april bass fishing

[ranger1982]

Hey Guys,
I will be at winnipesaukee the last weekend in april. Was just trying to get some info on the bass fishing during that time. Thanks

[PaugusBayFireFighter]

Originally Posted by ranger1982

Hey Guys,
I will be at winnipesaukee the last weekend in april. Was just trying to get some info on the bass fishing during that time. Thanks

It really depends on the water temperature. I went back and looked. I wrote this last May 1st. Hopefully we will be a couple weeks earlier this spring.

"The magic water temperature has been reached with these last few days of sun. Pre spawn bass have finally come up from their deep winter haunts and are showing up around the docks and rocky shallows on the north end of Paugus Bay. Caught my first bass of the season today. Fished the rocks and docks around Christmas Island where there are nesting flats and a drop off. Used a few different rubber worms and had a few strikes. Pumpkin with red flake on a drop shot rig got some attention. Also got a couple strikes using a Sexy Frog where the swarms of flies have been hanging. Finicky fish but it's great to see the slobs slowly meandering under the dock.
After I posted I landed my second...pumpkin w/ red flake...sunny flat."

[MikeF-NH]

given the temps we are seeing and the ice on the lake now...I'm guessing we won't see Ice out until the last week in April...at least. There was much less ice and "warmer" temps to this point last year. Of course bass bite year round (just ask the ice fishermen) but there will probably still be at least some ice on the lake at that time this year IMHO

[GusMan]

The bass fishing on lake Winnie at the end of April will definitely depend on the water temperature. The good news is that regardless of the temps, fish can be caught with the right approach. I have fished Winnie in the spring for more than 20 years, as my bass club usually opens our season there with a tourney on the second weekend in May. The ice *should* be out by then, if history can predict such things.

As stated before, the water temp will definitely dictate where and how you should fish as well as whether you'd prefer fishing for largemouth or smallmouth bass. If you don't have a preference, I'd suggest targeting smallmouth. As I think they are easier to figure out at that time of the year.

First, get a good topo map of Winnie (Bizer and Duncan Press both offer good ones) to scout out locations near where you are staying (fun winter stuff!). Look for rocky/sandy areas near deeper water. Navigation markers are a good starting point.

Now... water temps. Below 50 degrees... think deep drop-offs next to spawning flats. Fish blade baits in 15 to 30 ft of water. Once the water warms into the 50's, the smallies will start coming up to spawn and you should fish suspending jerkbaits in 4-20 feet. Once the water gets into the high 50's-low 60's, the fish will move up onto the flats to spawn. Soft baits like senkos or plastic worms will work very well in 3-10 feet of water.

Of course there are a million ways to catch fish and you should fish what you're comfortable with... but the info above will give you little head start on where to get a smallie or two.

When the time comes, I'll try to remember to come back here and report any first hand information I may have.

Best Regards,

Gusman

[GusMan]

The bass fishing on lake Winnie at the end of April will definitely depend on the water temperature. The good news is that regardless of the temps, fish can be caught with the right approach. I have fished Winnie in the spring for more than 20 years, as my bass club usually opens our season there with a tourney on the second weekend in May. The ice *should* be out by then, if history can predict such things.

As stated before, the water temp will definitely dictate where and how you should fish as well as whether you'd prefer fishing for largemouth or smallmouth bass. If you don't have a preference, I'd suggest targeting smallmouth. As I think they are easier to figure out at that time of the year.

First, get a good topo map of Winnie (Bizer and Duncan Press both offer good ones) to scout out locations near where you are staying (fun winter stuff!). Look for rocky/sandy areas near deeper water. Navigation markers are a good starting point.

Now... water temps. Below 50 degrees... think deep drop-offs next to spawning flats. Fish blade baits in 15 to 30 ft of water. Once the water warms into the 50's, the smallies will start coming up to spawn and you should fish suspending jerkbaits in 4-20 feet. Once the water gets into the high 50's-low 60's, the fish will move up onto the flats to spawn. Soft baits like senkos or plastic worms will work very well in 3-10 feet of water.

Of course there are a million ways to catch fish and you should fish what you're comfortable with... but the info above will give you little head start on where to get a smallie or two.

When the time comes, I'll try to remember to come back here and report any first hand information I may have.

Best Regards,

Gusman

[ranger1982]

thanks for the info everyone really appreciate it.

[GusMan]

Hey Ranger1982,

Did you end up fishing up at Winnie at the end of April? How'd you do?

I figured I'd check back and give a recent report.

My club had a small bass tournament on Saturday, May 10 launching out of Harilla Landing which is at the end of Long Island in the very central part of the lake. After launching, I immediate checked the water temperature. It was quite cool for this time of year averaging right around 51-53 degrees at the surface. At that water temp, the smallmouth should be thinking about moving up to spawn. So I started searching the spawning flates with suspending jerkbaits. The bite was pretty slow and the fish I did catch were on the smallish side. So I decided to fish deeper.

I moved off the flats and into deeper water next to them and started tossing blade baits (Silver Buddies - a great cold water bait) and immedately started catching better fish. I moved around quite a bit but never found that nice school of fish from which you can load the boat!

I ended up catching 15-18 fish from 1-3 pounds, all smallmouith. My two best (that I weighed in) came to just over 5 lbs, not great, but good enough for 3rd place and lunker SM (just under 3 pounds)

Most reported pretty slow catches, but a couple guys loaded the boat. One member reported catching 40+ smallies, but couldn't find the larger fish. He too caught them on blade baits.

With the warmer temperatures, the fish should head shallow very soon.

Good Luick!

Cheers....

Gusman