Wednesday, March 07, 2012
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Photo: FLW Jason Christie won at Hartwell last year by fishing in the bushes, but those bushes are on dry land right now. |
By John Johnson
Senior Editor
The FLW Tour is at Lake Hartwell for the second time in 50 weeks, but the gigantic, serpentine South Carolina impoundment is a much different fishery right now than it was a year ago.
Jason Christie flipped willow bushes en route to victory here in 2011. But due to a relatively dry winter, the water level is about 6 feet lower this time around and, as Andy Morgan put it, "the only thing guys are doing in those bushes is rabbit hunting."
The lake will therefore likely fish more similarly to how it did in February 2008, when Alton Jones won the Bassmaster Classic by plying ditches with a spoon and a jig. He pulled timber-oriented, pre-spawn fish from as deep as 35 feet.
Lest we forget, though, the Alabama Rig is in play this time around. The umbrella-style contraption can be set up to get real deep, real fast, and you can bet that just about every angler in the field experimented with one during practice.
Very few of Hartwell's bass have begun the spawning ritual, but reports from the field indicate that some are getting ready to. If the pre-spawn stage were broken down into sub-stages, there'd be fish in all of them, which puts them in every type of water (deep or shallow, clear or muddy, etc.) at the moment. Catching a limit won't be a problem for most – whether they're throwing the A-Rig or not – but they'll toss back a lot of puny fish for every 3-pounder they put in the livewell.
Before getting much further into the bite, here's the lowdown on the lake itself.
BassFan Lake Profile
> Lake Name: Lake Hartwell
> Type of Water: Lowland reservoir
> Surface Acres (full pool): 56,000
> Primary structure/cover: Standing timber, points, humps, creek channels, brushpiles, docks
> Primary forage: Shad, blueback herring, crawfish, bream
> Average depth: 45.6 feet at full pool
> Species: Largemouths, spotted bass
> Minimum length: 12 inches
> Reputation: An expansive, quality fishery with excellent average size, but unpredictable from spring through summer, since fish move a lot day-to-day in relation to blueback herring. Contains some bruiser spotted bass.
> Weather: A mixture of sun, clouds and maybe some thunderstorms. A big temperature dip is forecast for the weekend.
> Water temp: Mostly in the 50s
> Water visibility/color: The color varies from muddy in the very backs of creeks to almost gin-clear in some areas.
> Water level: Several feet below full pool (significant, as most of the willows and buckbrush are now on dry land)
> Fish in: All depths
> Fish phase: Pre-spawn
> Primary patterns: Alabama Rigs, plastics, jigs, jerkbaits, spinnerbaits, crankbaits
> Winning weight: 62 pounds
> Cut weight (Top 10): 44 pounds
> Fishing quality (1=poor, 5=great): 3 for Hartwell
> Biggest factors: Adaptability – the conditions (and therefore the fish) are changing daily
> Biggest decision: When to leave a place that's producing plenty of fish, but not the right quality
> Wildcard: The Alabama Rig – a guy using it in the right place could produce some heavy sacks.
The A-Rig Factor
This will be the first tour-level event ever contested in which the A-Rig is both legal and a known entity from the start. FLW announced that it was fair game in January, shortly after B.A.S.S. banned it for the Classic and the Elite Series, and it's safe to assume that everyone in the field is at least somewhat familiar with using it.
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How big of a factor it'll be here is debatable at this point, but it's a certainty that a lot of competitors will be slinging one around.
"I don't think it'll play a huge role, but there will be some checks cashed on it," Morgan said. "I don't see it being totally dominant, but I could be wrong about that. I'm pretty sure it won't turn out to be another Guntersville."
Said Stetson Blaylock: "Somebody will catch them on it, but it won't be me. I've seen a lot of guys throwing it, but I haven't heard anybody say that it really worked.
"That's a bait that you've got to be committed to, and in this event it might be hard to stay committed to a bait like that. You might not get enough bites on it."
The Blueback Conundrum
Hartwell is one of several lakes dotting the Southeast region that harbor a substantial population of blueback herring. The nomadic baitfish are unpredictable in their movements, and they can thus cause the bass to take on that same air of irregularity.
Some anglers find them so confounding that they've stopped considering them altogether. If they happen across a situation in which the bass are gorging on them, great. Otherwise, they'll build their gameplan around other elements.
The consensus seems to be that the bluebacks are currently roaming the 50- to 60-foot depth range and have not yet moved up for their own spawn, when they become particularly vulnerable to the bass. Where they are right now, they're mainly providing nutrition for the deeper-dwelling stripers.
"These herring lakes are just weird," said Wesley Strader. "For one thing, you can't idle a boat over them – they'll swim off. You have to see them with your eyes because they usually won't let you get a look at them on the graph.
"The whole deal with them is the first hour of the morning. If you know where they are right then, you could do well."
Field Notes
Here are practice notes from some of the anglers who'll be competing this week.
Terry Baksay
"The fish aren't where I think they should be, but what's going to end up happening is they're going to change every day, and the person who changes with them is the one who's going to do well.
"I've seen a few fish cruising, but I haven't seen any on beds. Last year they came up really quick – this is one of those lakes where that seems to happen really fast. I think it's definitely something you have to look for.
"I've caught fish from 2 to 25 feet and there hasn't been any rhyme or reason to it. It's junk-fishing for me, but I love that. I like it when you can do a lot of different stuff and move around quite a bit."
Jason Christie
"The water's way, way lower than last year and there's (no vegetation) in it, and it's cold. It was not a fun practice for me – it was probably one of the worst practices I've ever had. I've caught one here and one there, but I can't put a pattern together.
"It worries me that I'm not catching any females. Last year I was catching them in practice, and that tells you that they're coming to you. I've kind of got my little area that I want to fish – this place is too big to go running around a whole lot – but I haven't been able to locate quality in it.
