TALLAPOOSA
RIVER IMPOUNDMENT'S
LAKE HARRIS
Impounded 1983
Lake Level: Down 10 feet
Spring Bass Fishing Lake Harris on the Tallapoosa
River System
Most anglers nowadays are looking for a real wall hanger
(or a replica mount) largemouth bass. Finding a trophy largemouth
bass weighing 10 pounds or better, is becoming more and more
difficult, even when fishing every major reservoir found
throughout the state. This task, many anglers are seeking
to complete, could actually take a lifetime or for many...it
may never happen at all.
There are thousands of anglers that never even experience
the thrill of hooking into a bass exceeding that magical
10 pound mark, much less landing one, when they do. Hooking
up with a largemouth bass (hopefully over 10 pounds), is
only possible if you are fishing the right lake, with the
right offering, at the right time. All of these variables
have to come into place to even get a shot at a fish of a
lifetime. Truth is, there are only a handful of man made
lakes in Alabama where this is possible.
One Lake an angler can really have a good chance of hooking
into one of these true, trophy largemouth bass (all throughout
the months of March, April and May), is Lake Harris. This
10,660 acre lake situated near the town of Wedowee, in mid
Alabama, stretches 27 nautical miles and is Alabama
s youngest impoundment. Lake Harris may be the last body
of water to be impounded in Alabama. It was impounded in
1983, backing up the waters of The Little Tallapoosa River
and The Big Tallapoosa River. Fishing Lake Harris this spring
will help in narrowing your search for a true, trophysized
largemouth bass, one exceeding 10 pounds. So, look no more.
Lake Harris, on the upper Tallapoosa River in mideastern
Alabama (near the town of Wedowee), has yielded many trophy
bass in the 10 pound plus category each Spring. In years
past Lake Harris has yielded dozens of largemouth bass in
the teens. There are three bass (all exceeding 16 pounds),
on record that almost broke the state record, including a
17 pounder found deceased years ago.
March is just the beginning of the many shallowwater visits
these monster largemouth bass will make towards the shallows.
April will show spawning bass found lake wide on this small
Lake. May will show some big aggressive female bass as they
come off the beds, hungry and feeding in or very near shallow
water.
By May Lake Harris will be back to full pool, after being
down over 10 feet this winter. This rising water will spread
out postspawn bass in the newly flooded shallows. During
this time lake waters are rising, while also warming up each
week. Topwater explosions will dominate the postspawn fishing
patterns, as some huge bass come off the beds and display
some very voracious appetites. So here's some monthbymonth
bass fishing tips, for tackling some of Alabama's biggest
largemouth bass this spring on Lake Harris
Lake Harris in March
With the lake still down in March, your search for these
bass will be narrowed as Spring gets underway. However,
there is still plenty of deep water for these bass to retreat
to when cold fronts and high pressure conditions, send
them to the deep. Warming trends, in which you have several
consecutive days and nights of warm weather, will move
these bass shallow on mainlake and deep creek points. Some
bass will forage up in the nearby shallows of these points
in small coves and pockets, in search of food and prime
bedding sites. With water temperatures in the midtoupper
60's many BIG bass will bed early...if conditions are right,
usually on or near a full moon.
Many of these bass suspend during these prespawn times,
so lures such as Pradco
s (www.lurenet.com) Excaliber suspending jerkbaits, Excaliber's
Fat Free Shad crankbaits, Spro's (www.spro.com) slow rising
crankbait 25 and heavy model spinnerbaits, such as The Duce
duel arm spinnerbait (www.theduce.com) in the 1/2 to one
ounce models, often fool trophy bass when other anglers fail
to entice a strike. Spinnerbaits, in halftothreequarters
of an ounce models, in colors of chartreuse & white,
with BIG willow leaf blade combos of silver and gold, in
blade sizes of # 6 to # 8, usually get the Big Bass bite.
BIG bass are found throughout Lake Harris, so use Trilene
Big Game line in the 1525 pound test category, with these
lures.
