Jimbo's Lake Lanier Fishing Guide Service Report: 5/18/2013

Hey Gang - No question about it, the pond is heating up and so is the fishing! My customers enjoyed a very good week and some great results. Thursday and Friday were particularly good, with Thursday being the best. I am excited to share two big announcements before getting to the fishing report for this week. First, Jimbo's Guide Service is EXPANDING to include Lake Hartwell! I am happy to report that Rick Steckelberg of Sworming Hornet Lures has came on board with Jimbo's and will be my lead guide on Hartwell. Rick is a very accomplished angler as most of you know, with several major tournament victories to his credit. He now lives near Lake Hartwell and I know he will provide fantastic results to my clients up there as he knows the lake well. Rick has been a long-term sponsor of mine, and I am tickled that we are in a position to grow our relationship further. Please contact me directly to book a trip on Hartwell, and there will be much more to come in the near future regarding this development. Welcome Rick!! Speaking of Rick, he and I got together on Thursday afternoon on Lanier to test prototypes of his latest creation, the Sworming Hornet Bite Sized Herring Swimbait. One of these gems is pictured above hanging from the face of a donkey that fell victim to its tantalizing action! I was impressed with these baits and absolutely loved the movement and size - it is the perfect solution as it's total weight is around an ounce and therefore very user friendly. Big swimbait rods are not required to toss this little jewel. We went out Thursday afternoon just after my morning trip and jacked an 18 pound sack in short order, with Rick's new swimbait being the main contributor. These 3-Joint Swimbaits are 5 inches long and will be offered in both Floating and Fast Sink models, and will come in 3 colors: pearl, blue back herring, and gizzard shad. You can order one of these baits on TackleWarehouse.com immediately, and they will be available locally at Hammond's Fishing and Outdoor Depot soon. I will also be selling these directly to my customers as well. You need to get you one of these beauties!! OK, now onto fishing for this week. We ran points and humps with brush in 20-25 feet most of the week and focused on pulling fish up from the cover. This pattern by far produced our biggest bites. There are some monsters out there willing to eat topwater and swimbaits right now - we had 2 of the biggest spots I have seen out there pull off on topwater this past Friday. Heartbreak! As I mentioned, topwater and swimbaits were the best offerings for the bigger fish. Also, when the fish were not willing to come up, they ate a Fish Head Spin and a shaky head worm pretty well around the same type of cover. We caught a mixture of pre and post spawn fish this week. There are several post-spawners starting to show up, particularly in the creeks. It would not surprise me to see a big wave hit the beds on this full moon coming up next week - particularly the main lake fish. For all of those that have been calling asking about the timing of the topwater bite on Lanier, it is here and should only get better. It's time to book your trip with Jimbo! The herring spawn is also starting down south and will be getting stronger as the days progress. I am booked all 5 days next week on Lanier, but Rick has some open days on Hartwell if anyone wants to make a trip up there. He tells me the herring spawn is in full swing and the fishing is fantastic. I understand some new cover is about to make its way into the lake as well. LOL. My only days left on Lanier in May are the 29th and 30th. I am also booking for June and starting to fill quickly. Make your reservation now for the June topwater and swimbait bite - it is shaping up to be a great one. Give me a call for Lanier or Hartwell! For Fishing Reports on other Georgia Lakes, make sure to visit: www.havefunfishing.com Thanks to all and May God Bless! Jimbo -- Jim "JIMBO" Mathley Spotted Bass Fishing Guide - Lake Lanier jim@laniermapped.com Mobile - 770-542-7764 www.jimboonlanier.com

