56 SERIOUSFUN@JFFC MAY 2018
Cliffs and Boulders:
As the name would suggest, these areas are characterised by very steep drop-offs and rocky substrate. The weed growth is very limited and food is in short supply in these areas. They can be in excess of 10m deep right next to the rock face and do not hold a lot of fish in the summer time. However, where these areas meet flats or bays, and there is some weed growth and a gravelly bottom, they are our go to areas for the early season pre-spawn (September-October) and have produced some of our biggest fish. The edges of Western cliffs, where it meets both long bay and Ehlers bend are typical examples of this type of structure. If the dam is full you will be able to walk along these rocky high points and can spot bass, (and sometimes cruising yellows) holding on structure in the early summer/late spring (November-December). Sight casting to these fish and watching them chase down your streamer is really exciting. If you intend on fishing in the winter, these are probably the best areas to focus your efforts.
If the dam levels are low (less than 40%), the bays are usually left high and dry. Consequently, aquatic plant growth has died back extensively and is mostly confined to isolated patches were the banks drop off more gradually. This has however makes the fly fishers life a whole lot simpler. The fish will be forced to concentrate around their food sources (isolated weed patches) and competition for food will be intense. As such, wherever weed beds are encountered close to the bank you can expect to find large schools of very hungry bass. In this case, do not overlook any patch of weed, no matter how diminutive it may seem there will still be fish near these weed patches.