WATER CONDITIONS
The water elevation on 17 April was 1016.6-feet, which is 2.4-feet higher than it was last Wednesday. The water level is predicted to rise 8.4-inches by midnight, Friday, 19 April. The inflow is 5,550 cfs, but is predicted to increase due to the rain received this afternoon. Morning surface temperatures are fairly consistent, lake wide. Morning temperatures in the channels of the Powell and Clinch arms have been 59 to 61 degrees, rising to as high as 63 degrees in the afternoon on cloudy days. Sunny days have seen the surface a degree or two warmer. Protected coves where there is more color have seen 65 degree surface temperatures. The channel color is clear. Stream inflows where there were heavier thunderstorms are getting some color.
Moon phase: waxing crescent. The next full moon will be April 26^th.
To view photos and Google maps of all access areas on the reservoir, go to http://www.tnfish.org/ReservoirLakeM...eMaps_TWRA.htm or http://tinyurl.com/chm2ts9.
For the Norris lake elevation, inflow rates, and generation times, go to http://www.tva.gov/lakes/noh_r.htm.

SUMMARY
Catches continue to improve as the oncoming season and warming water bring more fish into shallower water. Rising water is changing some fish movements. The pattern remains about the same as last week, but with more largemouth moving into the warmer, shallower coves near floating wood and other structure. Striped bass continue to be found in the headwaters of larger creeks and river arms.

BLUEGILL and REDEAR (SHELLCRACKER): Bluegill good. Shellcracker are slow. Bluegill are hitting crickets and mealworms at 25 to 35-feet close to the bottom in the coves.

CRAPPIE: Moderate in lower end creek hollows, good far upstream in the river headwaters. 3 to 20-feet. Shallow crappie are in the brush at less than 10-feet, bottom depth, in the coves and creek hollows.

LARGEMOUTH BASS: Moderate, improving.
Shallow and close to the shore near brush, especially in large coves. 200 series Bandit crankbaits, Norman Little N plugs, Rat’l Traps, Shaky Head rigs, and pig’n jigs. Some have hit soft jerk baits near brush in the coves. Surface to 5-feet in the morning; 10 to 15-feet at mid-day.

SMALLMOUTH BASS: Moderate.
On the broken rock, moderately sloped banks in the mornings, moving to more gently sloped points by midday, but still on chunk rock and near gravel. Transition zones from boulders to white gravel points, as well as shelves on clay/gravel banks have been good. Transition zones on points have been the best if not far from spawning areas on points.

*REGULATION CHANGE FOR SMALLMOUTH BASS: The regulation changed on October 16^th. It now allows five smallmouth with a minimum length limit of 18-inches. This regulation remains in effect until June 1^st.

SPOTTED BASS: Moderate on Powell, Fair on Clinch. On rocky shorelines in the larger creek hollows. Small, crawfish pattern crankbaits and pig’n jigs along the shorelines where there are big boulders and plenty of gravel to boulder transition zones.

STRIPED BASS: Good. (*See regulation change, below, effective Nov. 1^st.) Surface to 20-feet deep in the channels. These fish are moving upstream in their seasonal pattern, and are in the headwaters of the river arms and in the head of the larger creeks. Where there are baitfish in the creeks, striped bass have been caught from the surface to less than 10-feet deep, on drifted shiners or small shad and alewife.
*REGULATION REMINDER FOR STRIPED BASS: April 1 – October 31, 2 per day, 15-inch minimum length limit.

WALLEYE Slow. The river run walleye have already spawned and are moving toward the main body of the reservoir. Lower end walleye are on the broken rock banks at less than 15-feet deep, near big, old timber, and on red clay/gravel shorelines.
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SPECIES DETAILS

BLUEGILL/REDEAR
Bluegill: Good. Shellcracker: slow.
25 to 35-feet deep for bluegill, on the bottom, in coves and along broken rock, steep banks. Crickets or mealworms have been best for bluegill.
For bluegill and shellcracker, use redworms, meal worms, crickets, or small minnows fished with no float, but tightlined or cast to shady, rocky banks and dragged slowly across the bottom. Crickets are the best bait.

CRAPPIE
Moderate on the lower end; better above Point 17 on the Powell and above Point 30 on the Clinch.
3 to 20-feet, tight to brush and wood structure. Target stained sections of the main channels and creeks, tight to brush. Crappie are moving into the brushy areas in the larger creek hollows and are shallow where the water is stained.
Good lures: Tuffy minnows, small doll flies, mini tube jigs (red/white, blue/white) and 1/32 ounce hair or feather jigs tipped with minnows, Trout Magnets, or Slider grubs in a variety of colors. If enough rain falls tomorrow, stained water in the upper rivers and creek hollows will help.