Jimbo's Lake Lanier Guide Service Fishing Report: 5/11/2013

Hello Everyone - I am grateful for another busy week in the world of fishing as I wrapped up another 6 day week today. Lake Lanier is an awesome place and I am blessed to be able to make my living out there - a HUGE thank you to all of my customers for your support - I appreciate your business and greatly value the many friendships I have garnered through my guide service! OK, enough of the sappy stuff, onto fishing! The fishing this week has been good, albeit ever-changing. It seems like the best bite changes, and sometimes dramatically, every day. Overall, the most consistent option for the better fish seems to be focusing on the summer brush in depths of 20-30 ft on points and humps. A number of different techniques work in and around the brush, from shaky heads to jerkbaits to topwater and swimbaits. It just depends on the conditions and their mood when you pull up to the pile. So, stay flexible in your approach. As far as the numbers bite, there are many options and I know there are several techniques and areas working right now. We have caught our numbers around docks and on clay banks with shaky heads, drop shot worms, jerbaits, top water, spinnerbaits, and swimbaits. I know that list does not cover all the options, but it covers what we have been doing. While I have not been up there, I am told the herring spawn has begun in the warmer water up north, and therefore should make it down south soon. I have checked some of the likely areas down south, and not much sign of them yet. An update from some commitments I made earlier this spring. I had committed to quitting the dip on March 1, 2013, which I have done. 72 days dip free and counting. I also had committed to lose 50 pounds by June 1. I was on a good track in that category, and then I quit dipping. I am still down in weight overall, but gained some back when I quit the snuff. Quitting tobacco is unbelievably hard! In retrospect, I should only try to quit one bad habit at a time. LOL. I am rededicating myself to the weight loss and exercise now and have modified my goal a bit to be down 35 pounds from current weight by Halloween this year. Updates to follow. The forecast looks awesome for next week with pleny of sunshine and I am sure some good fishing. I have some days open next week so give me a call and let's get out there and bust on 'em! For fishing reports on other Georgia Lakes, please be sure to visit: havefunfishing.com Thanks to all and May God Bless! Jimbo

Jimbo's Lake Lanier Fishing Guide Service Report: 5/1/2013

Hey Gang! The fishing has been good to very good this past week. The lake has came up again with the recent rains and we remain over full pool. Wow. What a change. Lots of water out there! We appear to be having a trickle spawn this year as there does not seem to have yet been a major wave of fish to hit the beds. There are definitely some fish spawning, but based on the condition of most of the fish we are catching, there are several remaining to spawn. We have shifted our focus a bit this week in terms of the areas we are targeting. For numbers, we have been hitting clay banks at the mouths of pockets and creeks in the 10-15 feet range. A shaky head and worm or crawfish immitation will work well to catch these fish. Experiment with jig head sizes and worm lengths, as sometimes lighter and smaller is better. 1/8 to 3/16 is standard jighead weight for this time of year. It is also important to note that we have began to catch some better fish in the 3 to 4 pound range up in the shallows this week. In terms of of a consistent approach for the bigger fish, we have been targeting the staging females out over the summer brush on the main lake and mouths of the creeks. A jerkbait and topwater have been our best offerings to catch these fish. While the bites on this pattern are fewer, the size is fantastic as we have caught some hammers this past week. Folks, if you have been waiting for the "right time" to fish, now is it! I am full this week and weekend, but have some dates open both next week and the week after as well. This is a great time to catch a bunch of fish and as well as learn how to catch staging female fish out deep! Give me a call and lets get out. Thanks to all and May God Bless! Jimbo

Jimbo's Lake Lanier Guide Service Fishing Report: 4/24/2013

Hey Gang - Sorry it has been awhile since my last report. I have been running trips 6 days a week and enjoying the family on day 7, so I have have let the reports slip a bit. I appreciate everyone who follows my reports and will do a better job of keeping up! As I'm sure most of you know, the lake is full and on fire right now, both for big fish and numbers. With the full moon coming Thursday, I expect some great results this week as I am sure a strong wave of spots will hit the beds on the moon. That period just before they bed is normally off the charts. Today was a good day for the better fish for us as we had several over 3 pounds. We have been focusing on main lake points and humps for those better fish, and the jerkbait and swimbait have been our best weapons. A few good fish have also came on a skirted jig of late, but in general, the fun stuff has been producing the big ones. The "grass" bite is just silly right now as most of you have experienced or seen reported lately. You can catch fish on practically anything you want to throw at them. Pick your favorite bait and go fish the pockets with "grass" in the back. Worms have been our main tool, but flukes, trick worms, spinnerbaits, and a multitude of other options have been working. They are there, and they are hungry. Go Have fun!! I am full this week, but do have Mon, Tues, and Friday open next week due to some rescheduling. This is the time to go fish! Give me a call if you would like to get out. Thanks to all, and May God Bless! Jimbo

