Shane Lineberger’s 5 Favorite Tar Heel lakes

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North Carolina is renowned for stock car racing, excellent college basketball and the Wright brothers’ first flight.</p> <p>When Shane Lineberger thinks about the Tar Heel State, however, he thinks of quality bass fishing, and admits he’s been hunting honey holes for just about as long as he can remember.</p> <p>“I’ve always loved to fish,” the 47-year old Lincolnton, N.C. native said. “I tell people all the time about all the trouble I got into sneaking off to a farm pond or off to the South Fork River when I wasn’t supposed to go. But I went anyway, full well knowing that when I got home, my daddy was going to kick my butt for doing it.”
North Carolina is renowned for stock car racing, excellent college basketball and the Wright brothers’ first flight.
When Shane Lineberger thinks about the Tar Heel State, however, he thinks of quality bass fishing, and admits he’s been hunting honey holes for just about as long as he can remember.
“I’ve always loved to fish,” the 47-year old Lincolnton, N.C. native said. “I tell people all the time about all the trouble I got into sneaking off to a farm pond or off to the South Fork River when I wasn’t supposed to go. But I went anyway, full well knowing that when I got home, my daddy was going to kick my butt for doing it.”
Lineberger still resides in Lincolnton, the small city of about 10,000 people located about a 45-minute drive northwest of Charlotte. And when he’s not fishing on the road and making a living on the Bassmaster Elite Series, he’s likely at home wetting a line on one of his home state’s fantastic fisheries.</p> <p>Bassmaster.com asked Lineberger to list his five favorite bass fishing spots in North Carolina. He rattled the list off with ease, thanks in part to some outstanding memories made on each body of water.</p> <p>Lineberger’s picks include:
Lineberger still resides in Lincolnton, the small city of about 10,000 people located about a 45-minute drive northwest of Charlotte. And when he’s not fishing on the road and making a living on the Bassmaster Elite Series, he’s likely at home wetting a line on one of his home state’s fantastic fisheries.
Bassmaster.com asked Lineberger to list his five favorite bass fishing spots in North Carolina. He rattled the list off with ease, thanks in part to some outstanding memories made on each body of water.
Lineberger’s picks include:
<b>1. Lake Norman, 30 miles north of Charlotte city center</b></p> <p>“Everybody knows about Lake Norman and it’s probably my favorite fishery in North Carolina for the sheer number of bass you can catch. Right now, when the fish are starting to pull up a little bit and get on some beds, I can take my daughter (Alli) out there and she can skip a little Wacky Worm around and she has fun with it. And if she’s having fun, so am I.”
1. Lake Norman, 30 miles north of Charlotte city center
“Everybody knows about Lake Norman and it’s probably my favorite fishery in North Carolina for the sheer number of bass you can catch. Right now, when the fish are starting to pull up a little bit and get on some beds, I can take my daughter (Alli) out there and she can skip a little Wacky Worm around and she has fun with it. And if she’s having fun, so am I.”
<b>2. Jordan Lake, 30 miles west of Raleigh, due south of Chapel Hill</b></p> <p>“I’ve got one of my best fishing stories out of there. My wife went to the University of North Carolina and when I went to visit her, I’d bring my boat. When she’d go to class, I’d go fishing. I was up there one time in the third week of March, the water temperature was 55 degrees. I pulled up on a little stretch of bushes and, this is going to sound ridiculous, but I caught 52 bass that day and 41 of them were over 4 pounds. Twenty of them were over 5 (pounds) and seven of them were over 6 (pounds.) It was a magical day and I’m telling you, it’s still one of the hidden gems of the state.”
2. Jordan Lake, 30 miles west of Raleigh, due south of Chapel Hill
“I’ve got one of my best fishing stories out of there. My wife went to the University of North Carolina and when I went to visit her, I’d bring my boat. When she’d go to class, I’d go fishing. I was up there one time in the third week of March, the water temperature was 55 degrees. I pulled up on a little stretch of bushes and, this is going to sound ridiculous, but I caught 52 bass that day and 41 of them were over 4 pounds. Twenty of them were over 5 (pounds) and seven of them were over 6 (pounds.) It was a magical day and I’m telling you, it’s still one of the hidden gems of the state.”
