Dale Hollow

[Chefdave]

Hey guys, I'll be at Dale from 6/10-6/18 on my honeymoon. we have a houseboat rented out of Cedar Hill resort. I haven't fished this lake for at least 10 years and was hoping to get a little help on what to throw, and general patterns for that time of year. Not much of a smallmouth fisherman although I'd like to be. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!

[mhall]

My lovely bride and myself spent a week fishing on Reelfoot on our honeymoon, she' a keeper too, well sometimes. Wormy is right the night bite is looming large it's fixin to be go time. Usually the first full moon in June cause the crawfish to do their annual mating ritual, which means they get active at night and shallow. They make alot of noise and movement in the rocks when the are doing this, this drives them ole brown fish crazy. May be a bit early yet but I believe I'd give it a try anyway. Oh and by the way congratulations, and may you and your wife have a safe trip and a long happy marriage together, tightlines, Mark.

[Chefdave]

Thanks for the kind words Mark. I'm planning on fishing as much as possible, that is when we aren't, well you know. Anyway I am really looking forward to this trip. Not only because of the occasion but the fact that I desperately need a vacation! Anyway, thanks again!

[plowboy]

They were tearing the rod out of my hands last week on a 6" strait tailed worm fished like a jerkbait with no weight. They seem to be in pockets near the mouth of creeks. Early is better. Not much luck on flats with the worm. I bet a senko would work also. I'm sure there are other patterns going but this worked for me. Fish on the Tennessee side hit a Ky blue worm but the Kentucky fish hammered the Vol Orange worm. Just joking about the blue worm.

[Chefdave]

One more question for you guys, If I'm fishing at night, can I get away with using heavier flourescent line or do I still need to be using 8# flourocarbon? I fish baitcasting equipment about 90% of the time, but do have a couple of really good spinning rigs, I just prefer the Baitcasters.

[mhall]

>One more question for you guys,
>If I'm fishing at night,
>can I get away with
>using heavier flourescent line or
>do I still need to
>be using 8# flourocarbon?
>I fish baitcasting equipment about
>90% of the time, but
>do have a couple of
>really good spinning rigs, I
>just prefer the Baitcasters.


Depends on what you are fishing. If fishing jigs and plastics you will probably do better with being able to see your line under the black light so use flourescent. If you are using a spinnerbait or cranks you could use whatever you want including flouocarbon. Also don't forget about the early topwater bite that could be going on at time. Have that spook ready for dawn in case they come up in the jumps, you'll be ready. Throw beyond where they are busting and work that spook through the middle and hang on tight.

[Tnstratos283]

mhall: I have a question for you that I would really appreciate some help on since you seem very knowledgeable on the line discussion. I fish dale hollow some at night with usually both spinning reels and baitcasters. I perfer the baitcaster, but will usually end up as the night goes on with the spinning rod due to cast control, in lure placement, and bottom line my eyes aren't what they use to be on picking out the back lashes especially at night so I get frustrated and lay it down. I have always fished with 14-17lb. flourscent mono to see the line while fishing a jig at night. However I think I am trying to fish the jig much like a worm bite, when you feel the tap tap reel down get the slack out of the line and set the hook and walaha NOTHING'S there. I have tried to disclipine(sp?) myself to jerk first and then reel and it has been a hurdle to overcome. I have never fished with braid or flourcarbon line, but have read and been told there is no strech in these lines which seems like it would be the better choice to fish a jig with. My question to you is this: Do they make a good quality line in the flouocarbon or braid, which ever is best, that is flourscent so a person can see it at night and still have the advantage of a no strech line to jig fish with and still have the senitivity as with mono? Sorry to be so long on the post and probably a dumb question to you, but I catch a few on the jig, however I miss alot on it too. Just trying to narrow the odds in my favor alittle more of having something on the end of the line when I do get to go. Thanks for any input you can share would be great...283 in middle Tn.

[mhall]

> mhall: I have a question
>for you that I would
>really appreciate some help on
>since you seem very knowledgeable
>on the line discussion. I
>fish dale hollow some at
>night with usually both spinning
>reels and baitcasters. I perfer
>the baitcaster, but will usually
>end up as the night
>goes on with the spinning
>rod due to cast control,
>in lure placement, and bottom
>line my eyes aren't what
>they use to be on
>picking out the back lashes
>especially at night so I
>get frustrated and lay it
>down. I have always fished
>with 14-17lb. flourscent mono to
>see the line while fishing
>a jig at night. However
>I think I am trying
>to fish the jig much
>like a worm bite, when
>you feel the tap tap
>reel down get the slack
>out of the line and
>set the hook and walaha
>NOTHING'S there. I have tried
>to disclipine(sp?) myself to jerk
>first and then reel and
>it has been a hurdle
>to overcome. I have
>never fished with braid or
>flourcarbon line, but have read
>and been told there is
>no strech in these lines
>which seems like it would
>be the better choice to
>fish a jig with. My
>question to you is this:
>Do they make a good
>quality line in the flouocarbon
>or braid, which ever is
>best, that is flourscent so
>a person can see it
>at night and still have
>the advantage of a no
>strech line to jig fish
>with and still have the
>senitivity as with mono? Sorry
>to be so long on
>the post and probably a
>dumb question to you, but
>I catch a few on
>the jig, however I miss
>alot on it too. Just
>trying to narrow the odds
>in my favor alittle more
>of having something on the
>end of the line when
>I do get to go.
>Thanks for any input you
>can share would be great...283
>in middle Tn.

