10-23-2008, 01:33 PM
Although there are always specific local conditions, there are some general rules of thumb about tailrace stripers.
1. In the south, their primary forage base is small shad that have been swept through the turbines. So streamers, especially when fished in an injured minnow manner, can be very effective.
Flies with a lot of green and/or white in them seem to be the most effective.
2. Water from southern impoundments, most of the time, comes off the bottom of the pile. Which means it is cold, and consistent in temperature---ideal trout water. But it also means the stripers are always in the river, but mostly feed when the water is flowing.
3. Learn the downstream-flow differentials. That is, wyen they open the gates at the dam, it might be three, or five, or seven hours before the rising water reaches a certain downstream spot. That can affect where, in the river, the fish are feeding.
4. Stripers moving upstream out of the lake have different habits than those in the tailwaters. For instance, a problem several years ago in Georgia, was stripers moving up out of West Point Lake and feeding on trout in the Chatahoochie River.
Hope this helps,
Brook
[signature]
1. In the south, their primary forage base is small shad that have been swept through the turbines. So streamers, especially when fished in an injured minnow manner, can be very effective.
Flies with a lot of green and/or white in them seem to be the most effective.
2. Water from southern impoundments, most of the time, comes off the bottom of the pile. Which means it is cold, and consistent in temperature---ideal trout water. But it also means the stripers are always in the river, but mostly feed when the water is flowing.
3. Learn the downstream-flow differentials. That is, wyen they open the gates at the dam, it might be three, or five, or seven hours before the rising water reaches a certain downstream spot. That can affect where, in the river, the fish are feeding.
4. Stripers moving upstream out of the lake have different habits than those in the tailwaters. For instance, a problem several years ago in Georgia, was stripers moving up out of West Point Lake and feeding on trout in the Chatahoochie River.
Hope this helps,
Brook
[signature]