"Somebody will catch big sacks the first couple of days, but not everybody. Somebody's going to find them grouped up out there deep."
Stetson Blaylock
"I had 2 good practice days, then a slow day (on Tuesday). It's definitely not easy, but I'm pretty confident. It's all about getting the big bites – on this lake you have to wade through a lot of smaller ones to get one of the bigger ones.
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Photo: FLW/Shaye Baker Bryan Thrift is always strong at the start of a new season and is fishing in his home region this week. |
"It's totally different than last year – the water's 6 or 7 feet lower, it's a whole lot cooler and the fish aren't as far along (in their seasonal progression). It's a whole different ballgame.
"I think maybe by the end of the day Thursday, or maybe Friday, some will be caught off beds and weighed in, but it's definitely not going to be won that way. Those big ones aren't up there yet – they're still out roaming."
Andy Morgan
"I did way better when it was windy (on the first 2 days of practice). It calmed down (on Tuesday) and everything really slowed down for me. I was catching fish on anything I wanted, but then it became not so easy. I expect things to change as it warms back up, though.
"It wouldn't take much to get me to scratch my whole plan and start all over. I'm teetering on doing something totally different and I might catch something, or I might not. I don't see anybody catching a lot of spawning fish – we're just not going to have the weather for it."
Mark Rose
"My practice was what I'd call just fair. I caught lots of fish, but I didn't see the quality I would've liked to have seen yet. I did catch a couple of random nice fish, but I don't have anything I can bank on with big ones.
"As far as shallow or deep, I think I'll incorporate a little of both. I spent some time deep and there are some fish out there, but I'm not finding real big ones out there, either. A lot of them are spots, and spots aren't what you need to be targeting. There will be a lot of nice spots weighed in, but if you're fishing only for them, you're just fishing for a check.
"I'm just going to have to fish hard. I've got some schools found, but I'll need to find that 4- to 6-pound bite, and I think I'm going to have to be shallow for that."
Marty Stone
"I had a decent practice. This is a typical blueback lake and this time of year, you need to either be fishing 30 feet down or you have to fish in the dirt. I haven't found a lot in between.
"Catching a limit won't be that big of a deal because they're biting in both places, but coming across the right quality is the hard part. You have to go through a lot of little fellas to get the fish you want. And by quality, I'm talking anything over 3 pounds.
"The fish here are notorious for getting in ditches and suspending at about 25 feet. This is the perfect setup for that, but I haven't found in consistency in catching them."
Dave Wolak
"I feel like this is a pattern lake and whatever I find I can expand on, even during the event. That's kind of what I did (Tuesday) – I ran a lot of water and fished moving baits. It's setting up to be one of those kinds of tournaments.
"This should be a good fisherman's tournament, where you have to adapt on the fly. The weather and a lot of things are going to be different than they were in practice. I think the way Alton fished in '08 might be the way to go – just hunker down and grind it out."
Top 10 to Watch
With the above in mind and more, here's BassFan's recommendation on the Top 10 to watch at this event.
1. Bryan Thrift – He's from this part of the country, he's back on top of his game and he's always – always – strong at the start of a new season. He should still be around come Sunday.
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2. Brent Ehrler – He was the runner-up here last year and conditions might be even better suited for him this time around. Versatility is the name of his game.
3. Andy Morgan – He's equally adept at fishing shallow or deep, and a combo attack using a lot of the water column might be just the ticket this week.
4. Anthony Gagliardi – The South Carolina native has some knowledge of this place, and that could be a big factor with the water level down. The former Angler of the Year (AOY) is coming off a very poor 2011 and needs to get this points campaign started off right.
5. David Dudley – The defending AOY has been on a lackluster run since logging a Top 10 at the Forrest Wood Cup last August, but that won't last. He's back in his home region and should be able to turn his momentum back around.
6. Stacey King – The veteran from Missouri is still a pre-spawn wizard, as he proved at the start of 2011. He can catch them from any depth at this time of the year.
7. Dave Lefebre – He notched a Top 10 at this event last year and he's not one to mess around with small spotted bass. He'll likely either turn in a very strong finish or be no factor whatsoever.
8. Troy Morrow – Another home-region guy who's familiar with the ways of the blueback herring. He can also find – and catch – larger-than-average spots.
9. Larry Nixon – With all the ballyhoo over the A-Rig, it'd be ironic if this tournament were won on a regular old plastic worm. And if that can indeed happen, he's just the guy to do it.
10. Jay Yelas – Not many situations befuddle him at this stage of his career, and he's on a nice roll with four finishes of 13th or better in his last six outings. His versatility and patience should serve him well this week.
Launch/Weigh-In Info
Anglers will take off from Portman Shoals Marina (1629 Marina Road, Anderson, S.C.) at 7 a.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday and at 7:30 a.m. Sunday (Daylight Savings Time begins Sunday). Thursday's and Friday’s weigh-ins will be held at the marina beginning at 3 p.m. Saturday's and Sunday’s weigh-ins will be held at the TD Convention Center (One Exposition Drive, Greenville, S.C.) beginning at 4 p.m.
Weather Forecast
> Thurs., March 8 - A.M. Clouds/P.M. Sun - 71°/53°
- Wind: From the S at 9 mph
> Fri., March 9 - Few Showers - 69°/44°
- Wind: From the W at 6 mph
> Sat., March 10 - Partly Cloudy - 61°/41°
- Wind: From the E/NE at 13 mph
> Sun., March 11 - Cloudy - 61°/52°
- Wind: From the E/NE at 7 mph
Notable
> BassFan Big Stick Luke Clausen has filed his practice report, and he's optimistic that he can catch a strong bag on day 1. To read it, along with Jay Yelas' earlier report, click here.
