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| Dale Hollow lake (Tennessee) is right on schedule. I have trolled Dale Hollow 5 times since Thanksgiving and have caught 8 Muskies. No big fish yet, but it won't be long. 22 pounds is the largest and we should get a half dozen or so over 30lbs before the end of Feb. Trolling 8 rods from the surface to 35 feet. All fish so far have come between 30 & 35 feet. The reason I am home today is the unusual couple inches of snow and ice this morning.
Fred Mc Clintock
dalehollowmuskies.com [:)] |
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| Are you using Downriggers or flat lining or boards to get down to 35ft?
Slamr
*might be able to get down just before the weekend before XMas....got any openings?
**good to see you on site Fred! |
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On 12/4/2002 3:38:49 PM
Are you using Downriggers or flat lining or boards to get down to 35ft?
Slamr
*might be able to get down just before the weekend before XMas....got any openings?
**good to see you on site Fred!
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On 12/4/2002 3:38:49 PM
Are you using Downriggers or flat lining or boards to get down to 35ft?
Slamr
*might be able to get down just before the weekend before XMas....got any openings?
**good to see you on site Fred!
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I have open dates right before Christmas, but only one day in Dec after Xmas and that is the 31st.
I troll all flat lines in a system like Homer Le Blanc. I troll one rod on each side of the motor with nothing or up to 3oz of lead. One is 10 feet behind the motor and the other is 16 feet behind the motor in the prop wash. (Small Cisco Kids or Shallow Raiders) Next I run Swim Whizz or Believers (about 10 feet deep)in the shallow eye about 200 feet behind the boat.(each corner) Next I run 1800 Cisco Kids on 10 foot rods out each side of the back of the boat. (20 to 35 feet deep) Next I run 2 10 foot rods up front (each side) with 2-6oz of lead and run Depth Raiders 15 to 25 feet deep. Many of these baits can be changed, but you must keep the proper depth on each rod. Sounds like bad news, but only a few tangles a year. First fish that hit this year went through 6 lines and it took an hour to retie. I run 30lb test on all the short lines and you must run 14, 17, or 20lb test to get between 25 and 35 feet deep with an 1800 Cisco Kid. I run all Mono, with 100lb test Braided leaders. I troll from 2 1/2 to 5 mph with the normal being about 3mph. TN has a 3 rod per-person limit and KY does not have a rod limit.
Fred Mc Clintock
www.dalehollowmuskies.com [:)] |
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| Fred,
At dale, are you looking for any structure or just open water bait? I have heard stories from Chris Haley and gene smith about the fishery. Do you apply any Cave or green River tactics there?
has there been any stockings there over the past few years, I have heard its been stocked secretly. If not, its amazing that the lake is producing fish naturally. |
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| I do many things including open water trolling, but I also run over weedbeds (Stay green all winter)roadbeds, stumpfields, dropoffs and sunkin islands. I use the same methods I used in PA & NY from the late 60's to 1985. I moved to TN to be a Muskie guide and most of the Muskies died before I got here.(Red Spot) The only times I ever fished Cave Run and Green River I was using my home made Black Jerk. The same one I used to catch over 100 Muskies a year from Chatauqua Lake. I don't know if anyone is stocking the lake. Billy Westmoreland forced them to stop stocking the lake in the sixties. He use to get on the public tv station and tell everyone to slit the throat of any fish they catch and they still do. I found a 30lber with it's head cut off last year on one of the islands.
Billy Westmoreland died a couple of months ago, but I don't think things will change. Most people here think Muskies live by eating Smallmouth. I use to tell him that every good Muskie lake in the country was also an excellent Smallmouth Lake, but he would just walk away mad.
Fred Mc Clintock
www.dalehollowmuskies.com[:)] |
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| Do they stock muskies in Dale Hollow?
How is managed? |
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| No Muskies have been stocked in Dale Hollow Lake by TWRA since the mid to late 1960's. Very few were ever stocked by TWRA in the fist place. Like I said before, Billy Westmoreland claimed they eat all the Smallies and the TWRA stopped stocking due to the pressure from the local fisherman. Almost every Muskie that is caught by accident is killed, by having their throat slit and thrown up on the bank. Thank goodness they are extremely hard to catch, while casting or they would all be gone. As of right now they are strickly on their own and I have to guess that they are reproducing, unless someone is sneaking them in the lake. We have a 30 inch size limit, but most of the people that actually fish for them, release them.
The Muskies got down to such small numbers, that I quit guiding for them for about 10 years. Some how they have made a pretty strong comeback. The last 3 years I have averaged better then one per-day. Not quite the average of one every 4 hours I had in PA & NY, but getting better every year. Since my biggest in TN is 39lbs, the record (42+lbs) may not be too far away. We also have a lot of fish in the 15 to 30 inch range which should give us good fishing for a long time.
I also have another lake I cast jerkbaits and fly fish for Muskies, (loaded) and swore I would never tell the name or the location. The guy I made the promise to, quit fishing for Muskies and said he would allow me to break my promise.
Fred Mc Clintock
www.dalehollowmuskies.com[:)] |
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| are their big stripers in Dale? That's be a fun trip...Muskies and Stripers! |
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| No Stripers in Dale Hollow Lake, but the Cumberland River system which includes Cordell Hull Lake, Old Hickory Lake, and the Caney Fork river has the best inland Striper fishing in the world. The Cumberland River is just 6 miles south of Dale Hollow lake. World record is 67lbs 12oz and my buddy caught a 66lb 5oz last year.
