Fishing For Smallmouth Bass

SPRING :
Top Baits: Small crankbaits, small jigs and plastic worms.
Fish shallow to moderate depths as the smallmouth move into the shallows for warmer water, spawning and food source activity. Gravel points and submerged humps are prime holding areas.

SUMMER :
Top Baits: Small crankbaits, Jigs and plastic worms.
Fish shallow in the mornings and evenings and move deeper as the sun rises. Use lures that mimic crawfish as this is a favorite food for smallmouth bass. Follow points and rocky or gravel structure deeper until you establish the proper depth. Smallmouth's are also known to feed at night during the hot summer months.

FALL :
Top Baits: Small jigs, small crankbaits and spoons.
Fish shallow to moderate depths in the mornings and evenings. As the sun rises move deeper toward outside structure and use small spoons or jigs.

WINTER :
Top Baits: Jigs, spoons and plastic worms.
Try shallow in the mornings then move deeper as the sun rises. Smallmouth are less active in cold water, so move your bait in a slow, easy to catch manner and fish deep structure. "Deep" depends on the overall depth of the lake you are fishing. In some lakes you may need to go as deep as 60 feet while others seldom hold fish below 45 feet.

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Fishing For Largemouth Bass

SPRING :
Top Baits: Spinnerbaits, crankbaits and plastic worms.
Fish shallow to moderate depths as the bass move into the shallows for warmer water, spawning and food source activity. Try shallow-water flippin on cloudy days or in murky water.

SUMMER :
Top Baits: Crankbaits, Jigs and plastic worms.
Fish shallow in the mornings and evenings and move deeper as the sun rises. "Deep" depends on the overall depth of the lake you are fishing. In some lakes you may need to go as deep as 60 feet while others seldom hold fish below 35 feet. Largemouth's often feed at night during the hot summer months.

FALL :
Top Baits: Spinnerbaits, crankbaits and spoons.
Fish shallow to moderate depths in the mornings and evenings. As the bass move deeper during the day move to outside deep structure and use spoons or jigs.

WINTER :
Top Baits: Jigs, pork baits and plastic worms.
Try shallow in the mornings then move deeper as the sun rises. Bass are not very active in cold water, so move your bait in a slow, easy to catch manner and fish deep cover and structure. "Deep" depends on the overall depth of the lake you are fishing. In some lakes you may need to go as deep as 60 feet while others seldom hold fish below 35 feet.

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Bass Fishing in the Weeds

Concentrate on weed tops. Generally, if you are deep inside the weeds, you are going to get caught up, and really the more active bass are going to be near the edges and tops of the weeds. So, pay particular attention to these key areas by monitoring your depth and sticking close to the edges of weeded areas rather than casting right into them, or fishing too deeply, and you will have better results, because active bass are bass that are on the feed, and those are the ones that are going to bite.

Consider using live baits such as minnows, crayfish, and small worms. Use top water plugs, willow leaf spinners, and lipless crank bait. Plastic worms with pegged sinkers work well, and jigs with pork trailers will also catch some fish for you. If you decide to target some less active fish deep in the cover, using the worm and the jig is a good choice.

You might also want to fish the ditches in summertime when you are trying to catch bass. Bass tend to travel in the ditch areas when they are moving from the deeper areas to the shallows to feed, so they are normally already hungry and looking for a tasty meal when they get there. They really do consistently show a lot of action when it comes to bass fishing. If you don't already know the location of probably ditches, consider consulting a topo map. Begin in the deeper areas of the ditches, casting to the edge and working your way deeper.

Use crank baits, plastic worms, spinner baits, and lizards. Especially during the very warm summer months, rivers will show more bass action than lakes, because they have a higher oxygen content. The higher content of oxygen gives the bass a little more energy and makes them a little more active.

