Photo by Ron Sinfelt

It’s May in Pennsylvania! Birds are singing, the flowers are blooming and most importantly, the bass are biting.

Spring is when Keystone State bass go on a feeding binge, with their peak period being during the pre-spawn period and after the spawn is over. Whatever drives them, this is the time to take advantage of their appetite.

The eastern part of the state -- convenient to Philadelphia and Harrisburg-area anglers -- offers a wide range of lakes where you can find big bass this month.

In the lowlands of the southeast corner are impoundments big and small. In the Poconos, bass will be found in tannin-stained waters filled with stumps and surrounded by boggy shorelines. In the south-central area, weedy, rock-filled lakes warm quickly under the spring sun.

Here are some the region’s best spring bass hotspots:

NOCKAMIXON LAKE
Many anglers say this is the best of the large impoundments in the southeast corner of the state. It’s tough to argue with them. At 1,450 acres, Nockamixon Lake routinely produces big bass. When fishing is hot here, fish over 4 pounds are common, and some lucky anglers will place 7- and 8-pounders on the scales. Don’t believe it? Just check the angler bulletin boards at local bait shops.

The funny thing with Nockamixon Lake is although it’s the biggest lake in the five-county Southeast Region, it doesn’t have as many bays and coves as some of the smaller lakes, like Marsh Creek and Chester-Octoraro. Tohickon Creek bay and the Haycock Creek bay offer great action. But the majority of the impoundment’s fishing is centered around the main-lake shoreline, which is extensive.

From the upper end of Nockamixon Lake above the Three Mile Run Road boat ramp, all the way down to the dam at the bottom end of the impoundment, there’s a variety of habitat. Shoreline structure includes flat, rounded, steep, shallow, stump-filled and weed-filled shorelines. In spring, this is where the action is.

Start your day on the shallow and sun-facing south shoreline opposite Route 563. There’s plenty of good spawning territory on the south shore. As the days grow longer, work the bays and points on the north side of the lake -- the same side as the major highway.

Lake Nockamixon lies in north Bucks County near Quakertown. From Philadelphia, take Route 309 north to Route 313 east and Route 563, which runs along the northeastern side of the lake.

Three boat launches are situated along Route 563. There’s also plenty of shore access with a fishing pier along this highway. A ramp is on Three Mile Run Road, on the southwestern side of the lake. Twenty-horsepower motors are permitted on this lake.

For more information, contact the state park office at (215) 529-7300.

MARSH CREEK LAKE
Some anglers have asked if they need a special shallow boat to fish the impoundment named Marsh Creek Lake, whose name could hint at a soupy wetland, I suppose. But even with the electric-motor restriction on this 535-acre lake’s, anglers here can operate large bass boats with no problem. And once they get where they’re going on Marsh Creek, they should find some fine largemouth fishing.