Tournament on new lake! Need advice!

[Pool14RiverRat]

So my first club tournament of the year is coming up in 2 weeks. It is at a small lake in northeast Iowa that has has a lot of deep flooded timber but also has shallow pockets with rocky banks and some vegetation. It is a lake that I have only fished one time before with little success. Unfortunately I will not be able to pre fish before the tournament. Just wondering if anyone could just give me anything to go on. The water is clear and it will be cold so I am thinking a jerk bait? I typically fish the Mississippi River which is shallow and muddy all the time so I have no clue what to do on this lake. Only fishing the tournament because it’s the first one of the year and it is a low entry fee. Let me know what you guys think. The name of the lake is “Lost Grove Lake” in Eldridge Iowa if anyone wants to look up some more info on it. Thanks!

[dunks n dinks]

RiverRat,

Here's a few scenarios for you to think about...

a) water temps 44-48, cold-front

- Fish will definitely still be in an early pre-spawn phase, so you should opt to start on the lower end of the lake (clearer, deeper water). A deeper-running jerk-bait or finesse swim-bait on a ball-head jig could work around rocks/wood on main-lake points or steep banks near the dam. Also worth throwing a jig around timber and working up the limbs for suspended fish in 20-30ft.

b) water temps 48-52, warming trend

- Fish will still be pre-spawn but I'd check further up in the mid-lake are in the 12-16ft depth zone. Work your way from the main-lake half-way back into pockets fishing any sort of isolated cover with deep-water access. Also look for the major spawning areas and then see if you can find any ditches or depressions nearby that bigger females might be hanging out in waiting to move up. Jerk-bait may still play, but I'd also breakout a spinner-bait and shakey-head for a power/finesse one-two punch. For a shot at a lunker, I'd slow roll a bigger soft-bodied swimbait just over those secondary points or ditches.

c) water temps 52-56, stable

- On a stable/warming trend with these temps, I'd check up the lake for pockets that have warmer water (+1/2 degrees is enough) for a wave of fish staging on flats. This should also make you a bit more comfortable being in shallower and maybe dirtier water. I'd make long-casts to flats and isolated cover with a senko and then burn bank with a squarebill/lipless.

Hope that helps.

[Nowater2shallow]

Look at Google earth and a contour map and pick a spot to start from and fish it as you would if you was fun fishing, it has helped me find fish

[Fishysam]

live scope will destroy all competition on a deep wooded lake

[Casslaw]

I do use Google Maps or Google Earth a LOT before every fishing trip. You can find at least 3-4 spots that meet your criteria for a good starting point and work from there.

[Walkabout7781]

If a contour map is available, use it. OP didn't say SM or LM, but April 1 this year and also in '17 have given up good SM for me on a Shakyhead/Zoom lizard. I like the 5" GP until Summer, then 6". Water temp was 50F in '17 and 51>53 this week...different lakes, tho. Our Winter water temps are usually around 43-45F, so we're on a warming trend for sure. Water depths were in the 8' to 12' range for all fish, on both lakes. We didn't catch a lot of fish, but they were pretty nice, including a 5 lb. PB SM. Both were the first time out for the year.

EDIT: I can see Casslaw sitting there in court, studying Google Mas on his Laptop while the Judge is blathering about some minutia….

[Casslaw]

iPad! I don’t bring a laptop to court!

This is Florida, most judges ask what’s the biggest bass I caught this week before court starts!