Jimbo's Lake Lanier Guide Service Fishing Report: 4/1/2013

Hey Gang - I hope everyone enjoyed a very happy Easter! I was out on the water with trips mid-week through the holiday weekend with some good results. The spots are becoming more available as the weather and water temperatures continue to warm - FINALLY! This has been the most unusual spring I can remember here in Georgia in terms of weather. It seems that we are now on the right path! There are numerous bites to be had in the 10-15 feet range in creek arms around docks and the "grass" that has grown up and been flooded with the recent resurgence of the water level. A jerkbait and fish head spin seem to work well in the early mornings in these areas, especially if the wind is up a little. For the bigger fish, we have been focusing on the staging females that can be found both on secondary points and main lake points/humps. 30 feet seems to be the key depth for these fish, and rocky areas seem to be the best. A 1/4 oz shaky head with a worm or crawfish immitation of some kind seem to be the key bait for these fish. As the water warms, these big females will continue their migration shallower. Look for them to show up in obvious stopping points along the way shallower, such as brush and docks. Also, as they move shallower they should become more aggressive and more susceptible to moving baits. Its about to get really good out there folks! For this week, I have all day Tuesday and Wednesday morning available for anyone that would like to get out. I am full the remainder of the week and weekend. I also have some weekdays open the week of April 8th. Give me a call and lets get out. It is time to FISH!! Also, for anyone interested, I have 2 St. Croix Legend Tournament Series Drop Shot Rods for Sale - $150 each. Great rods and in great shape. Let me know if you are interested. Thanks to all and May God Bless - Jimbo

Jimbo's Lake Lanier Fishing Guide Report: 3/24/2013

Hey Everyone - Sorry for the long delay since my last report. Lots of reasons for it but no excuses, I should be better about it. I was sick as a dog with the flu for 3 weeks or so and only made it out on a few trips during that period. Also, my youngest daughter had emergency ear surgery last week. She is good now, thank God, and I am feeling human again. Lastly, the weather has been terrible as you all know. I have postponed many of my trips just to ensure we go at a time that my clients are ensured an enjoyable, comfortable trip. So, with that said, let me catch you up on fishing and other interesting stuff. Allow me to begin by announcing an exciting new sponsorship. I recently accepted a "full ride" sponsorship with Shimano and G-Loomis through the Don Coffey company. I look forward to repping these outstanding products as well as others to come in the near future through the Don Coffey relationship. Safe to say my customers will be fishing with the best as many new NRX and GLX rods recently made their way to my door - LOL. I do want to send a big "Thank You" to Randy and his crew with St. Croix. I have enjoyed my time with them and I appreciated the opportunity to be involved with such a classy bunch of people. All the best to them. Finally, onto fishing! We have been working a couple of different productive patterns of late. One is the classic winter "ditch" pattern that I have spoken about in recent posts. That bite is still there and we are catching some solid fish running this pattern. Most of the time, we have used the Fish Head Spin on these fish and they have been in the 10-25 ft range for the most part. A shaky head tipped with a craw immitation has been my second choice for these fish when they are not as active. On sunny days, these fish have been pulling to the docks and can be caught on worms, jigs, and a even ajerkbait on some days. Just depends on their mood. Don't be afraid to fish the very backs of these ditches in the early mornings for some big bites at daylight. The FHS and jerkbait have been our main weapons in this scenario. Also, we have been working rocky main lake points and pockets with a jerkbait and crankbait when the wind is up for some good bites. When no wind, the worm and jig can produce as well. Most of the jerkbait and crankbait fish are in 15 feet or less. The worm and jig fish are often a bit deeper. This may be a repeat for some of you, but going back a couple of weeks, I am happy to report my customer (and now good friend) Ron Clark and I WON the Hammond's Winter Trail Classic Tournament! Ron and I weighed 18.90 pounds and anchored our sack with a 7.88 largemouth that I was fortunate enough to catch right away that Saturday morning. In fact, other than a small upgrade later in the day, Ron and I caught everything we weighed on our first stop. We had a limit at 7:38 AM. I found this area, which was in the back of a small ditch/pocket, while out scouting on Friday. Upon inspection, the graph was loaded with fish, and a couple of bites gave me confidence to come back to that area to start the day on Saturday. When we got in there first thing Saturday, it was on! Ron and I had a blast and really ended out season on a high note. In addition to winning the Classic, we also posted some very good results in the other tournaments in the series. Out of the four regular season tournaments we fished in the Winter Trail, we had 3 top ten finishes including a 2nd, and a 6th place cash. I did some calculating, and had it not been for the deer hunting incident with my Chevy on the morning of the second Hammond's Tournament, we would have contended for the points championship as well. Congrats to Steve Gerbig and Matt Springer for bringing that home this year - well done guys. Well, if the forecast holds, we are finally in for some spring-like weather in the week ahead. I have Friday and Saturday open this coming week, so give me a ring and let's go enjoy some warm weather and fun fishing! Call me now to reserve your spring trip! 770-542-7764 Thanks to all, and May God Bless! Jimbo For Reports on other Georgia Lakes, please make sure to visit: www.havefunfishing.com