I agree with alot of what ployboy has told you, and there are some good quality lines out there to choose from. At night if I'm fishing a jig or plastics I prefer flouresent under the ole blacklight. Because I've taught myself to fish by feel more on finesse fishing instead of line watching, I sometimes will fish jigs on flourocarbon. During the day in super clear water such as Dale or Cumberland I almost always use flourocarbon line. As ployboy pointed out maybe there isn't anything to it, but to me it means everything. My bite and catch ratio increased dramatically after swithing to the flourocarbon lines. P-line is my favorite and I rarely go over 12lb. test. Fred McClintock is a absolute legend in fishing and has forgot more about catching smallmouth than I will ever learn. However all that being said he and his clients fish alot and I mean alot with live bait. Therefore maybe the line choices aren't as big a deal as chunkin and windin with various lures. Ployboy catches alot of super nice brown bass and has his way of thinking. I catch my share and fish Cumberland more that Dale and I'm real believer in light as you can get by with and flourocarbon P-line. It's a personal choice and confidence thing in my opinion. Ive been on the big C and have guys in my boat throwing the same thing as me with flouresent line and I'm catching two or three to their one with the flourocarbon, why ??? Also remember this, the flourocarbon isn't good for everything. For example don't use it with topwater baits because it sinks and causes your lures to dive instead of walk or spit. Buzzbaits are o.k. but any pause topwater use mono. For jigs and plastics it's great because it sinks and you get a quicker more vertical fall. Sorry for being so long winded but it was the only way for me to explain my thoughts on this debated topic. Make your own choices and experiment and tell us how you do, I would be interested to see what your results are and with what direction you pick. This I know for sure smallmouth ARE NOT largemouth and I sincerely believe they most times require a more calculated approach, any other words they are harder to catch on a consistent basis, so you need every edge you can get. Oh and when you feel that tap on a jig or it gets a little mushy feeling cross his eyes do not hesitate. When you feel that hit it's all the way in his mouth 99.9% of the time. Good luck and tightlines, Mark.

[plowboy]

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON May-26-06 AT 12:53PM (EST)[/font][p]Thats right everyone has an thier own opinion. Confidence is a big part. I can only go by my own experience. I know alot of pro's were using the small flourocarbon on the Cumberland tournament and some switched to 10 lb line after breaking off a few times. Most of the guys I know that do well in local tournaments on Cumberland use mostly baitcasters with fairly heavy line or at least 8 lb on spinning reels but I don't know what brand. Big game was one I heard mentioned. As far as Fred McClintock goes he really doesn't do the live bait thing that much. He is more into the blade baits, jigs, crankbaits, jerkbaits, grubs, spinnerbaits, tail spinners and yes the float-n-fly in winter even though thats not his favorite method. He actually doesn't like flourocarbon because of the knot strenth but I have a friend that does very well that loves it and has landed some huge stripers while fishing the float-n-fly on 8 lb flourocarbon. I'm not saying that clearer line never help just that I've had good luck on clear blue. Also Dale and Cumberland are not always the gin clear lakes that people make them out to be at all times. Sometimes the water can have plenty of color and you can travel a few miles and get into gin clear water. Rain, wind and other factors will have alot to do with water clarity. Anyway most of the pro's were using flourocarbon (on clear lakes)so that may tell you something. Its getting more popular all the time. I mostly swim a grub, jig, jerkbait or floating worm with good sucess on the clear blue. But this winter when fishing the float -n-fly I will have some clear line tied on because the bass will have longer to check the bait out under the float and the water tends to be clearer. Fred McClintock has very strong opinions about things and often goes against the grain of what is thought to be fact. Such as small lures for smallmouth. He has caught some of the largest of his smallmouth at Dale while fishing for Muskie with extremely large baits (were talking 7+ pound fish). But he also uses small lures most of the time. He goes against the grain on alot of other standard smallmouth fads also but I'll let him tell you about that. Always good to hear a mix of views on fishing. Just like religion and politics, no two people see it just alike. Which is fine by me, thats alot of what makes fishing so much fun. At night though you can get by with the braided line and larger lures if that was your question and yes they make it in flourescent but I wouldn't use it during the day. I have days when I don't think anyone could out fish me two to one and there are other days a kid with a can of worms probably does better. Good luck, nice post, love all the different views. If you need extra sensitivity flourocarbon would be the best choice during the day due to the strech of mono. Mono is probably the least sesitive of all the lines but also one of the best handling.

