Fishing Falls Lake With High Water Levels

Bass Hippy
Aug 1
3 min read

Falls Lake, located in the heart of North Carolina's Piedmont region, is a popular bass fishing destination that offers a wide range of structure, cover, and seasonal opportunities. But when water levels rise significantly—whether from heavy rains, upstream inflow, or flood control operations—the lake presents a very different set of challenges and opportunities. Understanding how to adapt your fishing strategy during high water conditions is the key to staying productive and landing quality fish.

What Happens When Falls Lake Floods?

When Falls Lake is running high, water spills into wooded shorelines, brush, and even over walking paths and boat ramps. This creates an abundance of shallow cover and disperses baitfish and bass over a wider area. Normal structure is often submerged deeper than usual or inaccessible, which can make it tough for anglers to find fish quickly.

However, experienced anglers know that high water doesn’t mean bad fishing—it just means different fishing. Here’s how to adjust.

Follow the Water Into the Trees

Bass are naturally drawn to newly flooded areas because they offer fresh cover, oxygen-rich water, and a buffet of insects, frogs, and baitfish. When Falls Lake is high, don’t be afraid to push shallow—sometimes extremely shallow. Look for:

Flooded willows, buck brush, and shoreline trees
Picnic areas or trails now underwater
Shady pockets and coves where current slows

Use a kayak or a shallow-draft boat if needed to reach these areas, as bigger bass often follow the water into hard-to-reach backwaters.

Top baits: Texas-rigged creature baits, spinnerbaits, weightless Senkos, and frogs are ideal in this cover.

Ned RIg with Creature bait. (Helgramite)

Fish frogs near grass lines and heavy cover.

Key in on the “New Bank”

Instead of casting to the original shoreline, shift your focus to where the new water’s edge lies. This becomes the new ambush point for bass. They’ll pin baitfish up against flooded brush, or lie in wait for something to fall from the trees.

Look for any visible irregularities—such as points, secondary cuts, or fallen timber now submerged along the new shoreline.

Use Moving Baits to Cover Water

With bass spread out, covering water is crucial to locating active fish. Power fishing with moving baits helps you search more quickly and trigger reaction bites.

Try:

Chatterbaits with trailers through flooded grass and brush
Spinnerbaits along submerged shoreline contours
Square-bill crankbaits banging through wood cover

Once you find a bite or two, slow down and pick apart the area thoroughly.

My favorite moving bait to cover water is a spinner bait in a bluegill color 1/2 oz.

Adjust to Water Color and Clarity

High water usually brings more stained or muddy conditions, especially on the upper end of the lake where feeder creeks dump in runoff. This means switching to bolder lure colors like black/blue, chartreuse, or white, and relying more on vibration and scent.

In the clearer lower end of Falls Lake, natural colors may still work, and sight-fishing can remain an option in backwater pockets.

Watch the Current

Even when the lake is high, Falls Lake will sometimes have current if the dam is releasing water downstream into the Neuse River. This current affects positioning: