Fishing at Flint Creek

Destination Information

How to get there: Flint Creek Water Park, part of the Pat Harrison Waterway District, is located on Mississippi Highway 29 in Wiggins, and an easy 35 miles north of the Gulf Coast and 30 miles south of Hattiesburg. The park address is 1216 Parkway Drive, Wiggins, MS. GPS – N30 52.310 W89 07.533.

The park: Flint Creek is comprised of 1,900 total acres and features a 650-acre lake with 13 miles of shoreline stocked with bass, bream, crappie and catfish offering excellent fishing 24-hours a day. According to Lake Supervisor James Brewer, the best bets for April fishing at Flint Creek are bass, crappie, catfish, and bream, in that order.

Camping: Flint Creek offers 127 camping spurs, and two Class A campgrounds offer of 34 total campsites. Most of these sites offer sewer hookup. A sanitary dump station is conveniently located for use. Each campground provides a sand beach and a designated swimming area along its shoreline. For those who may not camp in a self-contained RV unit, there are seven bathhouses conveniently located throughout the campgrounds, with toilets, hot water, and shower. Each campground has laundry facilities available.

Cabins: Flint Creek Water Park offers 33 rental cabins, which are located adjacent to the lake. These cabins vary in size, style, and accommodations, but each offers a unique view and a natural experience. For reservations, call 1-800-748-9403.

Contacts: Call Flint Creek Water Park directly at (601) 928-3051. A state agency, the Pat Harrison Waterway District can be found online at www.phwd.net, or by calling (601) 264-5951 or (800) 748-9618.

Maps: Lake and campsite maps online at http://www.phwd.net/flint/flintc

April fishing tactics

Bass: Late March will find bass moving onto beds and spawning through the month of April. Many anglers sight-fish for bedding bass during the month using Carolina or Texas rigged plastic worms and lizards. Spinnerbaits and crankbaits also work well so long as they are fished shallow.

Crappie: The water depths at Flint Creek range from just a couple of feet to 30- and 40-foot depths. Like bass, look for crappie to be spawning or moving off the beds this month and move back to brush, treetops, and other structure in the 12- to 15-foot depths. Most anglers troll with live minnows over the tops of the brush while others cast crappie jigs around shoreline cover.

Catfish: With the water warming up in April, look for channel catfish to start moving shallow on any of the long points around the lake. Whole night crawlers, cut shad and prepared stink baits fished between 5 and 15 feet deep will produce the best results. Jug fishing for catfish is permitted between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m.

Bream: The abundant bass population tends to keep the bream numbers under control. Look for bigger bluegills to hold in deeper water this month and may become more active on the new moon toward the middle of the month and the following full moon on May 4. Best baits are redworms fished on the bottom and crickets fished under a slip cork.