Lake Harris in April
In anticipation of heavy Spring rains, Lake Harris is often
still down for winter pool during April. But as the water
level returns to full pool near the end of the month, the
bass move up shallower each day. The ticket now is to find
the warmest water available and look for shad or baitfish
activity and bass busting or feeding on top. With stained
to muddy water conditions (often so common during spring)
these bass can be very shallow. Coupled with water temperatures
consistently rising into the 70's, spawning bass will be
lake wide, usually found in less than 5 feet of water during
April.
However, upriver spawning bass can give way to downriver
prespawning bass during these times. The much deeper and
clearer water at the junction of the big and Little Tallapoosa
Rivers at midlake, to the downriver portions, takes longer
to warm and can be as much as 510 degrees cooler during April.
Many bass will be bedding at these times, both male and female,
and two lures will cover both top and bottom dwelling bass
in shallow water. For covering a lot of water fast, the Buzzbait
will generate a lot of strikes from active bass cruising
the shallows. Always include a trailer hook for shortstriking
bass. Less active bass bedding near thick wood cover can
be enticed to strike with very loud jigs.
Lake Harris in May:
This month is hailed as topwater month among most fishing
enthusiasts. Lake Harris is no exception to that rule.
After these monster bass bed, many females return to thick
cover or deeper water for the Summer, but before they do,
they spend some time recuperating and feeding in shallow
water. This is when topwater explosions can surprise even
veteran anglers, unaware of the heartstopping strikes these
10 pound plus bass display. Best Lures? In May, bass will
hit everything in the box, from top to bottom. Still certain
model topwater lures, entice more strikes than other surface
lures.
Schooling bass during May, can often be just a good cast
away, when suddenly surfacing bass attack a school of hapless
baitfish. There is one lure you should have rigged for just
such an occasion. It is a lure that entices strikes from
bass that don't even know your around. This is due to the
long cast's one can acquire with Pradco
s, Jimmy Houston Signature series Zara Super Spook. It is
much heavier than earlier model zara spooks, meaning longer
cast's and less wind resistance. This oversized offering,
also has three hooks instead of two, with super sharp Excaliber
rotating hooks for more holding power. The Zara Super Spook
comes in an awfully, realisticlooking holographic finish,
now with a loud rattle chamber and some very distinctlooking
eyes. See: www.lurenet.com
There are many lures that will fool these monster bass on
Lake Harris during Spring, to many to list for now. As during
any outing, its up to the bass to decide on a favorite and
the angler to experiment, until he finds the key to unlocking
the mystery of the day's bite. From top to bottom, these
bass can be caught with a variety of offerings. See www.spro.com
or www.lurenet.com, www.genelarew.com or www.theduce.com
for a wide choice of soft plastics, crankbaits, spinnerbaits,
jigs and trailers and topwater lures.
Texas
and Carolinarigged worms of all sizes, lizards, crayfish
imitations, jig combos and even small finesse lures are
great for these often slow, bottom feeding bass. Crankbaits,
rattling lipless lures and hard jerkbaits fool a lot of
trophy bass with unexpected, instinct strikes. Topwaters,
soft & hard
jerkbaits, floating worms, lizards, and of course spinnerbaits
of all sizes, are just a few more of the shallowtodeep water
offerings to try during the shallow water months of March,
April and May.
A
few words of caution: There are BIG bass in Lake Harris.
Many bass from 1016 pounds have been caught each spring,
by the angler fortunate enough to land one of these tackletesting
bass. Always bring a good rod, reel and big, long handled
landing net. Sharpen or replace all hooks, check your reel's
drag, use 20 to 25 pound test Trilene Big Game line and
be prepared. Many anglers just go home with the old tale
of, "the
one that got away". Don't let this season
Big Bass Disaster happen to you, due to these often, overlooked
angler errors.
Looking for a real, trophy sized bass this spring? Always
call on Reeds Guide Service...first! " Fishing, guiding and
exploring all of Alabama's lakes for over 40 years," including
Lake Harris, since it was impounded.
Remember, a guided fishing trip with Reeds Guide Service
makes a great gift for Birthdays, Fathers day and Christmas
(certificates available), for those loved ones that love
to fish. Several qualified guides and boats available year
round for multiple parties and corporate guided trips.
Practice catch and release year-round especially this Spring.
You won't regret it!
Good Fishin'...
Reed Montgomery / Reeds Guide Service
Website: www.fishingalabama.com