Active fish feed more than inactive fish. You can also use more active retrieves in rivers than you ever can in lakes. Also consider creeks. Creeks will generally hold bigger bass than rivers or lakes. The waters are clearer and cooler too in summer. Because of the clarity of the water, be sure to use natural looking and natural colored lures to catch bass in creeks. Give casting upstream and allowing the lure to come back down stream to fish around logs and rocks.

In the summertime, consider giving the shallows a try. Most fishermen head straight to the deep water, but shallow structure offers a lot of opportunity for anglers as well. Use crank bait and top water plugs, and fish close to the target. Try casting past the target, and reeling naturally to allow the lure to bump the target. You will most often locate the bass on the shady side of the structure, and it helps to know this going in. They are usually grouped right together, and stay really close to the cover.

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Bass Fishing in Winter

In 70-degree water, a two or three-pound bass might eat and digest a one-inch forage in six hours and afterwards might get hungry again. In 50-degree water, it might however take 48 longs hours to digest that same food. If the water is less than 45 degrees, it is most probable that the fish will not eat the food in the first place. Digesting food it this kind of temperature will take it weeks to digest the food.

For most anglers wanting to go bass fishing on a winter day, it might turn out to be a nice day with everyone else enjoying each other's company while fishing, but usually they do not get the desired results when it comes to bass catching. Winter season is admittedly not a very prolific time of the year when it comes to bass fishing.

Warmer days during winter season might see some improvement in bass fishing but it would really be difficult to catch many bass before mid month of February. Stripers as well as hybrid bass is going to be your best hope, and you do have more chance with crappie than bass in the wintry, cold water. You might want to travel to Lake Sinclair and other waters around the coal-fired power plants and go fish on the much warmer water coming from the plants. Definitely, the warm water discharge improves your bass catch.

Nonetheless, if you insist on bass fishing this time of the year, remember always that they are cold-blooded. Winter slows them down so you should match them by slowing down yourself. Use the smallest of bait that you have. If you have bait that will stay preferably forever in front of the fish and doing only insignificant movements, this is much better. Preferred bait would be a jigging spoon that would work up and down in a slow fashion might earn a bite from an inactive bass. A doodling worm in the same spot might also prove effective.

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Top 20 Bass Fishing Tips

1. Fish slowly, providing better action and enabling the fish to have ample eye contact.

2. When the bite seems to slow down, you should slow also down. Work methodically until you find the fish.

3. Always be aware of your weather forecast. Wind, storms, and lightening kill. Safety comes first.

4. If wet feet bother you on rainy days, try a pair of GORE-TEX sox. They are waterproof and can be worn in any shoe or boot.

5. Be alert and watchful. Fish give away their presence 90% of the time through baitfish fleeing; surface action; or vegetation movement.

6.Always look in a bass' mouth before releasing it. Most of the time, when fighting a lure in his jaw, a bass will try to throw up whatever is in his stomach. You may be able to determine what prey the fish are actively feeding on and choose a lure/presentation to duplicate it.

7.Set the hook on a fish by feel rather than by sight.

8. Regularly check your knot for weakness and hook for sharpness.

9. Bass are not that smart. A swivel does not affect the action of a lure in a negative way and fish don't really care about it. Use one anytime there is the potential for line twist.

10. If you are using small hooks, don't jerk hard on the hookset; just tighten up the slack with the rod and reel faster.

11. Check your line just above the lure frequently when fishing crankbaits around rocks, gravel, stumps, and other hard obstructions. They can quickly fray your line.

12. Bass normally respond best to an erratic retrieve and a lot of motion. Keep that lure in front of the fish as long as you can.

13. Hold your rod tip down and to the side for better feel, keeping the angle between rod and line at around 90 degrees.

14. Black buzz baits seem to produce more strikes than bright colors.

15. Since the bass's metabolism is high, use large crankbaits in warm and hot weather. Switch to smaller baits when the water is cooler.

16. Use a wire cross-locking snap when fishing crank plugs. It allows you to change lures quickly and enables the bait to vibrate more freely.

17. If you notice feeding fish and baitfish movement, the predators are actively after the prey. Switch to a fast moving crankbait and burn it through the area of activity.

