The guide’s favorite pre-spawn lures include the Xt-3 X-Caliber jerkbait (a 3 1/8-inch suspending jerkbait) or the Xs-4 (the 4 1/2-inch model); the best colors are pearl shad or ghost. Also, he tosses a Carolina-rigged YUM Wooly Hawgtail in green pumpkin or watermelon.
Interestingly, at least on Anna, if the winter has been mild, many of the bass remain in creeks and coves during the pre-spawn. Then, continued the guide, creeks and coves that possess water willow will draw bass; add rockpiles and a spot is prime. Stumpfields and clay banks are also worth checking out. Of all these scenarios, which is Carr’s favorite pre-spawn pattern?
“Fishing channel breaks in the back third of mid-lake creeks and coves,” he said. “I like to position a boat so I’m able to cast up on a flat that has submerged stumps on it and work the aforementioned lures so as to cover a large part of the flat plus the channel drop. On Anna, good areas are Sturgeon Creek and coves in the area of the splits. This pattern is responsible for the majority of bass I have taken that surpass the 8-pound mark.”
For post-spawn lake largemouths, Carr offers these bullet point tactics.
• Structure: stump flats, deep secondary points with docks nearby, submerged humps and main lake points at the mouths of tributaries.
• Cover: beaver huts, docks, submerged rockpiles and manmade sunken brushpiles.
• Lures: 4-inch YUM Dingers rigged weightless, Rebel Pop-Rs, Booyah spinnerbaits, Carolina-rigged YUM Wooly Hawgtails, and deep-diving crankbaits like the Bomber Fat-free shad crankbaits.
“The first week or so after they spawn, the bigger female bass are very lethargic,” Carr said. “They feed slowly and are rather picky during the first stage of the post-spawn. Once the bass get a little rest, they start to feel the hunger pains and need to eat as the water warms and raises their metabolism.
“The second phase of the post-spawn is the eating stage and is usually associated with the bass going on the move toward the main lake. My favorite part of the post-spawn is just before summer patterns kick in and bass school up on main-lake points at the mouths of creeks and coves.”
For guided trips, contact Teddy Carr at (540) 854-4271 or fshwtc@ns.gemlink.com.
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