Lake Gaston reports?

[vahunter]

I'm headed down tomorrow for a few days to fish gaston (largemouth bass) and i got a pretty report from about 8 days ago from a friend of a friend. Anyone have any reports they're willing to share?

 

[Jim]

No report, but good luck! catch some biguns!

 

[lovedr79]

havent been there in 15 years. i do miss having a place down there though. what part of gaston? va or nc side?

 

[vahunter]

NC side. My wife's grandmother lives on the lake and it is amazing to launch my boat once and wake up in each morning, warm up some premade breakfast, walk down to the dock, start and go! Of coarse she has chores for me but its generally worth it!

 

[vahunter]

Lake Gaston is not my friend so far...don't think this front is helping though.

 

[lovedr79]

I know the feeling. We had a spit when I was a teen over by eatons ferry marina. Only had a canoe and a jet ski to fish off of. And the ski was my step dads sit down. Couldn't fish off my stand up ski.

 

[vahunter]

My wife's grandma says "it must be frustrating" (fishing and no catching). It is, but that's something bass fishing comes with. I'm so used to ponds vs this large lake. It just is making me try harder, more determined, more exploring areas. I haven't lost confidence that there is a bass in this 20,300 acres of drink. And I will find it.
Rain til noonish tomorrow. I will try to get out one more good time. It's hard to fish long because I have a one year old and he gets into everything and my wife can only handle but so much before she calls or texts me for help.

 

[lovedr79]

i hear ya there. yes that lake was hard for me to fish. i always did good in the coves early in the morning. i have a 2 year daughter that will be going with me alot this summer so the time on the water will be drastically shortened.

 

[vahunter]

Gotcha. Understand that. I was able to snatch one in the lip this morning as the clouds started easing out. We had a cold front (sleet included) come through last night and had about 3" of water in my boat. But the 1000gph Johnson pump had it out in no time. I tried the main lake and picked a spot on the map with a shallow cove in the back. After a few pitches and casts of various lures, wham! That was all I wanted...some relief!!!

 

[Butthead]

Lake Gaston is not my friend so far...don't think this front is helping though.

I can completely understand! I have a very love-hate relationship with that place. Sometimes I do pretty well, other times I've been skunked for 4 days straight.
I'll be down there at the end of the month, so hopefully it doesn't suck then, ha-ha.

 

[Butthead]

Well here's my report for you.
Last Friday and Saturday they were hugging up to cover, mainly docks, in the shallows. Pulled the pictured fish off the farthest-in dock in a shallow cove, 3ft deep, on a shad senko. We caught a few off senkos and a bunch off of texas rigged worms. We picked up some dinks on crankbaits and rattletraps, but nothing close to picture worthy. On Sunday things cooled off with the changed weather. Most of the catching was done with the texas rigs but I tried switching up some gear and tactics. Monday I snagged a 3lb rockfish slow rolling a Zoom swimbait in current. I tried a Rapala countdown and got hit by all kinds of stuff; Crappie, bluegill, white perch, a couple small LM bass, a feisty 2+lb'er that got unbuttoned close to the boat, and a fatty 24"+ pickerel. My Buddy laughed at me with the CP because he saw my rod tip double over, hears the spool screaming, and then me shouting "HOLY $H!T!" It had the biggest head I've ever seen on a CP and I've never had one pull me that hard. Unfortunately I didn't have grips with me, so I just had to unhook it at the side of the boat with some pliers. What I didn't realize at the time was that a 24"+ pickerel is citation size. Whoops...I won't forget that lesson anytime soon. At least I have the memory of it.

 

[vahunter]

That's a chunk! Thanks for sharing. I've caught a few fish that were citations but either didn't know they were citations or I decided to wait for a bigger one (none being bass). I started to regret it since I don't get all too many opportunities to fish anymore having a young one. Over the past year I had said I was going to start claiming them. I seem to catch em right under size. A pickerel 23.5 and a recent 14.5 crappie and losing a monster pickerel that looked more like a pike haha

Gaston is my friend but not until the last bit of my trip