Breaking Down Winter Patterns on Lake Pickwick
Pickwick Lake is one of the most notorious and fished bass fishing lakes in the states of Tennessee, Alabama and Mississippi. Many tournament series, such as the Major League Fishing BFL, will start their tournament year on Lake Pickwick. The lake is full of fish, has great structure and ledges, has a lot of current flow, and just overall has the right things bass anglers are looking for to capitalize on a late winter/ pre-spawn bite. Make sure to read to the end of this blog to see How Revital Outdoors Premium CBD Products will help anglers fishing Lake Pickwick.
When bass fishing tournament anglers think about Lake Pickwick, they think about going below the Wilson Dam and catching big smallmouth who are reacting to jerkbaits and crankbaits. Although this is a very good pattern, fishing all of Lake Pickwick and understanding everything it has to offer, it will truly make a bass angler fall in love with the lake. Lake Pickwick sets up perfectly for anglers who love to cover a lot of water and throw reaction baits. Anglers have had tremendous success in the past with throwing crankbaits, jerkbaits, Alabama Rigs, and chatterbaits. Some of the best recipes for success are locating the right patch of submerged grass that is relating to long, main-lake points and that bump into the river channel. The thing that separates Lake Pickwick from other lakes in that area, is it is full of big mean Smallmouth Bass. In fact, the Tennessee record Smallmouth Bass has been caught out of Lake Pickwick in years past. Smallmouth Bass are well populated in Lake Pickwick because it offers a good amount of baitfish and forage, but also has cleaner and clearer water which the Smallmouth thrive in.
Some of the best techniques for bass fishing on Lake Pickwick, especially the big Smallmouth that many anglers don’t think about in the late winter and pre-spawn pattern is a jig and a chatterbait.
The Chatterbait
A chatterbait is one of the most universal baits there in an angler’s arsenal. It has the action of a swimjig, it’s got a thump and noise of a crankbait, and the flash of a spinnerbait. All around it mimics baitfish very well and is irresistible to bass that are feeding up getting ready for the spawn. Many anglers like to throw a heavier chatterbait around the submerged grass along the grass edges of Lake Pickwick in the late winter and pre-spawn time of year. Anglers will relate to white, or more natural colors, that mimic the big threadfin shad that live in Lake Pickwick. The other bait that many anglers have seen tremendous success on is a jig.
The Jig
Anglers have thrown finesse jigs and football head jigs for years on Lake Pickwick, and continue to catch big bags of bass in tournaments in the winter and pre-spawn time of year. Lake Pickwick is very easy to pattern with a jig. What the fish are relating to is main lake points, secondary points, docks, or the long riprap walls that are found throughout Lake Pickwick; it’s just a good all-around bait that mimics the crawfish that live in the lake. Especially for Smallmouth Bass, they will react better to a big crawfish meal than any other bait. This provides great protein and a meal that helps them feed up getting ready for the spawn, and to stay warm in the colder months. Colors are not very hard to figure out on Lake Pickwick, the fish generally like the orange and brown color patterns. So, anything with orange, red, brown, green pumpkin, or black; should be the ticket to a successful day of jig fishing on Lake Pickwick.
One final thought about Lake Pickwick and fishing in the late winter and pre-spawn time of year is the fish in Lake Pickwick react much better, and anglers have much better days on the water, when the weather is nasty outside. If there is wind, snow or rain, and/or just cloudy conditions that seem unbearable to go fishing; these are the days anglers have found to be the best times to fish Lake Pickwick. Also pay attention to the dam schedule, because if they’re pulling current into the Wilson Dam, this is a the best recipe for success on Lake Pickwick.
Although many of the professional tournaments that taken place on Lake Pickwick in the past have been during the late spring and summer months. Lake Pickwick is a lake that shines nearly year-round. The summertime fishing on Lake Pickwick is unbelievable because of the ledges and the grass on the lake. But anglers still find themselves wanting to fish tournaments on Lake Pickwick in the late winter and pre-spawn because of the giant bags of smallmouth that can be caught. And they can experience those “100 fish days” during this time.
How CBD May Help Anglers:
Finding a winning pattern on Lake Pickwick can be challenging, but it’s not impossible. While fishing, we go through many different emotions – especially if we can’t find a hole where there’s fish biting. It can leave us feeling anxious, or frustrated in our performance. While we can all agree that fishing is a hobby, it’s hard not to get down on yourself when you’re fishing. To help combat those feelings, our Premium CBD Gummies are the perfect pairing to have loaded on your boat. The Strawberry Lemonade flavors packs a delicious punch while providing 10mg to your body. If you’re completely new to CBD, and unsure where to start, we recommend checking out this CBD 101 blog here. It’ll help break down everything you need to know in order to get started in your CBD journey. Plus, here’s some light reading on everything you need to know about a CBD gummy.
Additionally, through research, studies have shown that CBD interacts with our neurotransmitters and subdues the immune responses that cause stressors and anxiousness. This means that you’re more likely to experience a quicker recovery, better sleep, and reduced inflammation when you incorporate CBD into your regular routine. Check out our Premium CBD products below.