Photo by Ron Sinfelt

Hoosier State anglers are enjoying great largemouth bass fishing these days. The state’s lakes and rivers of all sizes are pumping out brawny bass and the fishing is only going to get better. As the weather warms up this month, start looking to the southern part of the state for early-season action and then work your way north.

If you want to shake off the winter blues on waters that promise good spring bassin’, then these are the lakes to try.

PATOKA LAKE
“Bass fishing at Patoka has remained about the same over the last five years or so with low numbers but some nice-sized fish,” said Dan Carnahan, a District 7 fisheries management biologist.

March and April are the hot bass-fishing months at Patoka. The spawn usually peaks during the last half of April and early-season anglers should start out by fishing up in the creeks in the shallow water or work slowly along the cliff-like banks on the main lake.

Tournament anglers are enjoying admirable catches on Patoka, too. Big-bass weigh-ins in 2006 topped out at 7.31 pounds with an average weigh-in of over 5 pounds. Thirty-one percent of these weighed-in bass were at least 18 inches and 7 percent were 20 inches or longer.

“The best way to bass fish Patoka is to break the lake down,” said Jeff Miley of Jeff’s Bait and Guns. “The temptation is to hop, skip and jump around. That doesn’t work very well here.”

Slowing down and fishing the cover thoroughly is the key to success, Miley said. Find a creek channel, work it hard and experiment with baits. Fish the points and the windy side of the banks the same way.

The bass will dictate what they’re going to hit despite your best efforts. As both a tournament angler and bait shop owner, he’s found that the hot Patoka baits change from year to year. It was Rapalas and Rogues one year and plastic lizards the next. Spinnerbaits and jigs take their share of bass, but only when these finicky bass feel like taking them.

Miley’s top spots for springtime action include Painter Creek Cove and in the river. The cove covers about 1,000 acres of water and warms up sooner than the rest of the lake. Fishing upstream in the river can be either a boom-or-bust bite, but when the bass are there, topwater baits take plenty of fish in the to 3- to 4-pound range.

Tournament angler Paul Jolley spends a good deal of time at Patoka. He’s well equipped with a Ranger Z21 bass boat with a 250 Pro XS Mercury motor and Lowrance electronics. He takes success seriously.