Fontana , Junaluska , April 05 , 2015.
After being awake for 30 hours following rising at 9 Friday and being unable to sleep that night , I decided to head out Sunday morning after getting 12 hours of sleep Saturday afternoon. I arrived at Junaluska around 8 , and started fishing. Within the course of an hour , I noticed a deputy circle around the lake 3 times , on the third pass , he stops , and I head to the SUV to see what he wants. He informs me that fishing was disallowed on Sundays prior to 1 P.M. , to which I responded 'I didn't know'. He thought I was full of it , given his response , until I informed him of my point of origin. Luckily , he allowed me to continue , with the understanding I'd remain out of everyone's way , and note the rule for future reference. I fished for about 45 more minutes , until the jeers and creeping cars was too much to deal with , given the fact I was getting hits everytime I'd toss a minnow out , and in the back of my mind , I was expecting someone to open fire upon me for violating blue laws and possibly carrying a personal vendetta against anyone engaging in activities contrary to their personal beliefs. When I left , I had 10 fish , consisting of one 10 inch crappie , and 9 yellow perch , 8 to 9 inches in length.
45 minutes later , I arrived at Stiles Branch near the 28 overpass , and placed the minnows 7' beneath bobbers above 70 feet of water. After 15 minutes , the wind started to increase , and I was preparing to relocate when I noticed a bobber had vanished. I set the hook , and landed a 14 inch smallmouth. I stayed at the spot for 15 more minutes , until I saw a large fish break the surface on the opposite side. The lake had risen about 20' since my previous visit , and still had another 40' to reach full pool. The shoreline is nearly vertical , but navigable with extreme caution. I crept to the other side , and got a strike , but the fish let it go.
I headed to the Tsali area and parked below the waterline , and fished the minnows 7' below the bobbers above a drainage pipe I noticed on the last visit. I got a strike 5 minutes later , but missed. This pattern continued until a retired couple arrived and started a conversation. 10 minutes into the conversation , I happened to look at the bobber , only to see it disappearing beneath the surface. Feeling overzealous , I missed the fish , nearly hitting the couple's SUV with the rig. The conversation soon turned to fishing , and she was telling me about the catfish present in Fontana , and I told her about a picture I saw on the Almond webpage where a guy had landed a 20 plus flathead. They departed , and I got another strike , this time it was a positive lock , and I thought for sure it was a possible trophy smallmouth , only to reel in a 15 inch channel. As the adage goes , she 'talked the catfish up' , I retained the fish , and left again. Next stop was the Lemmons Branch ramp , which still resembled a precipice with the steep incline to the water. I didn't stay long , maybe about 5 minutes with the bait in the water due to persons of questionable intent arriving , standing behind me , speaking in hushed tones. I headed back to Fingerlake , and crawled down the embankment to the water , and landed another 13 inch smallmouth. After noticing some spawning shad at the rocks , I tried across the street again , and headed back. The total for the day was 13 fish , 7 of which I released. I left at 6:59 P.M. , arriving home at 11:30. I don't have any plans in the near future to head back , but this may change.
