New Species of Bass to be Introduced Into Lake Norman

 The North Carolina Wildlife Commission has announced that it is attempting to rid the lake of the Spotted Bass and will replace them with a species called the F1 bass or the Tiger bass. To speed up the removal of the spotted bass the rules have been changed. All limits for the spots have been removed. You can catch and keep as many as you want and there is no size limit.

As a replacement, they intend to start stocking the Tiger bass next year and continue at least 5 years. The tiger bass is a hybrid of the Florida largemouth and the Northern largemouth. It handles the cold winters better than other species and it grows much faster than the regular largemouth and supposedly is easier to catch (although that remains to be seen.) The Commission considers this an "experiment". I questioned them about the ability of the Hybrid to multiply and they indicated that this hybrid breed can reproduce in the lake, unlike most other Hybrids.

Some Interesting Activities Taking Place

 Several of us recently received a memo from the Wildlife Commission that the planned fish attractor program has been cancelled. The Commission had announced this new program several months ago and many of us volunteered to help with the program. The apparent reason for this cancellation was the objection by Duke Energy about the selected site requirements and also current Buoy requirements. Of course both of these are non-existent problems. Duke simply doesn't want anything placed in "their" lake. I am asking around and have contacted the Wildlife Commission to get a more sensible response to this decision. I have also requested from them, to provide me an interview so that I can write an article on this decision. I have yet to get a response.

Also I have heard that there are two changes in fishing rules. The first is that the length requirement on hybrids is being increased to 20 inches and also that the catch limit on spotted bass is going to be removed so that anglers can catch as many of this species as they wish. The purpose of this change is to try and eliminate all spotted bass from the lake. I have also expressed to the Commission that this rule would only make sense if there was a plan to start stocking largemouth to replace the spots. Apparently there is no such plan. I believe that these rule changes will eventually eliminate Lake Norman as a good fishery and I am concerned about Duke Energy's motives. I will keep you updated as I get responses from the Wildlife Commission.

The Waters Are Changing

 Not much new going on around the lake these days. The water temperature is still in the high 80's and although there are a few nice fish to be caught, they are few and far between. Most fish are caught in 20 plus feet of water and there are very few schools being spotted on the sonar screen. The hot water and constant sun has again this year caused grass to grow where it hasn't grown before. The grass is OK as far as the fish are concerned but when fishing deep, you have to check your lines regularly. Even a small amount of grass on the hook will cause the fish not to bite. I have caught a surprising number of gar this summer. This week I caught one that was nearly 4 feet long. There are a few shad schools showing up in the coves but not as many as in past years. I always use the bait sightings as an indicator of fish activity because he shad are the primary food for every species of fish in the lake. Haven' caught any crappie lately, the channel cats are much bigger than they have been and the blue cats have also been rare this summer. They should start getting active as the water cools. The bait situation has stabilized and shiners are again available but the price has gone up a little and the shiners are smaller than usual but still effective for the bass and other species. Keep fishing guys, the good months are about to arrive soon.

Bob Curan Passing

 It is with a sad heart that I report that our friend and fellow fishermen Bob Curan has passed away. Bob fought a huge fight with a great deal of determination. His passing will be a loss to the community and certainly to the fishing family that loved and respected him. Bob was a friend and always a gentleman. he will be greatly missed. He will remain in our prayers.

Some Random Information

 Just a few bits of information for better fishing. I contacted The Angler and they will supply Boaters Warehouse with the latest edition by Wednesday of next week (19th). They had a mix up on the last delivery but warehouse will be back on the schedule next week. Bait suppliers are back supplying shiners again although theu are only delivering once a week. (not sure what day). Be careful however, for some reason these new fish are hard to keep alive. I added two bubblers to my tank and that helps significantly. Apparently the oxygen content of the water is much more important than the water temperature. On the hook the shiners are not living long. I'm not sure why this has changed buy so much has happened this season that it could be that we are getting to the end of the recent batch of hatched fish. This week fishing has not been good for me either for catching or surviving the heat. Saw fish on the screen but they were not biting. Lake boating traffic has slacked off significantly which is good for fishing, perhaps the fish will soon recognize that and start biting. Any of you that are catching fish should let me know.

The Bait Update

Just when I thought we were through the bait shortage,its on again. Seems that the supplier is now delivering to the stores only once a week. he is delivering both shiners and salties but the shiners are very hard to keep alive. Bought two dozen this morning and by the time I got home 6 were already dead. I'm pumping extra air into the tank and that helps with the salties but doesn't seem to help with the shiners. I'm getting reports from other anglers that the catch is picking up all around the lake. I haven't seen it yet except that the bass are bigger then usual. Keep fishing guys, it's bound to get better as the water cools. I also can't tell you where to get your copy of The Angler. They stopped publishing for a while but now are back in business but they seem to have changed their drop points. I contacted them yesterday to see where they are dropping but have not yet received an answer. 

Sorry For The Short break

 It's been a couple of weeks since I posted here and I apologize for that. I have had boat troubles and also been very busy doing nothing but I'm fishing again. It's starting to get interesting again on the water. For a couple of weeks the bite was very bad but even now with temperatures of the water near 90 degrees, I'm starting to get interesting action again. I am nearly obsessed by a very big flathead catfish that I estimate is approaching 70 pounds. I had him to the boat a couple weeks ago and he broke off but I did get to see him. I had him on again last week and another angler on my boat hooked him yesterday and again he broke off. The big fish is moving around in an area  of about 100 yards around but he seems to stay in that general area. Flatheads seem to be somewhat territorial so that's not surprising. The Gar are also very active lately in the shallow water. Had a group out Thursday and they hooked this 36 inch gar.

The bass have been a little scarce but when caught they are big ones. Had a friend of my son's out yesterday and he landed several over three pounds.

The bait situation is variable lately. Both shiners and Salty's are available and they both work pretty well if you use the smaller one less than 3 inches. The Salty's are supposed to be cheaper but the stores are charging a premium for them, more than the shiners. Oh well, that another result of the virus I guess.