Eufaula ‘springs’ forth
FLW Series Eastern Division hits famed impoundment at prime time
EUFAULA, Ala. – It’s been a mighty cold winter in the Southeast region of the United States, but Old Man Winter appears to be loosening his grip just in time.
The second FLW Series Eastern event of 2010 kicked off on Lake Eufaula Wednesday morning right in the midst of the biggest warming trend the South has experienced this spring. Small prediction: Weights are going to be huge.
“I’ve seen some giants – I mean giants – swimming around,” says pro Randall Tharp of Gardendale, Ala., who won an American Fishing Series event here in March 2008. “The first fish of the year are coming to the bank, and they’re big and dumb. Granted, I might not catch a fish in the tournament, but I’m not going to lie: I’ve had one of the most incredible practices ever.”
In a normal winter and spring, some Lake Eufaula bass would have been on the bed by now. But given the brutal cold winter combined with Eufaula being particularly low, the fish are a week or two behind.
“I’ve seen some up cruising around,” noted sight-fishing expert Koby Kreiger, who has a total of seven top-10s, including two wins in FLW Outdoors events on Lake Eufaula. “But no beds yet. I think if we were going to have bright sun the next few days, they would go on bed this week. But the forecast calls for clouds, rain and storms. It’s going to be warm, but we need some sun to get the fish on beds.”
Kreiger says main-lake water temperatures have reached the 52- to 54-degree mark, but the warmest water he has found is 62 degrees.
“That’s not quite enough,” Kreiger said of this week’s bedding potential. “If the winter had been normal, there would be some to look at, but it’s been anything but normal this year.”
Another thing that’s particularly odd is Eufaula is some 2 feet lower than normal right now. Most of the lush “gator grass” and cypress trees are on bare ground.
Kreiger said: “I’ve never seen it this low this time of year, which is a little weird, but it’s not going to stop the fish from coming up and looking around. These fish are already behind and they are looking to get to the bank.”
Tharp noted that he can’t even get into some of his best places he normally fishes.
“I’ve got several places where just a couple more inches water depth one way or the other is going to make all the difference of whether I can get in or not,” Tharp added. “If I can get in just one or two of them, I think it’s going to be pretty awesome.”
Translation: Giant bags of bass will be brought to the scales today. To see the big bass parade, tune in to FLW Live this afternoon. The weigh-in will begin at 3 p.m. Central.
Logistics
Anglers will take off from Lakepoint Resort State Park located at 104 Lakepoint Drive in Eufaula at 7 each morning. Wednesday, Thursday and Friday’s weigh-ins will also be held at Lakepoint Resort State Park beginning at 3 p.m.
Saturday’s final weigh-in will be held at Billy Lawrence Chevrolet located at 3220 S. Eufaula Ave. in Eufaula beginning at 4 p.m.
Fans will be treated to a Family Fun Zone at Billy Lawrence Chevrolet prior to Saturday’s weigh-in from noon to 4 p.m. There will be a drawing for a $300 Cabela’s gift card and drawings for rod and reel combos will be held every 30 minutes during the event. Activities in the Family Fun Zone include a Ranger boat simulator and assorted fishing-themed games. All activities are free and open to the public.