Brush Piles Will Be a Big Draw At Ouachita

By Todd Ceisner
BassFan Editor

At the end of May, water levels at Lake Ouachita were approaching flood pool as much of the Midwest experienced record rainfall throughout the month. Since the start of June, though, the water at Ouachita has been falling fairly regularly.

Over the past 2-plus months, the water has dropped nearly 13 feet – it’s gone from 586.07 to 573.17 as of last Friday – and based on previous trends, anglers preparing to roll into Hot Springs, Ark., later this week for the Forrest Wood Cup should get used to the falling water conditions. A review of water level records since 2010 show that Ouachita’s water is typically drawn down starting in early June and continuing into November most years.

While anglers may not prefer those conditions, the fish are more than likely used to it, so how much of a factor it’ll play in the outcome of this year’s Cup remains to be seen.

Of the Cup qualifiers BassFan contacted for feedback about their scouting trips to Ouachita before the lake went off-limits last week, many pointed to the falling water as a potential reason why the shallow-water bite, which was expected to be a big factor in the event, wasn’t as good as they thought it’d be. It was also something they’d be monitoring prior to returning for 3 days of official practice that begin Sunday, Aug. 16.

Conditions leading up to the cut-off date were sweltering hot with very little wind and air temperatures in the 90s, and water temperatures not that far behind. For those who made more than a few casts, it made for less-than-ideal fishing conditions. The long-range forecast shows very little respite from the heat during the tournament days, so that’ll only add to the myriad of challenges the anglers will face.

Some believe this year’s Cup – the second such even to be contested in the dead of summer at Ouachita – will turn on the ability to effectively dissect brush piles in a key depth zone. Some competitors planted their own fresh brush on scouting trips while others will go with what’s already there.

Others are convinced it’ll take a combination of catching fish shallow or on topwater early in the morning and deeper spots to prevail, much like the formula Scott Martin used to win the Cup there in 2011.

There’s plenty of vegetation in the lake as well, but it didn’t seem to be as productive as some hoped it would be. That, of course, could change in a couple of weeks.

In 2007, when Scott Suggs claimed the sport’s first $1 million payday at Ouachita, the Cup field was 81 boats. In 2011, there were 57 boats buzzing around the lake. This year, a field of 50 boats will vie for bragging rights and the $500,000 top prize.

Below is a compilation of experiences and observations from some of the Cup qualifiers who made scouting trips to Ouachita:

Matt Arey
> Cup appearances: 4
> Best finish: 16th (2014, Lake Murray)

“It was bad. I’m not going to sugar-coat anything. The lake’s dropping and I don’t know why. It makes me ill. It makes shallow fishing that much more difficult.

“You’ll have to mix it up to do well. It’s how any cup in August is. The fish are scattered and there are a lot of transitions taking place. You better have a lot of options. I was there for 2 1/2 days and idled mostly, but I did enough fishing to know it won’t be easy. There’s plenty of grass, but who’s to say there’s a bass living in it.

“I didn’t plant any brush. I think that lake has enough of it. I marked a bunch, though, because I felt like my time would be maximized by idling. Those fish do get in brush in August, but your timing needs to be right on that deal.

“I have a lot of confidence on that lake because of my experience there, not because of success I’ve had. I have mixed feeling going in. My experience there is based on making every wrong decision possible so I feel like I’m due to make some right decisions. I like my chances as good as any. The conditions can change real fast.”

Clent Davis
> Cup appearances: 1
> Best finish: 12th (2012, Lake Lanier)

“The 8 days I spent there were the most miserable 8 days of my life. The heat doesn’t bother me – I live in Alabama – but it almost choked me out. The heat index, when I was there, was like 105 or 110 with no wind.

“The water temperature was 95 or 96 and the water was gin clear. I saw so many fish, but I couldn’t get a bite. I saw more fish on my (electronics) that any other time on the Tennessee River. The place is a fish factory. It has a ton of them in there, but getting them to bite was a different story. I don’t put much into pre-practice other than finding areas. I draw more confidence from official practice, but you have to know it’ll be a grind for everyone, including the person who wins. You just have to get it done.

“We’re fishing deep and a lot of guys will be fishing brush, including me. The main thing will be finding a select rotation of baits to work with instead of figuring it out during the tournament. Finding the right baits so you can be quick and effective on each pile will be important. When I go back, I’m fishing shallow in practice. I’m going to spend a day out deep but 2 days on the bank.”

Zack Birge
> Cup appearances: 0

“I made two trips and spent 3 days each time. I fished quite a bit the first time and rode around and put out some brush piles the second time. When I was there a long time ago, there used to be some grass, but it went away. There’s so much grass there now it’s crazy. It’s making a huge comeback. Everything’s the same other than that.

“I didn’t really get into catching a bunch of fish, but I also didn’t fish to catch a bunch. I fished for quality and caught a couple, but they’re few and far between. If I can manage three or four a day like that, I’ll be happy. They’re hard to come by and random all over the lake. The thing about Ouachita is you could have a good day and catch 16 or 18 pounds, but the next day only catch 4 pounds, then go back out and catch another 16. It’s real stingy.

