HENDERSON, N.C. – Kerr Lake is primed to host the second event of the year for the Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine Piedmont Division on April 25. The fishing on the lake has been on fire, and while the bass spawn will likely be wrapped up, there will be plenty of ways to catch hungry postspawn bass in this event.
What to expect
Lexington, North Carolina’s Chris Baldwin has a long and storied history with MLF, having fished 275 events to date, including three BFL wins on Kerr. He also just finished third in the late March Shenandoah Division event on the fishery, and he didn’t hold back when explaining how well the lake has been fishing recently.
“The fishing has been excellent – not just excellent, but out of this world,” he said. “I don’t know if it’s the amount of bait in the lake or what, but you don’t catch any poor-looking, skinny fish; they’re all fat and healthy. The other thing that has helped is the spotted bass population. They’ve gotten a lot bigger, and they are now a player, especially if you have a kicker or two of largemouth.”
The bass in the lake are in full-on spawn mode, but that should be nearly wrapped up by the time of this tournament. Thus, Baldwin thinks targeting the shad spawn is likely to be the winning approach.
“The bass spawn should be pretty much done by then, but the first few hours of the day around the shad spawn will be critical,” he said. “Sometimes you can get it to last a little bit longer in the dirtier water after the sun gets up. The shad spawn dies off, but a lot of those fish will stay up there super shallow, and you can continue to catch them.”
Running up the lake to dirtier water could be a move that anglers will consider.
“The river is always a factor, and the Occoneechee area is always a good place, because there are so many released fish up there from other tournaments,” Baldwin shared. “You can even go up further and find some good fish towards Bluestone, Buffalo, and even further up the Staunton or Dan rivers. That’s a long run from Nutbush Park, where we’re launching, but it can be really good.”
Baits to bring
Banking on a shad spawn bite, Baldwin says ChatterBaits, spinnerbaits and topwaters will play early in the morning until the feeding frenzy dies down. After that, he says dragging a Carolina rig should surely put some fish in the boat.
What will it take?
Austin Woody won the recent Shenandoah Division event on Kerr with 20 pounds, 4 ounces. Baldwin says that mark is possible again for the Piedmont Division competitors, but he guessed the winning mark be a little lower due to fish weighing less after the spawn.
“I don’t think the winner will quite have 20 pounds, but with the ‘Scoping factor, you never know,” he said. “It’ll definitely take at least 17 or 18 pounds to win it.”