Smallmouth bass are more abundant here, but there are a lot of largemouth bass in the lake too. Anglers usually go for smallmouth bass and you will catch some largemouth bass while targeting smallmouths, but for the most part, the smallmouth are going to be deeper, so if you want to target largemouth bass exclusively, fish shallower and find cover.
Use Light Line in the Clear Water
Using lighter line is key here to get more bites. The clear water makes it easy for fish to see to see your line, so try downsizing your line and you can also use fluorocarbon leaders. The smallmouth anglers will usually be using 6 to 8 pound line here, but that might not work as well when fishing for bigger largemouth bass around cover. You still need to downsize your line as much as you can to get more bites, so depending on the cover you are fishing, you may be able to get away with 8 to 12 pound line.
Current Plays a Major Factor Here
The current can play a big role in how well you do when fishing on Dale Hollow Lake. When the dam is releasing water, there will be more current up in the lake. While you may not see a lot of current back in some of the creek arms, you will be able to notice some current if you are fishing out on the main lake. While the current usually affects the smallmouth bass more than largemouth bass, moving water can definitely help trigger the bite when it comes to largemouth bass as well.
Fish the Creeks
There are so many creek arms on Dale Hollow Lake that anglers have lots of options to fish here even when it’s windy. While the creek arms may be the best in the spring when fish move shallower to spawn, there is plenty of deep water in these creeks to hold largemouth bass in the summer and fall too. Fish the cover in these creek arms such as rocks and wood. There are plenty of nice drop offs too, so in many spots, you can find deeper water close to that shallow water cover.
Fish the Main Lake
Lots of fish will transition to the main lake after the spawn. From summer through winter, anglers usually do well by targeting suspended bass around the deeper water off the main lake points. You will probably catch more smallmouth bass with this pattern, but largemouth bass will be here too. Don’t rule out some of these main lake shorelines in the spring in the fall either.
Fish the Points
Dale Hollow Lake has tons of main lake points and secondary points in the backs of the creek arms. If you just want to fish points, you can easily run and gun and target points all day long. There will be some fish relating to points here year round, so water temperature will play a big role in whether or not you’re in the back of the creeks or out on the main lake. Because this lake has so much deep water, it won’t be hard to find points that drop off quickly into deeper water. There are so many good points to fish.
Fish the Rocks
Dale hollow lake has lots of rocks, so plan on fishing plenty of rocky bottom while here. Smallmouth bass love the rocks, but because there is not a ton of vegetation here, you’ll find plenty of largemouth bass around the rocks too.
Fish the Shorelines
The shorelines look great around the lake. You’re going to find a lot of rock, some wood and nice drop offs. Because the lake is so deep, most anglers will just go along a shoreline and start fishing. Well you’re going to miss a lot of those suspended fish in the summer and winter by just beating the bank, you can still catch plenty of fish because there’s good access to deep water so close to the shore. In the spring and fall though, anglers do usually report much better fishing up against the shorelines.
Fish the Wood
There is plenty of wood to fish on Dale Hollow Lake. From the down trees to the flooded bushes to the brush piles, you have lots of options. The flooded bushes and timber are usually great spots for targeting largemouth bass while the deeper brush piles will usually hold good schools of crappie and other panfish. If you find some lay downs long a steep bank, you will most likely find some smallmouth bass and spotted bass too.
Learn More About Largemouth Bass
Our largemouth bass section is huge with information on the best live baits, lures, where to catch them and how to catch them. Visit our largemouth bass page to learn more.
