Bass Fishermen are Cranking, Vincent: “I average 35 fish a day.”

Not much has changed, and that is a good thing.

The bass fishing on West Point Lake remains consistently good, yearround. That is a fishing fact. Why else would anglers travel from Michigan, Texas and Florida to bass fish in LaGrange?

“This is a narrow lake with a lot of rocks. The fishing is good, and we’re going to have a great summer. West Point is a fishing lake. You don’t see a lot of boat riding,” said Charlie Vincent, who has been fishing on West Point Lake since 1984.

Vincent is a veteran angler and a huge fan of the lake. The LaGrange native has made a science out of fishing. Vincent keeps the fishing fun and fantastic.

“I know I can catch fish. Ninety percent of the fish are caught in 10 percent of the area. I love to fish, and I know this lake,” said Vincent.

He acknowledges the reputation of the lake, which is still top notch, in the state and out.

“There have been some seven and eight-pound largemouth bass caught (on West Point Lake). Crappie up to three pounds have also been caught here. This is a good striper lake, too. A 33-pound striper was caught here,” said Vincent.

He has also caught some giants of the deep and shallow on West Point Lake. Vincent catches his own live bait, too, the slippery shad. “I throw a cast net (for them),” said Vincent.

He also catches some much larger bass with his bait. Vincent knows most of the hot spots on the lake, as well as the rising tendencies.

“I average 35 fish a day. I catch largemouth, spots, stripers and hybrid (bass). When you catch a good one it feels like you just hit the perfect golf shot,” said Vincent.

He uses varying strategies, different depths, and sometimes he fishes with artificial lures. But Vincent catches fish with optimum pull on the rod.

“When I’m fishing shallow I use a Rat-L-trap (lure). And when I’m fishing deeper I use a jig (lure) and work it slowly,” said Vincent.

Raymond Merritt of Atlanta did some of that fresh water catching on Thursday morning and afternoon. He hooked up 10 shellcrackers and catfish, most one-pounders or slightly over.

Merritt was fishing from 15 feet to the bottom. He made all of his catches with live worms, red in color.

“The morning fishing was good. I was going after panfish, and I’ve been doing this all of my life,” said Merritt. “The water was clear and the level was up.”

Fisherman Tony Peeples of Stone Mountain also caught some fish and lost some fish. A couple of his four-pound largemouth bass got away.

“They shook the hooks out of their mouths. Catching them is a 50-50 chance. The fish have a mind of their own. Fishing is still a rush,” said Peeples.

He was fishing 15 to 25 feet deep with a plastic worm.