I use to fish Raystown Lake in PA for Muskies and we would catch Stripers. The PA Striper record was just a little over Twenty pounds at that time. See big Stripers on my web site listed below.
www.trophyguideservice.com [:)] |
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| The article that Wirth did on me was about trolling for suspended Muskies in a Highland Res. in the summer. Due to the water being so warm, their is no reason to troll high lines, because most of the fish will be in or below the thermocline. The magic depth in the summer, at Dale Hollow is around 37 feet, with fish being caught as deep as 60 feet. As long as my deepest lines are 40 feet or less, I stay away from downriggers or wire.
The reason for 8 lines is to cover a vast depth range and as much water as possible. . After turnover, a Muskie is just as likely to hit you 3 feet deep behind your motor or 30 feet deep bouncing a plug across bottom. If I could only run 2 lines, I would cover between 20 & 30 feet. In the winter, about 80% of my Muskie are caught in that range. Remember at Dale Hollow Lake, in the winter, you can read a beer can in 30 feet of water.
Sorry I need to go guide and will finish tonight.
Fred Mc Clintock
www.dalehollowmuskies.com[:)] |
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| As if to prove the point that I was making yesterday morning about running 6 to 8 rods, it all came true yesterday on my guide trip. From Thanksgiving to yesterday all the fish were caught between 25 & 35 feet deep. The lake started turning over a couple days ago and every hit we had yesterday was on the short lines, less then 10 feet deep. If we would have been trolling all deep lines, we would have had another zero for this year. In the guide business, no matter how hard you fish, zeros equal less trips.
Fred Mc Clintock
www.dalehollowmuskies.com[:)] |
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| I was able to take a muskie trip with Fred last year, and it was truly a pleasure to watch this man work! I'd never seen anyone so patient and methodical in getting his lines out and back in; his years of experience sure showed that day. He was having 3-fish days, good by any account. Dale is a wonderful resource and a beautiful lake to fish. Y'all come down sometime, ya-hear? m[:bigsmile:] |
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| Thanks for the kind words Mikie and keep your line wet, and keep plugin and you'll get that bigin your looking for. When I got my biggest fish, I trolled 20 hours, slept 4, trolled 20 more hours, slept 4, and trolled 12 more and got her. Then watched her swim off as I cut the hooks along side of the boat. The biggest I got casting was on the 17th straight day of casting my home made black jerk. Repeated the same procedure as I watched her swim away. [:)] |
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| Not sure rather you are asking if the water is froze, or if our season is still open.
The lake has never froze since it was built in the 40's and we have no closed season. The best fishing is Nov, Dec, Jan, & Feb. This is the only time the Muskies come shallow enough to have a real good chance to average one or more a day. |
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| If Knoxville is your destination, you might also want to try Fontana Lake in North Carolina. Check out the marina by the dam for more info, I think you can reach them thru www.fontanavillage.com.
East Tn. is my old stomping grounds, too. Some great smallie fishing down there, and the water is always open. m[:bigsmile:] |
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| I was doing extremely well in the time frame you are talking about, but every fish came from the main lake. Also every fish we caught before the first of Dec was between 32 and 40 feet deep. I've not been in touch with the Muskie crowd since the mid-eighties so you'll understand I don't know most of the lures your talking about. I have caught Muskies in the big Eagle Creek area, but never fished any above that area. I will be very broad and tell you the general areas I have Caught Muskies since 1984. Cope, Cove, Jackson, Gum Grove, County Line Island, Ashburn, Star Point, Liillydale and up the Wolf River in Illwill, Pilot Island, and all the flats on the east side of the Wolf. I have caught Muskies almost everywhere South of where the Wolf and Obey meet. Just look at a good map and troll the large flats, roadbeds, dropoffs, and Islands that you just know holds fish and they will.
In the dead of winter (Jan & Feb) I concentrate on the very large creekarms such as Mitchell, Irons, Sulphur, Illwill, Lillydale, Ashburn, and Big Eagle. I also hit many of the smaller creeks, but if you never trolled here you will find it almost impossible to make your turns.
The weedbeds will change every year depending on how clear the water was, how high the water got in Spring and how much they pull down for winter pool. (Usually 12 to 15 feet)
Due to large amounts of rain, in the past month, the lake is almost full and all weedbeds are fishable. Don't let this fool you, because only about half of my Muskies come from the weeds. Don't be afraid to troll 30 feet deep in 50, 60, or more feet of water. [:)] |
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| Hey, Blackswamp, if you are heading back that way, take a day with Fred. You won't regret it.
When we were down there trolling, got to see several bald eagles. Beautiful lake, but it is big and complex. You need a good guide to make the most of your limited time on the water. m[:bigsmile:] |
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| Due to the fact that few people fish for Muskies at Dale Hollow, most of the information you get will be wrong. Maybe a half dozen people could give you good advice, and you would have to find them on the water. Don't ask at the marinas or any of the places around the lake, because your guess is better then their misinformation.
I'm always glad to try and help, if you give me a call. Not everyone can afford a guide and some people just like to do it themself and thats ok too.
Also thanks again Mikie, It always helps when people say good stuff about you. |
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