February 18, 2011
What a difference some stable weather can make. The past 7 days of fishing on Lake Amistad have been simply outstanding. Huge limits and big fish caught at Lake Amistad are being talked about by everyone in West Texas. I fished the Bud Light Team Trail event this past Saturday and weighed-in a 5 fish limit for 24 lbs and didn’t even get a check. Local anglers Raul Cordero (owner of “Far West Grill”) and Rafael Menchaca won the event with a five fish limit of 32.67 lbs. This week I can also report catches of 2 bass over 11 lbs. It seems as though the Amistad of the mid 2000’s has come back to say ‘Hello’. Lake water temps are steady rising to the mid and high 50’s and the lake level is steady at conservation pool (1117ft above sea level). The continued warming trend in the weather should have the fish feeding heavily in preparations for the beginning of the spawn in March.
Current Patterns -
Shallow: I am beginning to see some fish moving in this depth zone and have taken bass up to 6 lbs over the last few days in the shallows. Jerkbaits, rattlebaits and slowly worked plastics are having the best results. As the water continues to warm over the next couple weeks the activity will continue to increase and anglers will begin to see ‘cruisers’ in spawning areas.
Mid-Depth: This continues to be the most productive depth for numbers of fish and the larger pre-spawn females. I am presenting lures around rocky breaks that are pre-spawn staging areas in 15-25 feet with close access to shallow water being the biggest key to large concentrations of fish. I have had most of my success utilizing 1/2oz and 3/4oz Omega Football jigs. When grass or heavy brush is present I go to a large straight tail texas rigged worm. I have had limited success with deep diving crankbaits such as the Norman DD22 and Hotlips, but look for this bite to heat up as the water continues to warm into the high 50’s.
Deep: Fishing vertically around main lake and creek channel ledges in 30-50 feet continues to be productive. I am using a dropshot rig with a 4 inch Robo Worm or Optimum Wacky Shad to fish vertically over the ledges or dragging a Carolina rig with a 10 inch worm when the lake gets windy.
I hope everyone has an opportunity to get out on the lake and do some bass fishing over the next couple months. It’s getting good and you don’t want to miss it!
See you on the Lake,
Kurt
