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Lake Anna May 2015 Lake Report by Chris Craft

April 30, 2015

The pics are of my client Susie Hust….. 

Lake Anna May 2015 Lake Report by Chris Craft 

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As we say goodbye to April and welcome May into our lives, we can look forward to warming water temps, post spawn top water fish and more good days than bad on the water. Look for the bass and crappie to be in all 3 phases of the spawn this month. As the spawn winds down, the top water bite will heat up and multiple fish days are not that uncommon. Even 20 and 30 fish days can be expected when everything goes right.

There are several events scheduled this month at Fish Tales. The Big Fish Contest will be held in May as well, Anna Point Marina will pay $100 or a Yearly Ramp Pass to the angler that catches and weighs the largest bass, crappie and striper for the month of May. Here are the VERY SIMPLE rules……..

1- Must launch from Anna Point Marina/Fish Tales. Either pay the $8 daily or be a yearly ramp pass holder.

2- If fishing with a guide or an employee, the $8 ramp fee must be paid before the outing.

3- Live or Artificial bait is allowed.

4- Tournament caught fish are eligible, however they must be weighed on the porch scales at Fish Tales.Mark your calendar for Saturday May 9. This is the annual Anna Point Marina/Fish Tales Youth Fishing Tournament and Family Day. This great event will run from 9am-1pm and the youth anglers can either fish from the shores of Anna Point Marina or from a Boat. There will be three age groups (3-9) (10-12) (13-17). The anglers will will compete for the largest bass, crappie, sunfish and catfish in their age group. There will also be a Grand Champion Award to the angler that catches the largest overall fish during the tournament. There will be cash, prizes and trophies for the winners of each division. The entry fee for this event is $10 per participant. There will be food and drinks for everyone after the tournament and during the awards ceremony. If you are attending and would like to bring a covered dish, please do so. We want everyone to have a full belly when they leave.

The Saturday and Sunday Morning Bass Series will also pick up from the slow start we have had this year so far. These popular bass tournaments will be from 6am-11am every Saturday and Sunday Morning. The entry fee is $100 per team (including the big fish pot) For more information on these tournaments please get in touch with Chris Craft or Dave Fauntleroy at 540-895-5900 ext5.Bass- The bass throughout the lake have made their move to the shallows and are taking a variety of baits. The cold fronts this past week have pushed them back slightly, but with the warm stable weather in the forecast, thy will move back up in a hurry. At the current time we have all 3 stages of the spawn going on and I believe it will continue for just about the entire month.

Look for fish around stumps, rocks, beaver huts, laydown trees and willow grass all month long. On cloudy days, moving baits will put them in the boat, My two favorite search baits this time of year are a Dave’s Tournament Tackle Tiger Shad Spinnerbait and a Damiki Armor Shad soft Jerkbat. My personal preference for the Tiger Shad is a 1/4oz Double Gold Willow Combination in either Purple Tiger or Blue Back Herring colors. Put these baits in the willow grass and retrieve them just under the surface above the grass, when you get to thin pockets, holes or on the edge of the grass, kill the bait and let it flutter down into it. This triggers a reaction that the bass cannot resist. Fish the Armor Shad in the same places at the spinnerbait and do the same thing in order to get that reaction strike. On Sunny days, I like to stay with more natural colors like Pro Purple & Pro Blue, on overcast days I like White Pearl and White Silver Flake. Rig them weightless TEX-POSED on a 4/0 Gamakatsu Hook, let the fish tell you what cadence they want. Start off with a twitch-twitch-pause and let the bait sink completely out of sight before twitching it again.

On bright sunny days, slow down and pitch plastics in, around and under grass and boat docks. The Deep Creek Lures Stump Thumper and Jr. Razor Beetle are two of my favorites. Rig them on a shakey head or Texas rigged. Arson 3/8oz Arky Head Jigs are another great choice to entice bites from fish that are not very aggressive.

By the end of the month, top water walking baits like the Damiki Rambler and Paycheck Baits Repoman baits will put post spawn fatties in the boat. Dmiki MTB Noisy Buzzbaits will also start to play a role in my choices. The bluegill will start to spawn by the end of the month, 1.5 and 2.5 squarebill crankbaits in BLUEGILL patterns are always ties onto my IZORLINE this time of year. The bass will cruise these beds and wait in ambush around bot docks or anything else they can hide around and like a lightning bolt, they will pick one bluegill out of the pack and strike through the bed and give a little payback.

PLEASE REMEMBER THAT THE FEMALE BASS ARE GOING TO BE VERY TIRED FROM THE RIGORS OF THE SPAWN, PLEASE RELEASE THEM AS SOON AS POSSIBLE IN ORDER FOR THEM TO RECOVER.

Crappie- The first wave of the spawn is over for the mature females, the second way is just days away and we will be able to catch numbers of these tasty vittles for a few more weeks shallow before they return to deep water for the summer. The males are protecting nests and are very aggressive right now, they can be caught in a variety of locations on a variety of baits. Beaver huts, willow grass, laydowns and boat docks in 2-10 feet of water will be best locations. Small minnows & Kalin 2″Curly Tail Grubs are my choices, colors like John Deere Green, Wally World, Green Weenie and Black/Blue Chart Tail are my top choices rigged on a 1/16oz Mizmo Jighead.

After the spawn is finally over, look for them to be on bridge pilings, deep brush piles, deep boat docks with lots of shade, At this time, Small Minnows rigged on a slip bobber will be your best choice to catch fish.

Striper- The linesides are making their way back down lake from their springtime spawn run. Live bait like Blueback Herring and Gizzard Shad are producing numbers of fish for the folks willing to get up early and catch their bait. For those of us that prefer to cast to them, Broken Back Redfins casted to shallow flats and points will produce very violent strikes from the hearty fish. Damiki Anchovy Shads rigged on a 1/4oz Jig Head slowly retrieved will also put them in the boat for you.

susie 7.73

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