Tennesee Stripers

[Tony]

Anyone fished for stripers in Tennesee? Any tips on actually catching one? I went there looking for smallmouth at the wrong time of year and heard about the striper fishing they got there. Seems like they catch some pretty nice ones, anyone wanna share some tips? Cause I never striper fished in freshwater, used to catch em tropping the Chesapeake Bay, never casting.

[fishin3]

We fish for them when they run up the creeks in the spring. Just use a rooster tail and hang on.

[Tony]

Rooster tails are hair jigs right?

So just look for em bustin on top, or do they hang around certain kind of structure?

[fishin3]

In rooster tails are inline spinner baits. We just go up the creeks and start throwing at each bend in the river or anything they can hang out of the current in. They will tell you the speed they want it pulled at. Use a 1/4 oz rooster tail. med action rod and about 6 lb test.

[Tony]

Ok, thanks. Anythin else I should know?

[jon the fisherman]

Tony, You can catch the big ones below the dams when they are generating. Drift shiners or shad in the current. Also 1/2 to 1 oz bucktail jigs work pretty well. Early mornings can produce a good one on topwater. good luck

[Tony]

Thanks. Me and my dad are goin to Dalw Hollow in March looking for smallmouth, stripers, crappie, and trout.

[mattcombs]

I'll tell ya, I went to Lake Cherokee last August looking for stripes with a neighbor who has a pontoon down there, and my Dad caught a monstrous 27" striper. Not quite trophy size, but that bad boy made some great table fare! The first morning we were there, we were riding down the lake at about 7 am and saw a bunch of boats huddled up in the middle. They were vertical jigging like mad and pulling the stripers out like crazy! We joined the fray and caught two before the stripes just disappeared from the depth finder! According to most people down there, the stripers go deep in the day and lie near the bottom in the deepest points, probably going to the cooler water to rest, and they seem to be impossible to catch unless they are feeding. We didn't have any luck at all the next two mornings... the lake is so big, we just couldn't find the stripers. It was fun while it lasted, but it's more of a luck-game than anything. Lots of water to cover and not a lot of time to do it... after about 10am, the stripers are docile and out of feeding mode.

I would recommend Cherokee, but after the morning striper run is over, you might as well go out shopping or something. In the three days I was there, I also caught a 5" Large and a 5" Smallmouth. Not much to brag about, but it was better than nothing, I suppose.