"The whole lake can be good, but one of my favorite spots is a small creek up the Rocky River. It sometimes takes a while to wind our way into the back of the creek, but when we get back there, the area opens up. If there's been a recent rain, washing in some fresh water, we've caught plenty of quality bass in those places very quickly. We've won some tournaments in 30 minutes of great fishing in these places. In some cases, it took nearly that long to get to the spots. But it can certainly be worth it," he noted.

Another good pattern is to work the standing timber along the river channel during this time of the year. Jackson notes that working deep with worms and deep-diving crankbaits can be productive. However, there's one tactic that's produced extremely well with the clear water found in this lake.

"We'll usually fish flukes, either in the snowball or rainbow trout color patterns, around the timber along the edge of the channel. Sometimes the largemouths simply can't stand it and will come up out of the deep water to bust our lures. However, on some days, we have to add a bit of the lead weight to our line, or just a big swivel as weight, to get the fluke down. This is more difficult because it's more of a feel situation and the bite will usually be very subtle. But getting the lure down a few more feet can make a big difference some days," he added.

Jackson also fishes humps and shoals that come near the water's surface at this lake. Shoal marker navigation aids will indicate where some of these are, but you can also find some others by doing as Jackson has: Study lake maps and ride around focused on the depthfinder.

"These humps and shoals are more traditional types of fishing structures, but they will certainly produce here during the summer months. Plus, this (pattern) can be very good both during the day or the night. We'll often use Carolina rigs with 6-inch worms. We've had excellent results on different color patterns, but red shad, black grape and bleu bloodline have been very productive at times. In addition, we'll use deep-running crankbaits," he said.

Jackson notes that patience and persistence are important here. He likes to work the areas slowly and thoroughly, but after giving a spot a good chance to produce, he'll move to another area. If an area does produce a fish or two, he'll definitely return to check it periodically throughout the day.

One tactic that worked well for me on a late July trip was to vertically jig spoons along the river channel. I would see a fish rake into a school of shad, but I couldn't get a bite on topwaters or worms. So I dunked the trusty spoon and began vertically jigging it. The action wasn't fast, but it was consistent and within a couple of hours, we put about a dozen bass in the boat. More importantly, it's typically been productive for a few fish on most trips to this lake during hot weather.

Jackson also said the wind can be an asset at this clear-water lake during the summer. He's found that on windy days, the water being churned up will pull bass to the windy points in very fishable depths. Worms, crankbaits and topwater lures can all be productive.