18. Protect your eyes with a good pair of plastic polarized sunglasses. They will protect you from the sun's rays and also provide a shield against a snagged slip sinker or lure flying back when pulled loose.

19. Keep baits fresh and airtight with a food vacuum sealer. You can also store hooks and other terminal tackle this way.

20. Store small quantities of hooks with a few grains of rice and they will never rust.

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Bass Fishing Tips, Tricks, & Techniques That Will Help You Catch More Bass

You'll notice fairly quickly that these tips, tricks, and techniques are fairly simple. This is probably because my fishing mentor believed in keeping fishing as simple as possible, and then focusing on the details to become a better angler. This is a mantra that I've stuck by as well. Keep fishing simple and focus on the details. The point of the matter is that these tips, tricks, and techniques will help you become a better bass angler.

If you want to catch more bass the first thing to keep in mind is your fishing line. As weird and crazy as this may sound, you fishing line is very important when it comes to bass fishing. You always want to use fishing line that's as light as possible. I realize that this might sound crazy when you see professionals on television winching is bass as if they are, well trying to make money, but the point is that we are fishing for bass for different reasons. We aren't trying to make money catching bass, they are. If you want to catch more bass, use fishing line that is as light as possible. The less visible your line is to the bass the more bites you will receive, it's as simple as that.

One of the biggest tricks to catching more bass is to be on the water when the bass are the most active. How do you figure out when the bass are the most active? The easiest way is to pay attention to the weather and moon, and then plan your fishing trips accordingly. Don't worry; it's not necessary to become a researcher on these subjects either. Learning the basics are enough and will serve you well. Being on the water when the bass are the most active is more than half the battle when it comes to bass fishing success.

A great trick to help you catch more bass is to use fishing lures that are as realistic as possible. If you like soft plastics, try Berkley's Gulp products. These soft plastics are impregnated with fish catching scents during the manufacturing process and are very effective. Many bass anglers even say that Gulp products out fish live bait! If you are a crank bait fisherman an extremely realistic lure is the KickTail Minnow. This crank bait looks as much like a live shad or bait fish as I think is possible.

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Smallmouth Bass Fishing Tips

Lets take a look at the equipment that is most suited for most situations of smallmouth bass fishing.
A medium power, fast action rod that is between 5 1/2 and 6 1/2 feet long will suit you just fine.
Most of the time. There are those special situations and any angler should always carry more than
one type of rod and reel set up when fishing.

Now the reel you want to have for your rod should match your rod. If the reel is too heavy, the rod
will be butt heavy and won't cast correctly. The main thing you want on your reel is a very nice
working drag that will still operate smoothly after that big smallmouth hits the end of your line. A low
quality and low priced reel may have a drag that malfunctions while you are fighting that trophy
smallmouth and when he gets to the end of the line, snap, and you're done. Gear ratio may be
confusing to some of you. The higher the ratio, the faster the line is reeled in. So a 5:1 will reel in
faster than a 4:1. When a smallmouth leaps, changes direction, or charges the boat, you will want a
reel that will be able to pull up the slack line as fast as possible.

The fishing line selection is as varied as the waters you will find smallmouth in. So the type of line
you chose is up to you. I prefer Trilene XL in low visibility green. But this is just a personal
preference of mine. I would advise against buying bargain lines as they are not as consistent with
their line as the premium manufacturers. The lighter the line you use, the deeper your lure will run
as there is less drag on the line. You will be able to feel the bite better. A line with stretch is more
forgiving than lines without so much stretch. Eight pound test is all the heavier you need to go in
most situations. If you are fishing in the slop, around snags, in the rocks, your line will become
beaten up quickly. You may also need heavier line to hoss the fish away that downed timber in the
water. You may need the heavier line for tossing heavier lures and baits. You do want to go with the
lightest line you can get away with as lighter line is smaller in diameter and is less visible to the fish.

