Does Generation Have An Effect On Bass Fishing?

[Quillback]

June 7th I was on the Rock, had a great early morning top water bite, then things really slowed down, I left at 1130 AM. I looked at the generation chart for 6/7, low generation until 1100, then they started running water for the ret of the day. I'm just wondering if the fishing might have picked up later in the day due to the increased flow? Anyone notice any change in the fishing in the lake when they're running water?

Chart for the day. 5th column is a measure of current flow (CFS), notice how it jumps at 1100.

07JUN2013 0100 918.20 708.33 7023 106
07JUN2013 0200 918.22 707.69 9532 150
07JUN2013 0300 918.25 704.48 7996 124
07JUN2013 0400 918.23 703.81 1810 27
07JUN2013 0500 918.20 703.66 1734 26
07JUN2013 0600 918.19 703.65 1740 26
07JUN2013 0700 918.21 703.65 1736 26
07JUN2013 0800 918.24 703.62 1737 26
07JUN2013 0900 918.23 704.28 1728 26
07JUN2013 1000 918.20 707.70 2480 37
07JUN2013 1100 918.20 708.52 8421 132
07JUN2013 1200 918.16 708.73 9472 149
07JUN2013 1300 918.16 708.72 9843 155
07JUN2013 1400 918.15 708.79 9658 152
07JUN2013 1500 918.12 708.70 10099 159
07JUN2013 1600 918.15 708.84 9786 154

[Bill Babler]

Quill, I guided out of Shell Knob today. We chased the fog and shadows from 6 AM till 10 AM and really for us the bite started strong and ended strong. About 9:00 we went to the dropshot and the grub and really caught some magnificent K's. Nice solid 2.5 pound fish. Maybe over a dozen in that 1 hr. period.

To answer your question, I don't believe that far up the White River we see a lot of activity increase of decrease due to the generation at Branson. Generation or flow to make fishing better would have to have an effect on the bait, drawing it past the fish, or just moving water over locations creating current breaks or perhaps moving more 02 in the water column.

At the dam in the Summer, you can really tell it from Point 5 to LongCreek on the deep humps. They really fire up when the dam is running 4 units. Beck has told me he thinks the bluffends and rolloffs up the James do the same on 4 units.

Up past the Kings River however your guess would be as good as anyone.

[dtrs5kprs]

Great topic and info. Always curious on this myself. Seems like it is sometimes yes, other times not as much.

[Quillback]

Thanks Bill for sharing your knowledge.

Looks like it is getting time to start fishing the drop shot.

[Jason Essary]

Na, generation does not change the postion of the fish. Next topic.

[fishinwrench]

Finding active fish on a ML point (or other structure) during a generation cycle isn't a rare happening by any means..... but you sure can't depend on it.

[Bill Babler]

I think it really depends on the amount of CFM's and the size of the pond.

[bfishn]

Having spent a lot of time in the upper half of the Rock fishing slip bobbers with the boat pinned in one spot (either double anchored or tied to a tree), I've long pondered generation current's effect on the fish (sorry Quill, but I wasn't worried about your bass). Some observations;

Fall, winter, and spring, when there's no stratification, shallow (<10') sets have obvious current drift roughly equal to deeper sets. Once there's a decent thermocline though, the deep sets (>25-30ft) move a lot faster than shallow, indicating the hypolimnion is 'slipping' under the warmer waters.

When both Beaver and TR dams generate simultaneously, some serious currents can set up. I'm talking 100 ft drift in <5 minutes, versus less than half that when only one dam generates.

Much like a wide river, current is prortional to the cross section area of the spot you're in. Unlike a river, it's less predictable, and doesn't always follow the rational path. For this topic, the current seems to follow long, straight lines until it has to turn, regardless of bottom depth.

While these current situations obviously exist, I'd be hard pressed to make any kind of blanket statement regarding the effect on fish. I know there are some places where generation definitely seems to help, and others where they either turn off or move. There's only one type of spot I can say with confidence is better, and such spots exist about every mile or two on TR. At the downstream end of a long straight stretch, the inside bend point often drops to the channel on one side, and transitions to a flat on the other. The channel side nearly always has the best flow, breezing right past the still water inside the point. It's a good current break (as well as a structure break), and I don't need to tell most of you what to do with that. :-)

[ryan]

When they pull water it makes a world of difference. It positions the fish in such a way that they become much more predictable. It is a lot easier to really find schools of bass that are bunched up. I think it really gets good when both beaver and Tr are releasing. No generation causes fish to really spread out. Generation positions the bait which positions the fish.

[rps]

At this end, generation out of Beaver makes a difference. Not only can you see flow and eddies, it also affects water temp. Chuck Etheridge's favorite walleye stretch is more productive after noon when the Beaver flow reaches it.