SALISBURY, N.C. – The Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine Piedmont Division has reached the midpoint of the season, as the third event of the year will be held on High Rock Lake on May 16. The bass should be firmly in their postspawn routine for the event, and there will be several ways to catch them.
What to expect
North Carolina native Robert Walser’s BFL record includes an astounding 13 wins (not to mention a Toyota Series triumph), a pair of which came on High Rock. While he won’t be able to fish this event due to another conflicting tournament, he said the fishing has been solid on the lake, which is just a short drive from his home.
“The weights recently have been a little down from earlier in the year when it took 21 or 22 pounds to win everything, but it’s still pretty good,” he said. “The fish have been biting well all year, and right now, they have the postspawn thing going on after that first big wave came in. There will be some fish offshore, but a lot of them are still hanging around the bank.”
High Rock Lake is a noted dock-fishing lake, and Walser said that always plays, especially this time of year.
“It’s full of docks and shallow rock and that sort of thing that will play in this one, but you can also catch them offshore with forward-facing sonar,” he said. “Our water here doesn’t get that clear, but with the postspawn period, I think guys will be able to catch them with it offshore. I wouldn’t be shocked if it was won out deep – which for here is only around 10 feet – but the majority of the checks will probably come shallow.”
One wild card is the lower water levels, which have hampered many fisheries in the region. Walser said it has changed the fishing, but added that there is one benefit – more access.
“We’re in an extreme drought, and there are no bushes and hardly any laydowns in the water, so it’s all docks and rocks,” he said. “The lower water also affects the clarity a little bit and makes it a lot clearer, so you have to fish a little bit deeper than you normally would. But the lower water will open up some of the creeks that you normally can’t get to under the bridges without taking off your cowling and windshield. So, that will open up a whole lot more of the lake.”
Baits to bring
The first thing Walser said he’d tie on is some sort of flipping bait, whether it’s a jig or his go-to, a Zoom Brush Hog.
“I’d also bring a little crankbait with so many fish on the move during the postspawn and getting out on those little rock veins,” he said.
Walser is also predicting an early-morning shad spawn bite and said the hot bait to take advantage of it could run the gamut.
“A swim jig, swimbait – anything white,” he said. “It’s the time of year where you can have six or eight different baits on the deck trying to figure out which one they want, and that can change based on which creek you’re in.”
What will it take?
Last year, Mitch Drew won the May Piedmont Division event on High Rock with 22 pounds, 11 ounces. That was earlier than this year’s edition, but it falls close to Walser’s prediction.
“It’ll take at least 20 pounds to win, and I wouldn’t be shocked for it to take at least 14 pounds just to get a check, depending on how many boats they get,” he said.