Lets look at the fish we are pursuing now. The bronzeback is well known for diving deep and
waging a deep water assault on you gear. They also make drag screeching runs and high flying flips
in the air. It is widely considered by most people as the toughest freshwater fish you will come
across. As far as it's senses go, the smallmouth bass is the same as the largemouth bass except
where daytime vision is concerned. The smallmouth has excellent daytime vision. Their sense of
smell and night vision is fair, where their hearing and lateral line is good. If you are fishing in
shallower or clearer water, you will want to make sure not to cast a shadow over the water as that
can spook the fish. Remember when the fish is looking up out of the water, the sky is the
background. You will want to blend in with your background.

The smallmouth prefers clear and clean waters. Temperature and smallmouth have some things in
common. If the oxygen level is good, you can expect to find them in temperatures around 70
degrees or slightly lower. Younger smallmouth prefer warmer waters than older smallmouth. They
also prefer a little more current than does the largemouth. Find a deep pool with current in a river
system and you should be able to find your smallmouth. They also like rocks and rip rap shorelines.
If you find a current break, you will want to fish that area thoroughly.

There are several good techniques to go after smallmouth. One way is to cast lures at structure.
Shoreline structure as well as mid lake structure. Slow trolling works well for smallmouth. So does
jigging for them. Fly fishing is very productive for smallmouth bass as many of the insects that the
smallmouth lives on can and is duplicated by fly tiers. The fish act different in different areas as
well. Where the pressure for food is high, the fish are more aggressive. In cases where the
pressure isn't so high, the fish tend to look things over a bit more.

There are several kinds of lures you can use for smallmouth bass. Unless you are fishing in the fall,
I would keep my lure under 5 inches in length. I can't tell you how many large smallmouth bass I
have caught using a 1 1/2 inch long mini fat rap. Or how many 20 plus inch smallmouth I have
caught on a jighead and half a crawler. I would also go with a more natural colored lure. I have
caught several smallmouth on an orange jighead, but the most of my fish are on natural colored
crankbaits. As for jigging, it is the same as with other species. They will tend to hit the jig on the
drop, so having no slack line when jigging is essential. And just like walleye fishing, if you feel
something different, set the hook. If it feels like your jig just bumped into a stone or stick, set the
hook. If there isn't any fish on your line, reel in and put on a new crawler to replace the one you just
lost. In deep water, jigging is your best solution. The deeper the water, the more line you will have
out, so a super limp line with a lot of stretch may not be your best solution at this time.

Another good lure is a spinner or spinnerbait. A Mepp's Aglia with the natural colored squirrel hair
on the treble is an excellent choice for an inline spinner. A spinnerbait is perfect for when the
smallmouth are in weeds or timber. You can cover this water without snagging up all the time. My
all time favorite spinner is a Beetle Spin. I would have to call the Beetle Spin the perfect bait. I prefer
to use a vibrating lure or a lure with a blade in low visibility water. This just helps the smallmouth
locate the lure easier.

Then of course there is live bait. Working a crawdad on the bottom can not be argued with.
Minnows work well, as do frogs, waterdogs, and nightcrawlers. You can fish these on the bottom
with a slip sinker rig, or work them just above the bottom with a slip bobber rig.

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Largemouth Bass Fishing Tips

The equipment you use for largemouth bass fishing is going to depend on your personal preference,
where you are fishing, the type of fishing you are doing, and the location of the bass. You will want to
match the rod and reel. A heavier rod is going to be needed if you have to horse the bass out of
heavy cover like weeds, timber, pads, or other kinds of slop. The reel is going to have to match the
rod. Too big of a reel for the rod will make the rod butt heavy and harder to cast accurately. With so
much of our bass fishing relying on our sense of touch, a sensitive rod that allows you to feel the
lightest differences of pressure on your baits is crucial. This won't come into play if all you're doing
is casting crankbaits, but if you are jigging a deep water point, you will need to feel when the fish hits.

