DECATUR, Ala.—It’s mid-May on the Tennessee River. Bass and bait are on the move, and that can only mean one thing at the St. Croix Bassmaster Elite at Wheeler Lake. Postspawn migrations are fully underway, and so is the final stage of the shad spawn. All of the above puts the anglers in intercept mode as the ecosystem settles into it deeper, offshore summer patterns.
On the Tennessee River, current generation is the leading cause of success for summertime bass fishing. The river is a continuous series of locks and dams designed for commerce and power generation, with the latter operation creating the ideal (or not) conditions for bass anglers. Baitfish movement caused by current stimulates feeding opportunities, as the bass stage behind underwater current breaks functioning as ambush points. Without TVA-generated current, bass suspend and scatter about the ledges, tough to pattern during the downtime.
That means taking into consideration the tailwater generation schedules of the dams at the uppermost end, and equating that to the current flowing into the next lake below. Today, that is an average of 16,165 cfs (cubic feet per second) out of Guntersville, with 25,800 cfs released from Wheeler into Wilson. The numbers say there will be moving water in favor of productive bass fishing, at least today.
“The tempo has increased for largemouth movement out of the spawning areas toward the river channel,” said Opens EQ angler Dale Hightower. “I found largemouth on secondary points, which is a textbook setup.”
Hightower noted the presence of a shad spawn. Wheeler has threadfin and gizzard shad, the latter known to spawn after the threadfin. Both are nocturnal breeders, so it’s unknown how long that bite is productive during the morning. An early 6 a.m. takeoff time should broaden the window of opportunity.
With the bass in a slight postspawn funk and challenging to pattern, capitalizing on the early morning shad spawn will be key. Kickstarting a limit early will make the game day much easier to manage as the anglers set out to intercept the migrating bass.
Trey Swindle, a northern Alabama native and skilled Tennessee River angler, noted the gizzard shad typically spawn on offshore bars, while the threadfin favors the shoreline, giving anglers two options.
“There are fish everywhere, spread out, because of the lack of current during practice,” Swindle said.
What could change that is above average rainfall across the river system from Alabama to the river’s headwaters in east Tennessee. The river is rising, and there is more rain forecast in the coming days. An increase in moisture and instability is setting up thunderstorms and rain, while an upper-level low tracks across the Tennessee River Valley.
What else is taking shape is the Bassmaster Opens EQ Angler of the Year race, as the fourth of nine events is underway. Leader John Garrett stands to gain points toward qualifying for the 2024 Bassmaster Elite Series. Garrett calls the west Tennessee portion of the river his home waters, setting him up to perform well here.
“The textbook says by now the largemouth should be on the ledges, but they are not yet fully there,” said the former Bethel University bass fishing.” The fish are near but very spread out, not yet concentrated like they do when the ledges are fully in play.”
They seem to be on the tail end of the shad spawn, somewhere between the secondary points and creeks and the river channel.”
Charlie Hartley discovered textbook scenarios for the river during practice, noting he found largemouth in the midrange postspawn strike zone between spawning pockets and the ledges.
“The largemouth were actively feeding on shad in the 75- to 80-degree water temperature range,” Hartley said.
The details will become more clear this afternoon as the anglers weigh-in at Ingalls Harbor at 2 p.m.
