Eufaula to Challenge Anglers Skills

By Troy Jens / ABA

From the very beginning of competitive bass fishing, when Ray Scott himself graced the weigh-in stage, Lake Eufaula -- which flows along the Alabama-Georgia border -- was considered one of the premier fisheries in the country. Pictures of heavy strings of bass from years past are still displayed in some places. The cycles of nature have lightened the loads now weighed in during tournaments on the lake, but Eufaula is still a top destination and a major player in the bass fishing arena. 

ABA’s Alabama South division will visit Eufaula on Feb. 6. As with any lake, the unpredictable early spring weather will be a factor in how anglers fish and what they catch.

“We haven’t had periods of rain like this in years,” says Ty Solis, an ABA member from Albany, Ga. He has been fishing Eufaula since he was a kid, going with his dad who also competed on the lake.

The Chattahoochee has been running red into the north end of the lake, bringing fresh, muddy water into the system.

“Most of the lake is muddy, but there may be a little cleaner water remaining in some of the backwater ponds,” Solis said.

These observations were echoed by longtime Eufaula competitor and ABA member Clay Jens.

“Muddy water will be a factor, and with the coming rains late this week it could be worse,” said Jens.

Both anglers believe weights, and numbers of limits, will be down, and that 15 to 18 pounds will be a strong showing. Jens finished second in a recent tournament with four bass that weighed a little more than 19 pounds. The winner put four bass for a little more than 21 pounds on the scales. In the past few weeks, there have been reports of tournaments where no limits were caught.

The extended cool, rainy and cloudy weather has kept the water temperature down on Lake Eufaula. Most areas of the lake are still only around the 50-degree mark, and there is not much in this week’s forecast that will help push them any higher.

“Bed fishing most likely won’t be a factor”, said Jens. “There just haven’t been any areas really warm enough yet.” 

Both Solic and Jens will be relying on shallow-water patterns during the tournament, hoping that by covering a large amount of water that hasn’t been muddied will pay off with big bass. Solis said some “deep” bass will be caught, and that those bass in the 8- to 10-foot range could be more predictable with the changing water levels.

“This tournament may not be one of Eufaula’s finer moments,” Solis said. “These conditions may make things tough on a lot of anglers.”

Despite how the weights pan out for this event, Eufaula has been on a steady and strong upswing over the past few years with enormous weights being put on the scales, especially during the spring events. Both Solis and Jens attributed the increase in both bass population and quality to hydrilla, which began growing in the system a number of years back. Both anglers noted that the one thing all of the best bass producing lakes in the Southeast -- Eufaula, Seminole and Guntersville -- have in common is some kind of aquatic plant. Jens said because of treatment, weather and high muddy water there is little hydrilla in Eufaula right now. 

A relatively new Alabama law prohibits any anglers from possessing, and thus weighing in, any shoal bass on its side of the lake. Spotted bass may be a factor in smaller limits, but the better weights will be caught by anglers who adapt to the changing water conditions and land the quality bites.

“There probably won't be many bites, and anglers will have to capitalize on every opportunity to make it pay off,” Jens said.

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