No matter what kind of presentation you are using, lighter line will be the best way to go. Now I am
not saying you need to be throwing 3/4 ounce jigs around heavy cover with 2 pound test, but you
need to go as light as you can go. As situations change, you will need to change your presentations.
This is why so many bass anglers will have more than one rod and reel set up in their boat. Another
reason is if a bass misses one bait, a lot of times you can go back at the bass with a different bait
and pick it up.

The lure selection that is at your disposal these days is mind numbing. Even if you know you are
going to be working a soft plastic through some cover, there are a seemingly endless selection of
styles and colors and sizes to choose from. The same can be said with jigging lures for working
deeper points and sunken structure. If you are new to bass fishing, or just love the excitement of a
largemouth hitting your lure, then I would suggest going with a topwater bait and start your day out
before dawn. If catching a largemouth on a topwater bait doesn't hook you on bass fishing, you
might as well try something else.

The type of topwater lure that you can use is also just as varied as all the other kinds of lures. One
of the simplest to use is the buzz bait. Just cast it out and retrieve it just fast enough to keep it
churning the surface, and then hold on. Several times I have actually seen the wake of the fish as
the fish closed in for the kill. Good colors are green, yellow, and white. Even on these you can
attach a soft plastic trailer bait. Probably the second most used topwater bait is the popper type
lure. It has a concave face and when you give it a tug, it pops on the top of the water. Cast it out,
give it a few pops, then let it settle until the rings dissipate. Then pop it a couple more times. If you
are used to constantly moving your artificial bait, then this will be one of the hardest things to
master.

Spinner baits and inline spinners are just as effective. I have caught countless numbers of
largemouth on Rooster Tail lures. Yellow, white, coachdog colors all worked extremely well for me.
I believe the success and the popularity of the spinner bait has left the inline spinner in the dust, as
far as largemouth bass are concerned. Even these baits have numerous types to choose from.
Types of blades to use, size of blades, color of blades, number of blades. Do you put on a trailer, do
you use a trailer hook. The list goes on and on. One of my favorite spinner bait lures, isn't really a
true spinner bait. It is the Beetle Spin. It's popularity can be attributed to one of two things. First, the
Beetle Spin, much like the other true spinner baits, is almost snag proof. You can cast these lures
anywhere and get away with it. The second reason these lures are so popular is that they will catch
just about anything that swims in the waters of Indiana. Just the same can be said about my
favorite inline spinner, the Mepps Comet Minnow.

Other topwater lures are the stick baits or jerk baits. These are cast out and retrieved in a jerk jerk
jerk pause method. The idea is to mimic an injured minnow on the surface of the water trying to
swim. The most common method to fish these baits is a technique called walking the dog. This is
accomplished by twitching the lure to one side and then back to the other. Having a slight pause
after each twitch so the lure can float that direction under its own power. The lure should move
more to the left and the right than towards you. All this action on the surface of the water can draw
in bass from a long ways off.

Largemouth bass will relate to some kind of structure. Any rip rap in a stream or river can hold
bass. Look for them on the down stream side of the obstruction. They also relate to weeds in lakes
and ponds. Under water humps and islands will hold bass as well. In shallow running streams, look
for the bass in the deeper pools along the stream. A lot of farmers will be pumping water into and
out of these streams for their fields. Pumping water out of their irrigation ditches and into the
streams to control flooding can cause a deep pool to form. The same can be said for the down
stream side of a dam used to control water flow. Any culvert or bridge can also hold largemouth
bass. You would be surprised at the number and the size of bass that can be caught in these small
feeder streams throughout the year.

Live bait that can be used for largemouth bass is a wide assortment of the usual baits. Crawlers,
crawdads, minnows, bugs, frogs, and salamanders are baits that most people think of. This baits
can be fished in many different ways as well. Most common would be a slip sinker rig or a three
way rig to keep the bait on or near the bottom, or to slip bobber rig so you can pick up the bass when
they are suspended out in open waters.

