The Magnolia State can boast countless bodies of water that hold bass, and some of them offer fishing that’s good enough to put trips there on your to-do list. Here’s what that would probably look like.
Mississippi is blessed with state lakes, state-park lakes, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers lakes, U.S. Forest Service Lakes, flood-control lakes, a few rivers and streams and countless ponds that are stocked with bass.
The numbers can be mind-boggling.
All state-controlled lakes received an initial stocking of bass, aka largemouth bass, with a few bodies getting the fast-growing and sought-after Florida-strain bass. So bass fishing in the Magnolia State, as a whole, has never been better. After a year of pandemic woes, job layoffs, mask requirements and a myriad of other curtailments, the time to plan a fishing trip has never been better.
So grab a Mississippi Outdoor Digest and a state highway map, log on to the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks’ website and put together your own bucket list for bass fishing in Mississippi.
State lakes
The crown jewel of the Mississippi state fishing lakes has to be Lake Calling Panther in Copiah County. It was designed as a trophy bass lake and has lived up to its billing. A few decades ago, it contained standing trees so thick that maneuvering a boat was difficult. That timber has now broken off into the water, creating a massive amount of cover for bass and forage fish. With so many holes and pockets, getting a bait to the fish can be a bit of a challenge. If ever there were an argument for a side-imaging sonar, Calling Panther is it.
Weedless jigs or plastic baits are a better choice than crankbaits and their multiple treble hooks, but both baits have their places on the lake. Calvin Tadlock of Homewood is one of the few anglers who fishes the lake with live bait.
“I look for a shiner (minnow) that is at least 6 inches long,” Tadlock said. “I fish it on a smaller float that will allow the bait to be free, sometimes taking the float below the surface, then a second float rigged 10 to 12 inches higher that will only go down when I have a fish on. My biggest catch to date is 11 (pounds) 10 (ounces). I’m rarely skunked at Calling Panther and always allow the fish to grow some more.”
The lake record is a 15.4-pound lunker caught by James Allen in February 2011.
“This was during the peak of the renovation,” said Ryan Jones, an MDWPF biologist. “Big fish are routinely caught this time of year, but nothing has been close to breaking the record lately
“We have also been somewhat in the dark on Calling Panther lately, due to inability to creel survey during last spring’s pandemic and the unexpected passing of the lake manager, Ricky Blakeney. Also, while we conduct electrofishing sampling every other year, Calling Panther’s deep, clear water is not conducive to this type of sampling. This often results in low number of adults sampled. Follow the weekly fishing reports at the agency’s website for more current information.”
Neshoba County Lake is another lake with a stellar reputation that lost its manager, Chuck Hazlewood. Sherry Hazlewood, known for her involvement in fishing rodeos, is the acting manager.
Neshoba has experienced a number of other challenges recently that have affected the fishing. The water level was lowered to allow for repairs to the dam, but it’s back up to normal.
The lake was also covered partially with thick vegetation in the past that provided fish cover and gave frog fishermen a chance to test bass fishing with critter baits. But not everyone liked the blanket of plants, so the bulk of the cover was removed, leaving more open water.
“The creek channels are popular places for bass anglers to start searching, and a look at the bottom map shows the creek beds rather clearly,” Hazlewood said. “A recent youth fishing tournament from Noxubee County was quite successful, with over 18 pounds winning the event.”
State Park Lakes
Natchez State Park Lake holds the distinction of producing Mississippi’s biggest bass to date, Anthony Denny caught the 18.15-pound behemoth on New Year’s Eve 1992.
The lake was fished hard after Denny’s fish was certified as the state record, and while many good fish have been caught, none have come close to that level. Catching quality fish at Natchez is not the problem, but landing a double-digit fish is a challenge.
U.S. Forest Service Lakes
The U.S. Forest Service manages a number of lakes of different sizes across Mississippi. According to Rick Dillard, a fisheries biologist, testing of these lakes slowed to a crawl during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic as restrictions were placed on travel and other normal activities.
“Based on the most-recent data we have, the lakes that were sampled in 2019 showed good fish growth and age-class populations,” Dillard said. “Recently, our samplings are looking promising, and we soon hope to have more results available to share with the public.”
Davis Lake, a small lake, is in the Tombigbee National Forest in Chickasaw County, not far from scenic Natchez Trace, The lake has produced some double-digit fish in the past and should be part of any bass angler’s bucket list.
On the other end of the state, Turkey Fork is coming into its own as a bass fishery. Marathon Lake in central Mississippi has never been known as a trophy bass lake but does offer consistent catches of largemouth. It and other national forest lakes across the state are well suited for small boat fishing.
The Homochitto National Forest is home to Okhissa Lake near Bude. Once the pearl of the bass fishing world, Okhissa has seen some issues that needed to addressed.
The lake still has a vibrant bass population, according to Dillard, who witnessed good spawns in 2017 and 2018. Those results should prove good for 2- to 3-year-old bass.
Other lakes
It is difficult to write any bass-fishing report without mentioning the Ross Barnett Reservoir. It is arguably the most-fished lake in Mississippi; only Pickwick could run a close second, and the lakes of the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway deserve mention.
Pro angler Jason Reynolds was a regular to the Mississippi Wildlife Extravaganza before that show, as we know it, ended. He held court over a huge tank with glass walls with casting demonstrations, and on some occasions, he fished “the ‘Rez” as a means of stocking those fish everyone admired.
“I was always in awe of the vast resource Mississippi had for its citizens and how well it was managed,” he said. “It struck me that it was free to the public, no launch fees, no charge to fish, and so full of opportunity.”
There are oxbows, points, cuts, deep river runs, sand bars, fast water, slow water, pad stems, stump fields and brush piles. Ross Barnett is not the kind of place to fish in a day; the facility is just that vast.
Upriver at the Low Head Dam, the current is swift along the banks and a perfect place to fish a lipless crankbait for spotted bass. In the swift water itself, hybrid stripers can be caught as they make a false spawning run. As the Pearl River approaches Ratliff Ferry, the current slows, but the bass action doesn’t. Spinnerbaits swill work in the downed tree tops, logs and submerged structure found along the way.
The river starts to play out in one of the many areas that offer all sorts of vegetation, including lily pads. Anglers can search the pads for bass by using lizards and frogs. Working a bait slowly across the surface of the pads, expect to be bitten when the bait comes off the pad.
In more open areas, plenty of different baits worked in the pad stems will result it strikes. The venerable old balsa Rapala in silver/black is still a favorite, but tackle boxes need to be stocked with Chatterbaits, jigs and Whopper Ploppers. The one thing an angler needs to be is prepared. “I don’t need any more baits,” said no angler ever.
Downlake are more coves, ditches and submerged bass attractors. Baitfish like life along the rocks were they can seek cover. Any crankbait or soft-plastic bait that mimics a shad is a sure bet in these locales.
The Rez is also home to some fine stump fields and mud flats — perfect habitat for crawfish. In May, don’t discount bass hanging out near bread beds; lures in bream colors, imitating bream, can get the job done.
On the lower end, where the lake really spreads out is a good place to cash in on the annual mayfly hatch this month. Yes, bass too eat those pesky bugs. This is the right time to pick up a fly rod and get ready to rumble with a bass bug.
So plan your trip, keep wearing your mask in crowds, and fish for bass — all across this fine state.
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