Wellspring of Bass
Spring Basics
The main reasons why springs are
worth finding are pretty straightforward.
First, spring water tends to flow out at a
consistent temperature year-round, which
can create a localized pocket of cool water
in the summer and warm water in the
winter, and that attracts baitfish and bass.
On some fisheries, bass will spawn near
springs before they will in other areas
because of the higher water temperature
and, in some cases, clear water, which
allows the sun to penetrate to the nest. A
spring might also provide needed oxy-
genation or current, which are always
attractive to fish. In places where spring-
fed creeks and ponds are very clear, grass
grows faster and attracts bass, too.
While the secretive nature of fishing
springs in the Tennessee Valley is a fun
subject to discuss, the fact is, freshwater
springs that affect fishing opportunities
are found throughout the country. In the
West, springs feed coldwater fisheries
that support great trout fishing.
On Lake Erie, in cold winters when
enough ice forms to fish hard water,
springs create dangerous thin ice where
they bubble up from the bottom.
The Ozarks are famous for springs.
Some are so large that where they flow
into a river, the fishery transforms from
warmwater to coldwater – from small-
mouth water to trout water.
Florida’s cool spring-fed ponds and
rivers are equally famous, not only for
bass fishing, but for tourists who pay to
snorkel in the gin-clear waters and
teenagers looking to escape the sum-
mer’s heat with a dip in a cool pool.
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There’s enough variation that there
aren’t many rules of thumb, and how
you find and fish springs depends on
where you’re fishing.
How to Find Springs
The easiest way to find a spring is to
be lucky enough to know someone who
can show you one. But we aren’t always
so fortunate. For the rest of us, finding
them requires some recon.
The methods for researching springs
outlined below nearly all require one
key final step: an in-person follow-up on
the water. That’s about the only reliable
way to verify what’s there.
1. Find obvious springs
Some springs are very well known
and frequented by anglers. Missouri’s
Greer Spring, for instance, is a National
Natural Landmark and the 10th largest
spring in the world. It’s so large that
where it flows into the Eleven Point
River, the river doubles in size and tran-
sitions from a warmwater fishery to a
coldwater trout fishery (though targeting
smallmouths below this type of spring in
winter can be a good strategy).
Denny Brauer, who began his career
in Missouri, now enjoys semi-retirement
from his home on Lake Amistad in south
Texas, where Goodenough Spring is a
local landmark. It was a popular swim-
ming hole before the Rio Grande was
dammed. Now underwater,
Goodenough is marked by a buoy.
“Millions of gallons of water come
out of it,” Brauer says. “It sits in pretty
deep water; about 40 feet, depending on
lake level. You can see the turbulence on
the surface.
“Obviously, it’s a community hole,
but stripers, white bass and some large-
mouths will get around it.”
Springs like these are easy to find
with a little bit of internet research.
2. Check maps and other references
Smaller springs, while less obvious,
might still be marked on a map chip or
paper fishing map. Start by finding creek
arms with the word “spring” in the
name. It’s no guarantee there’ll be fresh
inflow, but there could be.
On the St. Johns River and Lake
George, for instance, there are several
springs marked in creeks on most fish-
ing maps. Arkansas pro Billy McCaghren
figured out the potential of one such
creek on an early season pre-practice
trip to the St. Johns with no prior knowl-
edge of the spring.
“It actually tells you on the map
that’s what it is, so I just went in there.
They had a boat launch there,” he says.
“The water was in the 60s out on the
river, but in that spring it was 70. There
were fish everywhere in there.
“It’s a pretty large area,” he adds.
“Actually, it’s a creek, and in the back of
it is a big pond, and that’s where the
spring was.”
Google Maps is another good source.
Many springs are labeled, or you can
find nearby landmarks with “spring” in
the name, and from there track down a
spring that flows into the lake.
In some regions, there are also maps
that identify springs by watershed or
FLWFISHING.COM | MAJORLEAGUEFISHING.COM | APRIL-MAY 2020