Rock Reefs and Fish Attractors

A sonar image of bass feeding on a rock reef
Jake Bussolini holds a spotted bass caught on one of Lake Norman’s new rock reefs.
Photo’s courtesy of Capt. Gus Gustafson
  
Mark Lancaster, Director at Large of the Lake Norman Wildlife Conservationists reports that the new rock reefs are a success. Fishermen agree. They are finding a variety of fish over and around the tons of boulders placed in two locations on Lake Norman earlier this year. Spotted bass, white perch and catfish are feeding on the bait fish that have made the rock piles their home. According to Mark, “Plans are underway to create two additional rock reefs in 2012. While the exact locations are still under study, placements in Reed and Stumpy Creeks are being given serious consideration. In addition, a third round of deep water fish attractors will be deployed in the spring of 2012.”

Jake Bussolini, author of several books that discuss the finites of Lake Norman fishing, and an avid supporter of the reef and attractor projects, said at a recent seminar; “I observed large fish swimming around the deep water attractors within an hour of deployment. Over time, algae attaches to the attractors and causes bait fish to gather. This in turn, draws more and more game fish. Because of the strategic placement of attractors on migration routes, fish that are caught and kept are quickly replaced by others.”

Jake and I recently visited the rock reefs and a few deep water attractors. To say that fish were there is an understatement. As we approached the man made reef below the Highway 150 Bridge, we were amazed by the number of spotted bass images on the fish finder screen. Jake dropped a jigging spoon to the bottom, and the feeding fish began to chase the bait to the surface. The water was electrified with a feeding frenzy of spotted bass. Jake quickly switched to a crank bait and hooked up immediately. It was like watching a television show with fish thrashing the surface and a smiling angler landing one spotted bass after another!

Like all good things, the surface activity ended as abruptly as it began, but not before Jake landed and released five fish. As expected, the spotted bass did not stray far. A glance at the fish finder showed evidence of a school feeding below the boat on the edge of the rock pile.

Next, we located several of the porcupine-like fish attractors that were placed in the lake by volunteers from the Lake Norman Wildlife Conservationists and the Norman Fishery Alliance. While the attractors are relatively small compared to the rock piles, they are also fish magnets. One attractor, located in Hager’s Creek, was surrounded by schools of small spotted bass. Systematically Jake picked them off one at a time with Sabiki flies used in combination with a jigging spoon. When the bite ended, we headed north to the rock reef located about one half mile above the 150 Bridge. We found fish, but for whatever reason, they did not bite. After marking the reef with waypoints on the GPS, we called it a day.

The GPS coordinates for the man made reef positioned south of the Highway 150 Bridge are
N35 31.843/W80 56.337, and coordinates for the other, located above the bridge, are N35 36.844 /W80 56.622. Maps and exact GPS coordinates for the twenty deep water fish attractors, along with additional information concerning the reefs, can be found at http://lakenormanwildlife.org/Projects.htm.

In addition to the attractors and reef projects, the Lake Norman Wildlife Conservationists have been instrumental in improving the nesting habitats for ospreys, providing basking platforms for turtles and initiating a fishing line re-cycling program designed to prevent birds and other lake animals from  becoming entangled in discarded fishing line. If you would like to volunteer for wildlife projects like these, visit info@lakenormanwildlife.org or call 704-332-5696.

By Captain Gus Gustafson
Capt. Gus is licensed by the US Coast Guard, is a member of the Southeastern Outdoor Press Association and a Professional Sport Fishing Guide. Contact him on-line at www.fishingwithgus.com,
e-mail him at Gus@lakenorman.com or call 704-617-6812.