[mhall]

Ployboy, also nice post to you as well, and I certainly hope I did not offend you in any way. I have read and enjoyed all your posts in the past and respect your views and abilities as a fisherman. Most of the time I use 8 and 10lb. flouro. P-line makes a flourocarbon coated line that gives you the less visibility with the superior knot strengh as you are correct the knot breakage or slippage of flourocarbon can be a problem. You ought to try this line it's good stuff, and you can pull trees off the bottom with 10lb sometimes. In closing I would say I would like to fish with you sometime, as a decent smallmouth fisherman can always learn something from a fellow angler such as yourself. I fish the west end of Cumberland most of the time, therefore I speak of the clear water alot. Ocassional I'll venture up past Conley to the east end of lake and fish the dirtier, skinnier water but since I'm in love with them ole brown fish I always find my way back to my favorite haunts on the west end of the lake. I'm still learning every time out and hope to continue to learn until I die, about our great sport of fishing. I hope I did not come off as a no it all, because I'm anything but that. Those two lakes have almost brought me to humble pie tears before, and I'm sure they will again. Take care, Mark.

[plowboy]

mhall no I'm not offended for a minute. I'm not the greatest fisherman but I have good days now and then. I am more partial to Dale Hollow even though I live closer to Cumberland. Dale has a lot of structure, weeds, clay banks and well defined creek channels where Cumberland is mostly verticle banks. At Dale I know that the smallmouth spawn on long gradual sloping points, clay banks and large flats with deep water near by. On Cumberland I couldn't tell you much because there are almost no spawinig flats and very little clay. Very hard lake to pattern. What little I know about fishing comes from articles by Fred McClintock which I collect from In-Fisherman and Bassmaster. So I'm not saying I'm a great fisherman just a fair fisherman. I am blessed to be around people that fish Cumberland 5 day a week some times so this is where I get alot of my information. They know where the stumps are and the better places to fish because they are out there so often so alot of what I say is second hand info. Cumberland is tough for me but Dale is fairly easy in the spring. If the fish are not on the flats they are near the flats in deeper water usually. Billy Westmoreland put out a map of Dale showing all the spawing points and best fishing area's and this map (which some people make fun of) is very accurate for Dale but the one he put out for Cumberland is pretty useless I have found. Of course he hasn't spent the time on Cumberland that he did on Dale. So Billy Westmoreland's map and Fred McClintocks article are my best knowlege for fishing Dale. If you ever get a chance to fish with Fred I would highly recomend it in the spring. Book early because he stays booked up. I guess the most amazing thing about fishing with him is how far off shore he stayed even on deep points. Sometime when fishing flats you will look like you are in the middle of the lake but it may only be 8' deep dropping into deeper water. He has beliefs that would contradict many smallmouth aritcles but he puts fish in the boat for alot of people. He's definately not a bank beater. If any of you can pick up Billy Westmoreland Dale Hollow map I would encourage it. It's not just a scam. He has marked areas where he has caught the most fish over the years and if you study the countours you can see just why. Most of the spawing areas have a very gradual taper but have deep water near or at least a small creek channel that swings near. Well sorry if I left the impression I some great smallmouth fisherman. I just read alot about Dale and use this information when fishing and it works if you are patient and stick with it. Swimming a grub on a clay flat just off the bottom is still the best method I have ever used at Dale. It seems so simple that no one much uses this method. You may go hours without a bite then catch several fish in a row. Also the very early morning bite is so important at Dale. I have caught most of my fish before 10 am. I just caught 3 large smallmouth Sunday by using a bright trick worm like a jerk bait, I was just going on what other fisherman had told me and believed it would work and it did. I just had to keep moving until I found the fish. They were not on the flats as I found out after fishing several hours but were in small pockets near the mouth of creeks ( in this case the creeks just south of the lodge at the state park near the Tennessee line across from trooper island). I will probably switch to night fishing for the rest of the Summer now though as will most of the guides. Fred will switch to striper fishng on the river for the rest of Summer. Good luck everyone.

[Tnstratos283]

Thanks alot guys for your response and indepth detail of the line. Probably going to go with a couple rods spooled up with berkley fireline and some p-line in the flouocarbon both fiourscent to compare them between each other. I really don't know what pound test would work the best, might try to go about in the same size as the mono that I am now throwing till I get use to "the curve" as you mentioed plowboy whatever that meant. I have been told and read that braid is bad to break at the knot especially if you tie a palamore knot, which is what I always use. I wet the line and always have on the mono when chincing it down to ensure a smooth tight knot against the lures eye and to keep friction down for possible break off which rarely happens to me, but I retie often especially when I get hung up and get free. On the other hand 8 lb. might be the trick to throw a 1/4 oz. jig to get some distance with on such a light jig, especially on dale where you don't need to be right up on the bank to reach it as clear as it usually is. I just hate the thought of trying to pick the knots out of the smaller line since just starting to use it and more especially at night. I feel more comfortable with the larger line. I think also it would be good to try both out during the daylight hours some before trying it out the first time at night. Again thanks guys for your comments and help. I appreciate it...283