Smith Mountain Lake – Lake Report by Captain Dale Wilson May 2014

Picture: Captain Dale Wilson / Crappie caught last week

SMITH MOUNTAIN LAKE FISHING REPORTMay 2014DALE WILSON’SSML GUIDE SERVICEPHONE NO: 540-297-5650 / 540-874-4950www.captaindalewilson.com

OVERVIEW: April‘s harsh weather made for spotty fishing success.. The extended forecast looks good for the next several weeks. This should make for better fishing conditions. Water temperature will be in the upper 50’s to upper 60’s. Most species of fish will be spawning this month.

Largemouth Bass-Fishing will be good. Best lures will be jig & pigs, crank baits, Thunder Sticks, senkoes, and shakey heads. Most largemouth bass will be caught on secondary points, gravel areas, shallow coves and shallow docks. Largemouth bass will also feed at night when the shad come shallow. Most largemouth bass will start to move to areas to spawn. Best depths will be from 2 to 10 feet deep. Remember that bass will be constantly changing their feeding patterns this month.

Smallmouth Bass- Fishing should be fair. Best areas will be humps, rocky areas and secondary points. Best lures will be jig & pig, jerk baits, hair jigs and crank baits. Best areas will be in the mid to the lower sections of the lake. Most smallmouth bass will start to spawn this month. Cloudy, windy days are good times to try your luck!

Striped Bass- Fishing will be good. Stripers will be caught in various areas of the lake. The best areas will be in the mid to lower sections of the lake and the larger creeks. Best lures will be Alabama rigs, swim baits, buck tails, jerk baits, Thunder Sticks, Redfins and Zoom flukes fished with 1/4 to 3/8 oz. lead heads. Live bait will also be productive. The best depths will be from the surface to 30 feet deep. Try to find areas with the largest concentrations of baitfish. Night fishing should be the best time to try your luck.

Crappie-Fishing for crappie will be good this month. They will be found 2 to 10 feet deep this month. Best areas will be in the main creeks around docks, fallen trees, and brush piles in the mid to upper parts of the lake. Small live minnows and 1 ½ to 2 inch tubes or shad shaped plastic lures fished on 1/32 to 1/16 oz. lead heads will work best to catch crappie this month. Most crappie will spawn this month.TIP OF THE Month: Most species of fish will begin to spawn this month. Please practice catch and release during the spawn season. Remember to always wear your life jackets. Warmer water temperatures and clearer water will make fish start to feed at night this month.

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