fishing in April

Question
Mr. Gaither, I live in north east GA. and I am planning a trip to lake Seminole the weekend of April 10th to do some bass fishing.  This is only my second time at the lake, my last trip was 2 years ago in June.  My question has 3 parts; 1) what is the weather like that time of year? 2)Are the bass biting well at that time of year? 3) If the bite is not good then what is a better time?

Thanks for your help,

John Turner

Answer
John; Take a coin and toss it up and let it fall.  If heads the weather will be good on April 10 and if tails it will be messy, or some such thing.  One week end is always chancy any time of year but in the spring it is even a bit more so.  
Mid April is often a guess.  Some fish will have gotten off the beds and will be scattered, Others will still be on the beds and even a few will still be waiting to go on the beds.

I have caught some really nice fish in mid April especially on topwaters which I love to fish.  If the weekend is just before one of those cold fronts that love to come down in the spring then the fishing may be extremely good.  If the cold front passes on Friday the bass fishing will be tough on Saturday but improve on Sunday.  A good deal depends on the wind and actually the previous ten or so days.

I do not fish bass beds so I cannot really tell you anything about them.  I don't condemn people who do as it is perfectly legal.  I just personally don't do it.

Those bass which have left the beds a week or more are likely scattered around the lake following whatever forage they can.  If you can find schools of shad you can probably catch bass. I suggest a swim bait shad color and about the same size as the shad.  We did this this winter with good success even in high 40 degree water.

The bass that have not yet bedded, and this will often be the result of earlier bad weather, will often be bunched up in the first drop off the spawning flats.  Sometimes this will be the edge of a river or creek channel near shallow flats.  Look at your map to find these places.  A bend in a channel near such flats us often good.

Since about 95% of my fishing is done between Rattlesnake Point and up Spring creek a couple of miles I have found several such staging places.

I certainly would not discourage you from coming at that time.  If you hit it good you may find some of the best bass fishing you ever had.  If the weather is bad you may not do well.  I am sorry I can't give you a definite answer.

In response to the best fishing in the lake I have found that in terms of numbers of big (five pounds or over) is in December through February or early March again if you can hit good weather.   Big bass seem to bunch up in the stumps in 15-20 feet of water and gorge themselves on shad.   Again I  can't promise anything about the weather.  If I had that ability I would soon be a millionaire wouldn't I?  All I can say is Yes the bass bite in April if you hit good weather.  June gets hot and I quit daytime fishing until late Augusts.  I have caught many good fish on topwaters at night during that time.  September through February has mostly stable weather and the fishing is often good then.  This lake like any other bass lake has it's ups and downs and picking one date out of the year is always like a toss of the dice.

I am sorry I can't be more specific and also I am sorry to be so late in replying to your question.  I have been in bed for the past four days with a whoooper of a cold.  This is the first time I have been able to come online.

Thanks for calling on me to try to answer your question.  Maybe if you give me a call around April 7 or 8 I can give you a better answer.  My phone number is 229-861-2366 and I am almost always home around 9pm to midnight and usually I am awake so don't hesitate to call.

I am
Jack L. Gaither  (JackfromSeminole)
Lake Seminole, Ga.