Last week, I discussed in general terms how to fish for largemouth bass during the summer months on Lake Sinclair and Lake Oconee. I also indicated that over the next few weeks I would discuss several lures that can be effectively used to catch those largemouth bass. This week, I want to discuss some tips and strategies that anglers can use to improve their chances for hooking up with those fish with crankbaits during these summer months.

There are several keys that anglers need to consider if they want to be successful in catching largemouth bass during the summer months on a crankbait. Those keys include the presence of water current, the presence of baitfish, depth of the water, the water temperature and the composition of the lake bottom.

Water current of some type is the first and one of the most important ingredients for successfully using crankbaits. Most water current in the two lakes comes from the pump-back operation at the Wallace Dam. Generally Georgia Power pulls water up to Lake Oconee through the Wallace Dam in the early morning nighttime hours and then releases that water back into Lake Sinclair through the Wallace Dam during the daylight hours.

The exact timing of the pump-back operation varies from day to day and nothing is guaranteed about the schedule of that operation. In Sinclair some current is created as water is released through the Sinclair Dam and when water is pulled through the generators at Plant Branch. The pump-back by far is the operation that anglers need to pay attention to and generally the water current produced by the pump-back is best Monday-Friday.

When current is present, the baitfish or shad are more active and will leave areas where they may have been suspended and will move to areas like humps, ledges, flats and channels. The largemouth bass will then move to those same areas to feed on the shad. A good location depends primarily on water current and the presence of baitfish.

As I mentioned last week, water depths of 8-30 feet will be where most of the summer action will occur when using crankbaits or any other lure and I seldom catch largemouth on either lake deeper than 22 feet during the summer. Due to the pump-back operation, the water in both lakes is continually mixed from top to bottom creating water temperatures that are close to the same throughout the water at all depths.

On the surface that seems to imply that the fish could then be just about anywhere at any depth. However, the one controlling factor is dissolved oxygen which is necessary for the largemouth bass to survive.

During the summer months, the available dissolved oxygen decreases with the water depth and in fact decreases throughout the entire lake at all depths. The largemouth bass will attempt to locate water with the best dissolved oxygen but the largemouth bass can become stressed during the summer and will actually feed less.

My experience has found that the majority of the fish will locate in water from the surface down to 22 feet in the summer. Many of the fish would likely continually stay in shallow water since it contains the most oxygen but lack of shade then becomes a limiting factor to most shallow water locations.

The last key to catching largemouth bass during the summer months is the depth of water and the bottom composition. Largemouth bass like a lake bottom that has varying depths of water nearby, has structure/cover like brushpiles, stumps and rocks. Good locations are points, humps, ledges and creek/river channels.

Water depth where the fish will be located can and will change from week to week and even day to day but anglers should pretty much concern themselves with water depths from 6 to 22 feet during the summer months. You might find the fish shallower or deeper at times but those depths will likely hold the majority of the largemouth bass during the summer months on Lake Sinclair and Lake Oconee.

Once you have located good spots for holding baitfish and largemouth bass, you need to carefully check the spot with your electronics. A good spot with water current is not likely to hold largemouth bass if shad are not present in that spot. I do not fish good spots even if water current is present if that spot does not contain shad. I have found it to simply be a waste of time.

When fishing a crankbait, you want to attempt to keep the crankbait in contact with the bottom and let it ricochet off any thing that it might encounter. A crankbait that all of a sudden changes directions or speed will often entice a strike.

Next week I will look at some different deep diving round bill crankbaits and discuss the relatively new deep diving square bill crankbaits that will catch summer largemouth bass. Good fishing and see you next week.