Occoneechee timing?

[AKRISONER]

Hey Guys,

An annual tradition that took a hit with covid is finally back on the table for next spring and the boys and I are considering once again making the trip down south for some spring fishing during the "bad ice" season up here.

Weve done guntersville and santee twice and this time I think we have our eyes on buggs island.

Im not looking for any specific info aside from, is this a good or bad choice and if you could fish for 3 days between the middle of march and the end of april which exact days would you pick.

We arent specifically looking for massive hogs, numbers would be the preference, our last trip to santee definitely left us hurting...myself skunked for 3 consecutive days

We would be tent camping at the state park and fishing our buts off enjoying the scorching 70 degree days on our pale white fresh from the snow bodies.

I know folks are tight lipped about their local lakes but I can assure you that we are not tournament guys, pre fishing for anyone, we are just a few canadians trying to escape the cold long winter. If you are more comfortable PM'ing me, please I would be more than grateful for any thing you are willing to share. Heck, if you are looking for some Canadians to fish with, come on out and join us as other board members have in the past!

[limitlong]

I would recommend mid april. There may be some fish spawning and most will be shallow at that time. Buggs Island is full of fish and catching them should not be too difficult that time of year. The good thing about Buggs Island is you can usually catch them from one end to the other and catch them the way you like to fish. The only issue could be flooded water conditions. Up to 305 is pretty good but much higher than that it can be difficult to fish. I like to launch at Ivy Hill as it is about the middle part of the lake. Average size is probably 2-3 lbs. I fished up there four days last April and my largest was 5-10.

[191 champ]

What limitlong said was spot on. If above 305' you start looking for areas with limited cover/submerged brush or simply drive to lake Gaston. Also, if it has just risen quickly you might find good numbers in front of the brush as they haven't moved up yet. Like said, Gaston is your plan B. You can't go wrong mid April.

[Bassfriend]

Exactly what the other two have said. Gaston is a really short drive just as an insurance policy in case the lake has a huge rise in water level. I really doubt you will need to go to Gaston but is a nice lake and full of spotted bass now. As for Buggs during mid April you can catch fish from one end to there other. Bring lots of plastics for Texas rigging because you will there tons of baits.

[bassdge]

Spring fishing March and early April is still weather dependent. I don’t fish Buggs much anymore it have spent poetic time there. Like any other lake, there can be days you can do nothing wrong along with days you should have just bought some minnows and fished for Crappie.
Are your dates centered around school breaks for your kids?

FYI. I grew up fishing Santee and still spend a a few days down there to fish in March. I still get humbled sometimes.

[AKRISONER]

Hey guys this is sounding very promising for a fun little trip.

What we are attempting to avoid is the absolute grind that santee provides, I wouldnt call us pro's by any means but 3 days of non stop fishing and not being able to get on a single dink is really something. We caught a hell of a lot of by catch, so we clearly know how to catch some fish, but apparently not bass lol.

Even when we did randomly finally get someone to catch a bass there was no particular pattern at all. Really what the problem was that we are a victim of the spawn, anywhere you went had 5 boats looking at every potential bed fish, it was kind of just impossible to actually fish it well given our limited amount of time. We are far more looking for something that will allow us to at least stumble upon a few, of course any lake can be tough even up here in canada on the wrong day, but when you book a trip directly supposedly during "prime time" and still cant muster up anything in three straight full days of fishing thats pretty rough.

I see multiple of you guys referencing Gaston, not to say that our hearts are 100% on buggs, but is there a reason for us to choose gaston over Buggs? Everything im seeing suggests Buggs is a reasonable fishing experience. We should not expect giants, just an ability to wet our whistles and catch a few 2lbers throughout the day. Which is realistically what we are looking for.

If there is any reason for us to reconsider buggs and choose gaston instead if water levels really are that much of a concern I am all ears. I am just hoping to have some fun and actually catch at least a couple of fish during my trip this time.

We are very open for dates, I just like to place the dates between the end of the snow storm season up here (i.e. we dont get major snowfalls typically at the end of march and I dont want to tow my boat through a snowstorm) and not being too late that we are effectively able to fish up here without the need for travel. We treat this as somewhat of a "spring break" and final escape from winter. There is no sense leaving Ontario to head south to fish when we could be fishing some of the best water in the world up here.

Once again, if you are concerned about giving up too much information here, please feel free to personal message me.