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Bass Fishing Tips

This will be broken down into two separate sections. One each for smallmouth and largemouth
bass. If there is enough interest and or time, we will be putting up a page for spotted bass.

Smallmouth bass tend to make people think crayfish and moving water whereas largemouth bass
tend to have people think of small lakes and lily pads. A lot of the smallmouth bass we catch are
caught while jigging for walleye, but we also catch largemouth while drifting and trolling for walleye.
So their habitats do overlap. Smallmouth do need to have more oxygen than the largemouth bass
do, so at certain times of the year in certain waters, you will not find these fish together.

Weather affects the smallmouth in different ways. Windy weather usually means the fishing will be
better as the waves allow less light to penetrate beneath the water's surface. The same is true
when there is a light drizzle on a calm day. Smallmouth will go on a feeding frenzy before a front
moves in. Some of the best smallmouth fishing is done by jigging on the bottom with a jig tipped with
a leech, crawler, or minnow. Casting to rip/rap shorelines is effective as well. Anything that is in the
water that deflects the current is also another good place to target fish.

Weather affects largemouth bass in much of the same as it does for smallmouth bass. Warm
fronts generally improve fishing unless there are a few warms days in a row in summer. This can
raise the water temperatures and cause the fish to become sluggish. Topwater baits are always
the most exciting way to fish for largemouth bass. If the fish are holding in a deep pool, a heavy jig
will also provide some nice action. The soft plastic revolution owes its success to the popular
largemouth and the Texas rigged plastic worm.

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Egg-Frying Bass Fishing

In highland reservoirs, the bass move deeper in the lakes as the weather heats-up. To fish highland reservoirs at this time of year, use soft plastics. To catch big bass, fish a 10- a 12-inch plastic worm with a 3/8- to 1/2-ounce slip sinker on 15-pound-test line. If the bass won’t take a big worm, fish a 4- or a 5-inch worm with a 3/16-ounce slip sinker on 8-pound-test line to get a bite. Rig both of these worms Texas style. Also, another hot-weather technique extremely deadly in clear, deep water is dropshotting. In a lowland reservoir after the spawn, bass will move out of the shallows and often school-up in 8 to 15 feet of water. Fish watermelon-shad crankbaits with pearl-colored bodies and green backs in extremely-shallow water. When summer temperatures climb past 90 degrees, and most other anglers fish deep water for bass, fish shallow water. In most reservoirs, a year-round population of bass exists in shallow water.

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Deep-Water Bass

To find deep-water bass, cover water efficiently with a rod and reel. When fishing down to about 18 feet or less, fish a crankbait. Use a watermelon-shad color, a pearl-colored lure with a light green-lime back. Because of its back, this lure shows up in stained water, and its white pearl belly shows up in clear water. The further you can cast a crankbait, the lighter line you use and the deeper you hold your rod in the water, the deeper the crankbait will dive. A crankbait works most effectively when fished on some type of breakline, such as an underwater creek channel, an underwater grass line, an underwater stump row or some other kind of breakline. When fishing for deep-water bass, attempt to discover a school of the fish. Then you may want to catch your limit of bass out of one spot. During the summer months, use a faster retrieve to get a reaction strike. Some days you need a slow retrieve for the bass to bite, even in hot weather. But during the winter months, always use a slow retrieve. You even may want to add a little weight to your crankbait to make it suspend. Then when you stop the bait, the lure will sit there for a long time, so the bass can see it and decide to eat it. Work it really slowly through cover.

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Baits for Big Summer Stripers

Catch large shad, 12- to 18-inches long, put them in the livewell, and use them to catch stripers. To take big stripers, use big shad. When fishing in tailraces with live shad or shad minnows, tie the main line to a barrel swivel, a split shot or a slip sinker. In any case, tie the weight above the barrel swivel with a hook tied on the end. Then bait with live shad. Let the speed of the current dictate the size of the weight you use. You want the weight to be heavy enough to carry your bait down to the bottom, because that's where the stripers feed. Another tactic for catching tailrace stripers is to fish right in front of the turbines, where the water boils-up as it comes through a hydroelectric dam. Cast a large shad on a hook, weightless, right into the center of the boil. As the water boils-up, it mushrooms and goes straight back to the bottom. The motion of the water will carry your shad to the bottom, where big stripers are lying in wait for injured shad coming through the turbine. Whenever you fish for stripers with live bait, be sure your bait is active. Use a round tank that circulates and filters water for live bait.

