits will continue to produce in the 15-20 foot depths when baitfish are present.
Deep: Carolina rigging in 30-40 foot has also produced solid bass this past week. Position your boat around the channel ledges and let the wind drift your bait slowly around the rock bottom and hang on tight.
See you on the Lake,
Kurt
