Thread: Tunica Lake

Me and Ed are headed down from yankee land, Il, the end of the month and need some info. We arn't going to drag the boat down this year but heard you can rent boats at Tunica Lake. Can anyone tell me about the fishing there, is there boat rental and where and what about a good reasonable, clean motel.
Big Rick

there are a few but,,,they are 14' alum jon boats. There are many hotels in the area now casino's have moved into the county. There's a couple small motels in tunica they are clean but not state of the art. Depending on what your looking for.
March is a little early for the spawn on the cutoff. Although its probably going full tilt on the land locked lakes the cutoff is fed by the river.

If I was going to drive I'd drag a boat, you won't be comfortable fishing in whats there for rent. The bait shops should be open by then also.

Drag a boat.

If I were in your shoes I would want someone to be honest with me. Here is the hard, unfortunate facts - Unless you know the lake REAL well (and I don't count myself in that bunch), if you go to Tunica fishing in March the only thing you are going to catch is a cold. Not trying to run you off by any means - but as a lifetime fisherman of North MS lakes, Tunica would be the very LAST place I would send an out of towner in March. The water there is just way too cold from all that snow melt river water backing up in there.

Pull a small john boat and go to Arkabutla (close to the same distance as Tunica Cutoff from the casinos), find yourself a stake bed or some christmas trees sticking out of the water, plop a pink jig or a minnow beside it and catch yourself a giant.

when do they start hitting. i have some family in memphis my be down that way in apirl or may.

Originally Posted by SFD1542

when do they start hitting. i have some family in memphis my be down that way in apirl or may.

I always wait untill May to go to Tunica. Its a good place to stock the freezer up.There are some good fish in the lake I'm told, but I have not figured them out. I always get into those 9" to 11" fish. Its fun .

because the lake is river fed, There are no resident fish what I mean fish that are born there live a full life and die there...I've always thought of the cutoff as a transient lake, no home owners but alot of temporary housing. Years ago (10+) it used to hold alot of BIG crappie but in the last 10 years the size has gone the other way..You can catch decent fish but the COE lakes produce the monsters. NOW bream give Me those river bream anytime over slack water bream.

Being about 4 years from retiring from the day job, I'll be guiding soon on the cutoff. Retirement jobs I hear are better than the current one.

i agree, Tunica water is way too cold until may, there is a lot of snow up north and when it starts to melt and with additional rainfall the river will jump and the water will be cold, the river is on a hard rise right now with a forecast of reaching 23 ft on the Memphis gauge by this w/e and i think that the water gets into the cutoff at 7 ft on the Memphis gauge.

Tunica, the biologists have heard your comments about fish size decreasing. We will again assist them in doing creel surveys on the Cutoff this spring.

See you at the ramp.

Originally Posted by FW227

Tunica, the biologists have heard your comments about fish size decreasing. We will again assist them in doing creel surveys on the Cutoff this spring.

See you at the ramp.

Hey Hey I'll take a couple days off to assist in this stinky task...I'll even let you ride in My boat again too. Can I bring the Telephone, I've got a relay now that will allow partyline hookups...We can increase coverage and get r done faster...Oh wait there measuring scaled fish...I'll survey the skin covered ones.
Complete Canvas of the cuts population. You can count the carp.