As Lamar Arrington slid our canoe into the cool waters of Okatoma Creek, my anticipation of spending a morning catching ravenous spotted bass was about to become a reality. A few minutes and one creek bend later, Arrington pitched a Rapala an inch or so off the steep bank, and an Okatoma bass smashed the lure with a vengeance.
A short time later, I pitched a Rattlin’ Rogue near the opposite bank, and another bass crushed my lure as well. We had only traveled a short distance from the landing when we got into the fish.
Lamar Arrington has spent a lifetime canoeing creeks and streams around the state, and is an expert at handling a canoe and at catching the spotted bass that inhabit these smaller waters. On more than one occasion, Arrington cast his lure right to the edge of the bank and drew a ferocious strike.
“I like to fish a bream-colored Devil’s Horse once the water cools and the fish get real active,” said Arrington. “If they’re hitting the topwater baits good, I’ll change to a chugger like a Pop-R or Chug Bug.”
As the leaves continued raining down, bass continued striking our offerings. Arrington caught bass on a variety of lures, and before long, he had a pattern. The key on this trip wasn’t chugger baits or prop baits, though Arrington did draw a few strikes on those. The bass preferred the shallow-running minnow-style jerkbaits that come in a variety of sizes, shapes and brands.
While the accomplished swift-water expert narrowed his lure choice down to a Rapala, my choice was a Rattlin’ Rogue. Both lures drew strikes from the ferocious spots as they made bone-jarring hits.
As we floated in range of another creek bend, Arrington cast his Rapala right next to the bank on the inside bend, and another fish slammed right near it, missing by a fraction as he set the hook. The fish thought it had an easy meal, but misjudged the distance, much to Arrington’s chagrin.
A couple casts later, I pitched my jerkbait to the same area right at the edge of the bank. I let the lure sit motionless for a moment, and then twitched it a time or two before cranking it hard back toward the boat. Though we were anchored near the middle of the creek, a bass smashed my offering less than 6 feet from the boat and almost tore the rod from my hands. It was all I could do to hold onto the rod and avoid a broken line.
After the initial surge I hit the release and then thumbed the reel each time the bass made another run until l finally wore it down. The bass was lying right near a stump along a drop off, which I didn’t see until I had landed it and resumed fishing.
Further downstream, Arrington pitched his Rapala near another bank, and yet another bass slammed into the lure like a torpedo. After a short fight, he subdued this bass also and quickly posed for a photo before resuming fishing.
We also fished a few shoals areas on the lower portion of the float also. Those areas provide excellent opportunities for anglers to catch numbers of bass as the fish will gang up in the eddies below the shoals and feed on any unsuspecting prey.
Try a few of Arrington’s favorite areas listed below, and find similar spots on the lower portion of this float as well. By November, the water will be sufficiently cooled, and the bass will usually strike topwaters and jerkbaits with abandon while the water will be mostly devoid of other anglers as hunting season has begun.
• No. 1: N31 31.200 x W89 28.094: Leave the landing, and start fishing right below the landing. Continue fishing through the first bend.
“I’d cast a topwater or minnow-type bait along the outer bend of the creek,” said Arrington.
Anglers should cast as close to the steep banks as possible. When the bass are in a feeding mode, they’ll usually smash the lure before an angler has a chance to move it. When they don’t hit it as soon as the lure lands, they’ll often hit it on the first twitch, which is what happened to us on several occasions. After fishing the first bend, outer side first and then the inside bend, continue fishing the steeper banks, especially on the left side.
Arrington enticed a strike from a bass along the straightway, and also caught his first bass of the day.
To learn about all 10 fishing locations in Okatoma Creek, be sure and pick up your copy of the November issue of Mississippi Sportsman magazine.To ensure you don’t miss any information-packed issues in the future, click here to have each magazine delivered right to your mail box.
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