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How come I can't catch a Striper Bass?

Stripers wack your live or dead bait constantly, yet every time you attempt to set the hook they get away right? Never, never attempt to set the hook on a Striper until he starts his second run away from you. Stipers pick up their bait (Pogy/Menhaden) and run like the dickens for sometimes up to 150 yards, then THEY STOP, FLIP THE BAIT AROUND, AND SUCK IT DOWN HEAD FIRST. Once they have swallowed their prize they then begin to move slowly away to digest their catch. THAT'S WHEN YOU SET THE HOOK. ;-) Also, do not use steel leaders during Striper Season. When they pick up the bait to make their first run they detect the metal and spit out the bait. Use 50 or 60 pound test mono leaders around 4 foot long.

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The Search For Quality Bass

Well maybe it would be better to

ask how to just find bass or is it

the question, what’s the best

lure to use? How deep do I fish? What

time of day would be the best? The questions

that one can ask in the pursuit of finding

bigger fish are endless.

There are so many things in fishing that

influences a day on the water, and then to ask

how to find quality bass on top of that could

throw any seasoned veteran into a high speed

wobble. Just as we had to learn how to crawl

before we walked, and walked before we

could run, there are a few steps we need to

know and know well before we even put a line

in the water.

Since I just mentioned water, let’s start there;

“get rid of the water”! Understanding the topographical

layout of any body of water from

lakes, streams, rivers, to tidal waters is the

starting point and the foundation to finding

quality bass. Wait, let me rephrase that; to find

any bass period! Can we just turn that body of

water upside down and shake it a few times to

get a quick look? I think not. And guess what?

Learning how to find these areas will not be an

easy task either. Yes, this is going to be a lot of

work in the form of “time on the water” from

looking at your graphs, reading lake maps, to

even surfing the web on Goggle Earth. The

time spent here is worth the effort. OK, what

should you be looking for? Points, ridges,

creek channels, flats, and humps! Oh, I am

sorry; you did not hear me— points, ridges,

creek channels, flats, and humps. Remember, it

doesn’t matter if you are fishing water that is 4

feet deep in the middle of Franks Track (

California Delta ), to the middle of Lake Shasta

in 100 feet of water; structure is the always the

first place to start your search.

The key here after finding the structure is to

find the spot on spot on each of these structure

elements, the exact location were the bass will

hit your bait. To paint you a picture so you can

understand what spot on spot means is this:

Spot #1 is a long tapering point that runs out

into a creek channel, spot #2 ( spot on that spot

) is the rock pile setting in 20 feet of water on

top of the point. It could also be a small patch

of grass, a stump, tire, cinder blocks, or just a

great break line (structure) were the point falls

into the channel. How fast can you find all of

these spot on spots within the lake that you are

fishing? Honest truth is, maybe your whole

life. I know that can be a big pill to swallow,

but look at what we have experienced just in

the last few years. In California alone, we have

seen record low water levels to record high

water levels that happened over night with the

big rains a few years back. This will keep all of

us on our toes to stay in tune with all the available

areas to fish at any water level. The key

here is “THINGS CHANGE”! Remember

with falling water levels from droughts, maintenance

on local reservoirs, tides, or even the

unexpected broken levee, that with a keen eye

and a quick picture from a camera, a push of a

button to save it on a GPS, pen marks on your

lake map or even a short film from your hand

held camcorder, you will stay one step ahead of

the other guy that’s not willing to put in a little

hard work.

