what am I doing wrong??

[naturalnbama]

Ok, I got a chance to go fishing today.  Went below Wheeler way down.  I fished cuts in the bluffs and points in about 25-30 feet of water.  I saw fish on the graph off the points.  I fished a skirted grub.  a suspending jerk bait and a float n fly.  I got one bite on the grub.  sad.  it was cold, raining  and windy.  they had water running so we had current.  It seemed like a perfect day.  water temp was 39-41.  Can someone help me out??? what am I doing wrong?? what else should  I be trying.  I started to try a fat ika but the water around the bluffs is 17-20+ deep.  

tryin hard but needing help

[roadwarrior]

Hmm...

Wish I knew.  My results below Pickwick Dam were about the same and we fished big shiners exclusively!

Never saw a smallmouth.   :-[

[sal669]

Hmmm... I dont know. I have no idea how the water "looks",but based on water temp and the fact that it's below a dam (current), here is what I would try (besides what you allready did):

>Drop shot rig: 3" minow immitator soft plastic (white or with white in it) at 6-12" off the bottom.

>Crappie tubes, minnow color on 1/8 jig head

>4" finess worm rigged "trick worm " style or drop shot

>1/4 oz "Road runner" crawled slowly allong the bottom

>spoons/ blade baits

The main issue is FINDING them. "Basses" in cold water don't like current that much, they like barely moving water( or not at all) , but close to current. I would try the front eddy and the calmer water behind the current obstruction/point. Look for the deeper spots in a certain area.

Hope it helps...

[roadwarrior]

"Basses" in cold water don't like current that much, they like barely moving water( or not at all).

That has NEVER been the case in this part of the country or on the Tennessee River.

[Crestliner2008]

39 - 41 degrees. Smallies will still be starting to move up out of their wintering holes, I suspect. Some days (depending on weather more than water temp) they will be on the jerkbait bite; other days the drop shot or tube. (The Ika would have been a good selection to try btw.) However, regardless of the conditions you are faced with, it seems to me that you are having more of a problem with location, than presentation. Where do they go to winter up? Where do they go to spawn? Where is the nearest drop leading to the spawning flats? Start in the wintering holes and work up. If you suspect the location holds fish, the best thing you can do is to lower an UW camera to verify that. Then, if you "see" bass, at least you take away one unknown. Not everything you see on your sonar is your target species. Doesn't make much sense fishing a drop shot over carp or catfish, but that's what a lot of folks do. Then they blame the presentation...or the weather...or the fish! Hope this makes some kind of sense?

[fishizzle]

try shocking them

thats all I can come up with

[smallieking]

i fished that day too  and was fishing about the same depth as you.  Here the sun was high no clouds and the water temp was starting to warm into the 40s. I decided to go alittle shallower and found them on a hump about 10 feet deep with 20 foot dropoffs on each side   i caught 6 dead sticking a senko off the bottom  

[naturalnbama]

Hey RW are you fishing right below the dam?  I would have thought that it was too shallow up close to the dam.  Below Wheeler its only about 10-15 feet in most places.   All of this stuff I read says they should be 20+ deep??? whats up with that?  

Im not giving up.  Im gonna try again this weekend.  I know where there is an underwater island that is near deep water.   I have been fishing pretty far from the dam down toward Wilson on what appear to me to be main lake points.  or cuts in the bluffs what ever you call it.