Dark Horse Patterns at Chick
Most pros expect ledge fishing to dominate on Chickamauga, but two other patterns could also contend for the win
Tennessee’s Lake Chickamauga has caught the attention of bass anglers everywhere over the past few years due to the giant stringers of largemouth bass being taken from the Tennessee River reservoir. Like on its neighbors – Guntersville, Pickwick and Kentucky Lake – Chickamauga during the warmer months of the year sees its tournaments dominated by ledge-fishing patterns. However, unlike the other lakes on the chain, the productive ledges on Chickamauga are less prevalent and more likely to be crowded when a Walmart FLW Tour event comes to town.
Rogne Brown of nearby Hixson, Tenn., operates Tennessee River Guide Service and is one of the reasons Chickamauga has attracted so much attention lately. In March 2013, he set the Walmart Bass Fishing League one-day weight record with a 40-pound, 14-ounce Chickamauga stringer and has many other eye-popping catches to his credit, including a 44-pound bag in a local tournament and a 49-pound day with a guide client.
His intricate knowledge of the lake and experience lead him to believe we are in store for another ledge-dominated event at the upcoming FLW Tour event on Chickamauga, but he is not ruling out two other patterns that could be in play and could possibly challenge for the win.
“If I had pick one, I would say that ledge fishing will be the winning pattern,” Brown says. “The problem here [on Chickamauga] is that there are just not enough ledges to go around when there is a large tournament going on, so fishing grass and deep docks could also lead to a high finish or even contend for a win. Many people don’t realize just how much grass is in Chickamauga, and it’s looking really good this year. If someone gets on the right pattern he could definitely win it just by fishing the grass.”
We asked him to elaborate.
Grass Fishing
Chickamauga has a variety of vegetation present, including hydrilla, milfoil and various pondweeds, and many of those grass species will eventually mat up in shallow areas.
“It’s not topped out yet, and the grass mats have not formed,” says Brown. “Those conditions are good because the fish can be in the shallow grass, the scattered grass and also on the outside edges, and all of those areas hold big fish this time of year.”
He believes a typical grass-fishing arsenal of ChatterBaits, swimbaits and swim jigs will produce but offered another key lure that might garner bites from bigger bass.
“Fishing a big Texas-rigged worm on the deeper edges of the grass lines is a good way to catch a giant,” Brown says, “and if someone hits it right he can end up on a pattern others might overlook.”
Deeper Dock Fishing
According to Brown, another pattern that might emerge is fishing docks.
“There are docks on the main lake and at the mouths of creeks that have deeper water than any other docks on the lake,” he explains. “These are areas that will hold big bass this time of year, especially the bass still hanging around the shallows from the spawn that haven’t moved out to the ledges yet.”
He believes the docks in about 10 feet of water will be the best, and anglers pitching jigs will have the best chances for the bigger bass it takes to contend on Chickamauga.
Brown anticipates that his home lake will prove to live up to the reputation it has earned over the past few years and expects to see several giant bass brought to the scales and limits approaching or exceeding the 30-pound mark.
Those are big, bold estimates, but maybe not for one of the hottest bass fisheries in the country.
“This time of year it is all about fishing to just get five bites,” Brown says. “The 7-, 8- and even 10-pound bass will be caught. Catching one or two of those a day is what it’s all about at Chickamauga.”