“It does and doesn’t (suit my style). A guy could win fishing deep brush or win running a shallow game. Both work good here. I’m going to fish my strengths and stay shallow and hopefully manage a good bag each day.”

Larry Nixon
> Cup appearances: 14
> Best finish: 3rd (Lake Lanier, 2010)

“I thought the fishing was extremely tough. I fished quite a bit, but it was pretty difficult. It seems like it’s more like the year Suggs won. When you have 90-degree water in July and August, the fish feed more late in the evening and during the night. That’s why daytime fishing is so difficult. They’ll either suspend or won’t feed real good. When we get closer to the dark of the moon, the daytime bite will be better.

“I’ve always felt like Ouachita suits my strengths. It’s right down my alley so maybe this is my time to shine. I think it’ll be spread us out. It’s a big lake and there’s a lot of different styles of fishing that will come into play.

“Stained water is hard to find. You have to go way up the rivers to find any. I went up those rivers and it was about the same everywhere I went. I think it’ll be a traditional deal (that wins). Someone might put a new twist on a lure that’s worked in the past, but it won’t a far-fetched deal. It’s Arkansas and it’s August.”

Mark Daniels, Jr.
> Cup appearances: 1
> Best finish: 17th (2013, Red River)

“I went the last week that we could be there and the weather wasn’t cooperating. It was super hot and stagnant with no wind. The water temperature was in the mid- to upper-90s. It was insane.

“I’ve never been to the lake before so I don’t know anything different, but it seems like it will be a really tough tournament. It’s a relatively clear lake and it’s heavily influenced by brush piles – a lot of them.

“I tried to push a shallow bite since I’ve heard it’s always a good bream bed, prop bait sort of lake. I got a few bites, but it was not strong at all. I hope that gets better, maybe if it gets cooler. The brush piles were the default since those were the only thing going. There’s a lot of grass in that lake, too, and I tried everything but couldn’t get a bite in there. It was a tough deal.

“I’m not discouraged in the least bit. I found hundreds of piles and anything can happen. It can only get better because it can’t get worse. It was pretty bad conditions when we went.”

Shawn Gordon
> Cup appearances: 0

“I probably spent 4 or 5 days there between the end of June and when it went off-limits. I didn’t have much time to go over there. I’ve fished there plenty, but it’s usually been in February or March or late September.

“It’s going to be a grind just to get five keeper bites. The fishing wasn’t very good at all. The lake’s falling a foot per week by the looks of it. That’s more of an annual thing.

“The lake used to have twice or three times as much grass as it does now and in the spring, you could go down a bank or hit the points with a rattle bait. Now, it’s different. It’s been won deep the last two times the Cup was there, although some guys made the Top 10 fishing shallow. I marked a million brush piles. Some were empty and some had a few fish in them. That might get better, but you don’t know. I don’t have much experience there in the summer. I’ve never wanted to go there in August before. It’ll be a grind.”

Michael Neal
> Cup appearances: 2
> Best finish: 6th (2013, Red River)

“I spent 8 days there and it was the first time I’d ever seen it. I got a good feel for all areas of the lake. There’s a lot more grass than I expected there to be, but there are some areas with zero grass and it seemed like there were multiple patterns going in each part of the lake. I caught some out of the grass, but it wasn’t phenomenal. There were not as many good-sized brush piles as I was expecting. There were a lot of little ones, but I didn’t mark those. I marked about 30 or 40 good-sized ones.

“(The water) was dirtier than what I was expecting for the summertime. We’ve fished Beaver and I thought it would be cleaner than it was. I’m not complaining because I’m not a clear-water fan. It doesn’t necessarily suit my style because it’s a far cry from the Tennessee River. As far as the brush thing and grass lines go, you can just run and gun sweet spots on grass lines and points. I have to tweak it. Instead of a jig or worm, I have to go to a dropshot or something else. It’s the same style of fishing, using different methods to catch them.”

“Patience is key this time of year. You need to capitalize early in the morning on key bites, whether you’re on shallow or schooling fish. The rest of the day is going to be a grind. You have to be patient and have the will power to stay in the area you know has fish and grind it out. You have to be Larry Nixon, basically.”

Troy Morrow
> Cup appearances: 3
> Best finish: 5th (2010, Lake Lanier)

“I went before ICAST, which wasn’t exactly ideal because they weren’t doing what they’re going to be doing, but I did what I needed to do. I like it. It fishes toward my strengths. I can get offshore and do what I want, but there’s still enough inshore stuff that I won’t be pressured like I would if we were on a ledge lake. Some guys will stay on the bank.

“When I was there, there were tons of fish on shore and very few offshore where I wanted them. I was guessing in pre-practice, but I know enough about those types of fisheries with the experience I have at Hartwell and Lanier.

“Being that it’s a such a clear-water fishery with deep brush piles that’s dropping and getting hot, that’s always good because when it starts dropping and gets hot, those shallow grass fish get uncomfortable and some will push back out where I need them.”