So is that it? Is that all you need to know

on how to find quality bass? The answer is

NO. That is just the one part where you are

learning to crawl.

This brings us to the BBZ (Big Bass Zone,

the book) that I did with my good friend, Mike

Jones a few years back. Within the book there

are many different approaches to start to look

for quality bass and a “must have” in any fishing

library. But for now, here are some simple

steps to getting started.

1. Location, (points, humps, creek channels,

points, and flats); this is the building blocks

and the foundation as I explained earlier.

2. T.M.B, now that we understand how the

structure lays out, we can now break down the

depth of the water were the bass could be

located at any given moment within the day

you are fishing (top, middle, bottom of the

water column).

3. Angles, where creating a funnel (a given

area were a bass can push its prey into a compromising

position against structure or cover)

where proper boat positioning is just as important

to maximizing the spot on spot that you

have found (uphill, downhill, etc).

4. Techniques, the true magic bullet for

catching bigger fish, as long as it is in conjunction

with location, location, location. ( dead

sticking either on top or bottom of the water

column, ripping, pitching, flipping, slow

rolling, trolling, or wind drifting).

5. Cadence, the basic speed of any lure

within a given technique that you are using to

cover the water column and to create a reaction

from the bass.

6. LISTEN TO THE FISH! This might be

harder than you think but everyone will find

themselves pushing the issue of a certain technique

that the fish just don’t want. And how to

do you know when this happens?

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Dock Fishing (Bass)

When approching a dock, have a plan. Take notice of the wind so that it won't blow you into the dock. Keep adequate distance depending on water clarity. If the water is muddy you can get really close to a dock without spooking fish as long as you keep your movements and boat noises to a minimum. Observe where your shadow falls. When at all possible, make sure your shadow is nowhere near your cast is.

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How to Catch Largemouth Bass - Tips For Catching More & Bigger Bass

In any case the following tips will help any angler learn how to catch largemouth bass with consistency.


1.Largemouth Bass have a very sensitive sense of smell and can easily detect any human scents. This is why your hands needs to be cleaned of unnatural scents or baits should be sprayed with a fish attractant. Making sure that your bass bait is free of any human scent is a key to catching more & bigger bass.

2.Bass like underwater structure of almost any kind. Pylons, docks, underwater brush and/or tees, weeds, and rocks all attract largemouth bass. When fishing for these fish, fish around underwater structure whenever you can.

3.Largemouth Bass prefer cooler water temperatures, especially when it's really hot outside. This is why fishing in the morning and evening is so popular. When the sun is high in the sky, target the shade created by trees and/or docks.

4.Be on the water at the most opportune times. The easiest way to know the most opportune times to be on the water is to pay attention to the weather and moon. These two forces of nature have an amazing impact on the behavior of fish.

5.Largemouth Bass like baitfish, so using a lure that imitates bait fish is a great idea. The more realistic your bass fishing lure the more success you will experience. If you like fishing with live bait, whatever baitfish is prevalent in the water you are fishing will work great.

6.These Fish are largely an ambush predators, so look for places where the bass can hide from their prey to ambush it, then pull your lure past these areas. Using a "start & stop" retrieve sometimes triggers bites as well.

Using any or all of the tips above will help anyone determine how to catch largemouth bass with consistency. Remember; there's no substitute for spending time on the water practicing your craft, so get out there and go fishing as much as you can. Practicing your bass fishing skills will pay very big dividends in your catch rates.

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Nighttime Smallmouth

Smallmouth fishing at night is best around a full moon, particularly in April or May in shallow water. Throw crankbaits, lipless crankbaits, buzzbaits and three-bladed buzzbaits in about 4 to 6 feet of water. Also fish points of islands where water’s running over a point. When there’s not a current, fish flats. In other situations, try these helpful tips. Lipless crankbait: Throw this lure across shallow flats – places you’ll normally fish in the springtime. Smallmouths will be looking for crawfish or minnows, and they’ll swim much more shallow because the sun isn’t bothering them. