Entry 218-1

Catching Big Bass at White Oak Plantation with Chad Brauer

Part 1: Every Fisherman’s Dream – Big Bass and Plenty of Them

Question: Trophy-bass lakes are springing-up around the country. Chad, you just finished filming an episode at one of these new trophy-bass lakes. Tell us where you were, what you did, and what you caught.

Brauer: I was fishing at White Oak Plantation, near Tuskegee, Alabama. The Pitmans, who own and manage the property, have two, 50-acre lakes that were stocked 2-years ago with Tiger Bass. This new strain of bass is a cross between a super-aggressive northern-strain largemouth and a Florida-strain largemouth, which produces bass 10 pounds or larger. Not only do these bass grow quickly and put on weight at a phenomenal rate, they are much-more receptive to artificial lures than the Florida-strain largemouth.

Question: How was your fishing?

Brauer: On the first day, we fished with Don Keller, one of the owners of American Sport Fish Hatchery in Montgomery, Alabama. Don and his partner, Barry Smith, helped design and stock the two lakes at White Oak with these newly-developed Tiger Bass. I was really interested to learn from Don that these bass can grow at a rate of 3 pounds per year. We were catching 2-year-old bass that weighed 5- and 6-pounds each. I can’t wait to return to White Oak 2 years from now. By then, those fish will weigh more than 10-pounds each. Even next year, the fish should be in the 8- to 9-pound range. All the fish were really healthy. We caught tons of bass that weighed from 3- to 6-pounds each. This is pretty-terrific fishing for 2-year-old bass.

Question: On what lures were you catching these bass?

Brauer: We fished several-different lures, but we caught the most bass on crankbaits, tubes and jigs.

Question: What crankbait were you using?

Brauer: We had great luck with the Strike King Series 5 crankbaits in both the Tennessee Shad and the Sexy Shad colors. There were a couple of humps and ridges out in the lake, and that Series 5 crankbait was just the right size for fishing that underwater structure. Once we located the school of bass, keeping the lure in front of that school at the depth at which they were feeding was really important. The Tennessee Shad and the Sexy Shad colors were our two best colors to fish.

Question: Kevin VanDam developed the Sexy Shad color. This year, we’ve written a lot about Kevin and his Sexy Shad color. Do you believe that color crankbait really makes a difference in the number of bass you catch?

Brauer: Well, you can’t argue with success. If the bass at White Oak hadn’t been biting the Sexy Shad, I wouldn’t have continued throwing it. That color may also have a lot to do with the confidence of the fisherman who’s using it. I can tell you this much – it produced for us. The Sexy Shad color looks an awful lot like the shad I see in the water, so I know it’s a good color.

Question: What depth of water were the bass at White Oak holding this past week in early September?

Brauer: We caught most of our bass where we found 5-foot-deep water dropping off into 12-foot-deep water. Later in the afternoon, the bass moved up on top of those ridges to feed more actively, just like you’d expect them to do in any river or reservoir.

Question: There are more trophy-bass lakes set up for the public to fish all over the nation. What’s your opinion of fishing one of these lakes like those at White Oak?

Brauer: This lake is great for an on-location fishing show. It eliminates some of the issues you have when you’re trying to film a TV show. You don’t have to deal with other boats being around you or the noise factor found on many public reservoirs. You also have more options, when you’re fishing for fresh fish that haven’t been harassed by a large number of other anglers. At a lake like this, you usually can film two episodes in 2 days, instead of spending 3 days filming one episode.

If you have a technique or a lure that’s new to you, or one you don’t have a lot of confidence in, White Oak and other trophy-bass lakes are goods place to test these new fishing tactics and lures where there’s plenty of big bass. For instance, you may go to the lakes at White Oak and decide you need to get better at crankbait fishing. At the lake, there are all types of underwater structure as well as visible structure for you to learn how to work a crankbait and practice fishing a crankbait.

All you need to know is what time of year the bass will be most-actively feeding on crankbaits at this particular lake. You can build your confidence on that fishing method. Then any time you have to fish a crankbait to catch bass, you not only know how to fish the crankbait, but you have the confidence that you can catch a bass on a crankbait, because you’ve done it at White Oak. These types of lakes are great for tournament fishermen who want to test lures and techniques and improve their skills. You also can have a lot of fun taking your wife or your children to a trophy-bass lake and enjoy a day of bass fishing and catching and releasing nice-size bass.

For more information on fishing at White Oak Plantation call (334) 727-9258, email hunt@whiteoakplantation.com, or visit www.whiteoakplantation.com.

You can contact American Sport Fish Hatchery at 334-281-7703 or by visiting www.americansportfish.com.

Next: Fishing the Tube

Contents:

• Part 1: Every Fisherman’s Dream – Big Bass and Plenty of Them
• Part 2: Fishing the Tube
• Part 3: Why I’d Fish a Trophy Lake like White Oak
• Part 4: Striper Time in Missouri
• Part 5: Midwest Bass Fishing Now