<b>3. Shearon Harris Reservoir, 30 miles southwest of Raleigh city center</b></p> <p>“I saw my first 10-pounder over there on Shearon Harris. It’s a very small lake; not but maybe 4,000 acres. The story on that is that back in the 1990s, it was full of hydrilla. And back then, it was filled with some giant bass, too. I mean there were some really big ones. And then they had a (Tar Heel Team Tournament) over there, and a husband and wife, Dennis and Jane Reedy, they had 10 bass in one day that weighed 72 pounds…It was ridiculous. Before that happened, you could go over there anytime and catch big fish. But not long after they caught all those big fish, it might take you two hours just to put your boat in the water. That’s how busy it got there, and the lake got fished out. Then the power company over there killed all the grass. That made the fishing awful for about six or seven years. But the state went in and put a 16- to 20-inch slot limit on Shearon Harris and the fishing really came back. There was a 45 or 46-pound bag caught over there last year, so you know it’s back healthy. That slot limit helped that place rebound tremendously.”
3. Shearon Harris Reservoir, 30 miles southwest of Raleigh city center
“I saw my first 10-pounder over there on Shearon Harris. It’s a very small lake; not but maybe 4,000 acres. The story on that is that back in the 1990s, it was full of hydrilla. And back then, it was filled with some giant bass, too. I mean there were some really big ones. And then they had a (Tar Heel Team Tournament) over there, and a husband and wife, Dennis and Jane Reedy, they had 10 bass in one day that weighed 72 pounds…It was ridiculous. Before that happened, you could go over there anytime and catch big fish. But not long after they caught all those big fish, it might take you two hours just to put your boat in the water. That’s how busy it got there, and the lake got fished out. Then the power company over there killed all the grass. That made the fishing awful for about six or seven years. But the state went in and put a 16- to 20-inch slot limit on Shearon Harris and the fishing really came back. There was a 45 or 46-pound bag caught over there last year, so you know it’s back healthy. That slot limit helped that place rebound tremendously.”
<b>4. Falls Lake, 20 miles north/northwest of Raleigh</b></p> <p>“Falls is another small lake in the Raleigh area that has giant bass in it. The second part of a Pro Bass Tour tournament is going on over there, and if they don’t catch a couple over 10 pounds, I’d really be shocked. The place is that good. It’s just always productive. I’ve been over there in August before and it takes 30 pounds to win. And it’s unique too because it’s kind of like a miniature Tennessee River lake. It’s got ledges and things like that running all through it, and those fish just load up on those ledges … It’s a neat little place.”
4. Falls Lake, 20 miles north/northwest of Raleigh
“Falls is another small lake in the Raleigh area that has giant bass in it. The second part of a Pro Bass Tour tournament is going on over there, and if they don’t catch a couple over 10 pounds, I’d really be shocked. The place is that good. It’s just always productive. I’ve been over there in August before and it takes 30 pounds to win. And it’s unique too because it’s kind of like a miniature Tennessee River lake. It’s got ledges and things like that running all through it, and those fish just load up on those ledges … It’s a neat little place.”
<b>5. Lake James, 50 miles northeast of Asheville</b></p> <p>“James is the first lake in the Catawba Chain. It has largemouth and smallmouth bass, and really, it’s the only place around here that has smallmouth that amount to anything. There was a Carolina Bass Challenge up there last weekend and I think there were three smallmouth that weighed over 6 pounds. And man, I’m telling you it’s absolutely filled with 4-pound smallmouth bass. I used to fish up there a lot back 10 or 12 years ago before I was gone all the time fishing professionally. I still find time to get over there though. That’s another one of those gems that’s hidden here, and people try to keep it that way. It’s up in the mountains and it’s 20 miles off the interstate, so you don’t have too many people out there. But it’s got the kind of bass that would draw a crowd if it was easier to reach.”
5. Lake James, 50 miles northeast of Asheville
“James is the first lake in the Catawba Chain. It has largemouth and smallmouth bass, and really, it’s the only place around here that has smallmouth that amount to anything. There was a Carolina Bass Challenge up there last weekend and I think there were three smallmouth that weighed over 6 pounds. And man, I’m telling you it’s absolutely filled with 4-pound smallmouth bass. I used to fish up there a lot back 10 or 12 years ago before I was gone all the time fishing professionally. I still find time to get over there though. That’s another one of those gems that’s hidden here, and people try to keep it that way. It’s up in the mountains and it’s 20 miles off the interstate, so you don’t have too many people out there. But it’s got the kind of bass that would draw a crowd if it was easier to reach.”
Look for Shane on the 2019 Bassmaster Elite Series this year. Thanks Shane!
Look for Shane on the 2019 Bassmaster Elite Series this year. Thanks Shane!