Jimbo's Lake Lanier Guide Service Fishing Report: 3/6/2013

Hello Friends and Sponsors - I hope y'all staying warm on this very chilly, blustery day! I am home and have been home the past few days fighting this nasty flu - no fun! I was blessed with an awesome weekend and wanted to share the events and pictures with everyone. On Saturday, my customer (and now good friend) Ron Clark and I WON the Hammond's Winter Trail Classic Tournament! Ron and I weighed 18.90 pounds and anchored our sack with a 7.88 largemouth that I was fortunate enough to catch right away on Saturday morning. In fact, other than a small upgrade later in the day, Ron and I caught everything we weighed on our first stop. We had a limit at 7:38 AM. I found this area, which was in the back of a small ditch/pocket, while out scouting on Friday. Upon inspection, the graph was loaded with fish, and a couple of bites gave me confidence to come back to that area to start the day on Saturday. When we came back Saturday morning to that area, it did not take long for the action to start. I hooked that big LM on my second or third cast back there. I knew it was a monster - the head shake gave it away. Not to mention feeling like I was pulling on a small tank. LOL. As soon as we got it in the net, the Fish Head popped right out of her mouth. Scary! From that point we kept throwing the Fish Head Spin and a jig in that same area to round out our limit. Ron had another big one hooked back there, but it just came unbuttoned about half way to the boat. It was a no fault loss - it just happens! We caught several fish through the day, but as I mentioned, not much help on the weight side. Still, Ron and I had a blast and really ended out season on a high note. In addition to winning the Classic, we also posted some very good results in the other tournaments in the series. Out of the four regular season tournaments we fished in the Winter Trail, we had 3 top ten finishes including a 2nd, and a 6th place cash. I did some calculating, and had it not been for the deer hunting incident with my Chevy on the morning of the second Hammond's Tournament, we would have contended for the points championship as well. Also this weekend, I was proud to be involved with the Spring Classic at Bass Pro Shops. I gave tank demonstrations on both Friday and Saturday nights and represented my awesome sponsors like St. Croix Rods and Sworming Hornet Lures as well. Thanks to everyone that came out and visited this weekend. I enjoyed speaking with and meeting each of you! After a seemingly long recovery time, I am back out on the water tomorrow through Sunday on trips. Next week, I have the 11, 12, 13, and 16 open. The weather looks like it is finally going to warm up and the fishing is already good and should only get better. Give me a call and let's go fish!!! 770-542-7764 For fishing reports on other Georgia lakes, please visit: www.havefunfishing.com Thanks to all, and May God Bless! Jimbo