Variety is one of the greatest virtues of Wilson and Pickwick lakes, according to B.A.S.S. pro Timmy Horton, who lives in nearby Muscle Shoals and has fished the Tennessee River all his life. Largemouths and smallmouths compete for top billing among bass fishermen, although other groups of anglers would contend that heavyweight catfish, stripers or crappie are the best thing going (each with a good case to be made). Meanwhile, the waters themselves range from swift tailwaters to open-river ledges to dock-filled coves to grassy backwaters.
Colbert County, which includes Wilson and upper Pickwick and the towns of Muscle Shoals, Sheffield and Tuscumbia, has long been one of my favorite places to visit on fishing trips. That's largely because of the fishing itself, but it's also because I've rarely been any place where the local community better appreciates the significance of their local fishing or is more welcoming to visiting fishermen. Whether at the boat ramp or gas station or out to eat, local folks always seem happy to have visitors in town enjoying the great fishing - and I truly appreciate that.
Timmy's favorite thing about fall on the Tennessee River is the topwater bite. Whether he's hopping a frog in grass or walking a spook below Wilson Dam for jumbo smallies he typically has some type of surface lure on this time of year. As the fall gives way to winter and the water temperature continues to drop, he'll switch mostly to YUMBrella Rigs and YUM Mud Minnows, which he'll fish along main-river bluffs. That bite will last all winter long and continue into the spring, and that's the main thing he'll throw throughout the cool months.
Don't go on my word, though. Find out out for yourself. For information, visit www.fishpickwicklake.com.
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