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West Point Lake Fishing Report December 2015

GON Staff | November 25, 2015

West Point: Level: 1.6 feet below full pool. Temp: Low 60s. Clarity: Some stain in the main river, clearer in the creeks.

Bass: Fair. Guide Keith Hudson reports, “So far this fall, we’ve had not much cool weather and much higher than normal water. The conditions have kept most of the bass shallow. Expect the largemouth bite to continue to be good around any shallow wood or brush or around baitfish schools. Shallow-water baits such as ChatterBaits, square-bill crankbaits, and topwater baits such as Zara Spooks and Pop Rs should continue to work. Spinnerbaits and jig ’n pigs are also producing some bass around wood. Some largemouth are even showing up on the south end of the lake in the creeks. One of the main keys to this type of shallow fishing is to look for the schools of shad. A ditch or creek run helps to hold the shad in an area. If the colder weather finally moves in, expect more bass, especially spotted bass, to stack up on structure such as humps, ledges, roadbeds and brushpiles in 15 to 20 feet of water. Drop-shot worms, jigging spoons or a green-pumpkin 1/2-oz. football-head jig are good choices for a mixed bag of spots and largemouth that are deeper. For specifically targeting spotted bass, try a Tommy Head with a Zoom Shakey Head worm around rip-rap, brushpiles or rocky banks with blowdowns. Another good spot technique this time of year is drop-shotting directly in brushpiles in deeper water.”

Linesides: Excellent. Keith Hudson reports, “Downlining with shad or bass shiners is very effective as the water cools. Bigger fish suspend under the smaller schoolies in the 15- to 25-foot range and can be caught using the live bait. The mouths of Wehadkee and Maple creeks and in the main river channel near the dam have all been producing some fish. Expect fish to show up back up the lake as the water clears. Target drop-offs near the channel or the top of humps. Trolling with mid-depth crankbaits, Alabama Rigs, bucktail jigs and vertical jigging chrome Challenger spoons have all been producing in these same areas. A few stripers mixed with hybrids and white bass continue to school on top. Expect the topwater fishing to be the best very early and very late or on overcast days. The schooling fish are mostly less than 3 pounds or so, but there is an occasional big one mixed in. Gulls and loons should start to show up soon to help pinpoint them, as well. I expect the size to continue to improve as the water continues to cool down.”

Crappie: Fair. Keith reports, “Blowdown trees in 5 to 10 feet of water are holding some crappie at West Point right now. Concentrate on trees that are close to the old creek or river channel. Some crappie are being caught in Wehadkee and Yellow Jacket creeks. A minnow fished under a float will work at times, or you can try pitching small tube jigs. Drop-shotting minnows over or near deeper brush will also produce results. Trolling for crappie usually picks up some during December.”

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