This scribler has enjoyed a week of nature at it’s finest.

About 10 after 7 a.m. each morning, I set out on the porch at Wingate’s in my rocking chair to watch nature wake up.  This week a mockingbird began to sit on the electric lines across the parking lot. About every 30 to 45 seconds, it would jump and fly up about 12 feet, grab a bug and set back on the wire, chirping the whole time. This goes on for about 45 minutes and it stops, no chirping or feeding, and disappears. Nature at its best.

The bass and crappie was the best fish this week with bream a close third. With the big catches of bass that has been taken on most anything from top water to white spinner baits and drop shots, man, it has been great! Now some dang good catches of crappie has been made most every day this week. One boat had 12 that was near 2 pounds each.

Bream (red bellies) was taken on crickets.  What I mean, there was some five that weighed in at 1 pound each.

We were glad to see the B.F.L. come to Bainbridge Saterday for a one day tournament with 114 boats fishing.  They were disappointed Saturday morning and were really perplexed. But, lots of fish came in and the fishermen made this statement, “Seminole is Back!” The third-place co-angler, Tim Noonan of Monticello, Ga., had five fish at 18.03 pounds with Jevaris Johnson of Ackworth, Ga., with five at 20.01 pounds, the No. 1 place went to Joseph Renfroe of Jasper, Ga. The closest local was Don Mullis with four at 6.11 pounds.  Mr. Keith Norris of Nashville with one at 8.03 pounds.

The angler third-place man had five fish that tipped at 20.07 pounds. The second-place man was Lee Boutwell of Climax, Ga., with 22.14 pounds of bass and No. 1 place was Ed Wilkerson of Sneads, Fla., with 25.12 pounds of bass.  The Big Fish of the angler side was Ed Wilkerson of Sneads with one at 8.10 pounds.

That was a great set too—1,567 pounds of bass was taken. If it had been a three-day tournament, approximately 4,500 pounds of bass would have been caught.

Gov. Purdue has allotted the money for the new launching ramps to be built at the boat basin in Bainbridge. We find out that the Corps of Engineers has to sign off on the permit. They haven’t. A delegation from Bainbridge should go to Mobile and find out why.  They will run over you if you let them!

The Hydrilla Gnats fished out of Wingate’s on Sunday with the following results: First place went to Gene Smith with 15.92 pounds, second place went to Mike Sloan with 15.08 pounds and third place went to Chris Neely with 9.72 pounds. Big fish was caught by Mike Sloan and weighed 5.98 pounds.

Wingate’s Fishing Report

May 23, 2010

Lake surface temp: 74Lake level: Down someClarity: Cloudy but clearingFlint: ClearingChattahoochee: ClearingSpring Creek: ClearingReport provided by: Jack Wingate