LARGEMOUTH & SPOTTED BASS
Moderate, improving. Spotted bass catches are better on the Powell side than on the Clinch.
Close to the shoreline in large coves, and along broken rock shorelines near wood structure, from the surface to 20-feet. Shallower water in the coves, warmed by the afternoon sun, has attracted many largemouth and baitfish. Spinners, soft jerk baits, buzz baits, and shallow running plugs have caught fish in these areas.
200 and 300 series Bandit crankbaits and Norman Little N crankbaits fished parallel to the rocks in stained sections, and soft jerk baits are catching the most, close to the shoreline wood structure. Spinner bait catches (chrome, willow leaf or Indiana blades) are starting to pick up some nice largemouth. Shaky Head jigs rigged with the smaller plastic worms or grubs are doing well at less than 10-feet on main channel banks. Shaky Heads rigged “whacky style” have taken some largemouth and smallmouth. Cove Creek and Davis Creek have had good spotted bass catches.

SMALLMOUTH BASS
Good. Best on the days with the worst weather.
Water temperatures are rapidly warming and smallmouth are very close to spawning. They’re moving to the white gravel points and secondary points, with some still on main channel, broken rock banks, but not far from spawning areas. Smaller, male smallmouth are moving to gravel points, as shallow as 3 to 10-feet on many days. Some larger smallmouth are suspending on sunny days, holding at about 10-feet deep over much deeper water, but over the gravel/rock points where they will spawn.
Many larger smallmouth are on moderately sloped, rocky banks in the mornings, moving to more gently sloped points by midday, but still on chunk rock and near white gravel. Every so often, a large smallmouth will be caught as deep as 25 to 30-feet, indicating the stage of the spawn is still oncoming for some.
Medium running crankbaits (Bandits, Normans), soft jerk baits, and the smaller shaky head (3/32 oz) jigs rigged with the smaller worms, some “whacky style,” have worked well. Slower presentations are working in the colder water at greater depths. 200 series Bandits in the red crawfish pattern have caught smallmouth on the main channels as well as in the creeks where there was stained water. Leadhead jigs tipped with 3 or 4-inch smoke grubs fished with a steady, slow retrieve, just off the bottom on clay/gravel shorelines, always works well at this time of year.
Other lures which have produced: crawfish imitation colors, 3/8 oz hair jig with trailer; or popeye jigs (1/16^th to 1/8^th oz), tipped with a tuffy minnow. Dark green (cedar tree green) or gray colors have worked well for the small hair jigs tipped with minnows.


*REGULATION CHANGE FOR SMALLMOUTH BASS: The regulation changed on October 16^th. It now allows five smallmouth with a minimum length limit of 18-inches. This regulation remains in effect until June 1^st.


STRIPED BASS
Good.
These fish are in the middle of their spring movement upstream. Look for them in the upper end of the larger creek embayments and upriver on both the Powell and Clinch.
Depth: In the creek hollows and headwaters where there are many baitfish, striped bass have taken shiners or alewife or gizzard shad drifted far behind the boat at a shallow depth. Those using 3-inch, soft jerk baits have caught striped bass in the same areas.
Surface to 10-feet in the creeks where baitfish are present, but to 20-feet in the channels and across long points and over deep humps in the main channels of the river arms or large creek embayments. Look for feeding gulls which indicate the location of baitfish schools and troll or tightline alewife or shad in those locations.
Troll ½ to 1 oz bucktail jigs, umbrella rigs with trailers in pearl or chartreuse, or live bait (gizzard shad, shiners, or alewife) tightlined to the depth of the forage fish schools in mid-channel especially across the points and humps.
On the lower half of the reservoir, try Lost Creek, above its junction with Whites Creek, and Crooked Creek (behind Island F). The islands near Hickory Star have produced some catches.
The lower Powell River embayment has been slow, with scattered catches from Point 9 to Point 11. Point 11 to Point 12 catches have been fair, at best, but better than farther downstream. Davis Creek saw some striped bass caught.
Before using umbrella rigs, read the Fishing Regulations and the hook size/number restrictions which are in effect.

*REGULATION REMINDER FOR STRIPED BASS: April 1 – October 31, 2 per day, 15-inch minimum length limit.

WALLEYE
Slow.
10 to 15-feet (bottom depth)
Headwater catches are very slow. Those fish appear to have already spawned and are heading for the main body of the reservoir. Lower end walleye are holding close to broken rock shorelines of moderate slope, near old timber, less than 15 feet deep in the hours before noon.
Some isolated catches are occurring on the lower half of the reservoir, hitting plugs at dusk and just after dark where baitfish have moved into the shallows. That action is hit’n miss, at best.

phs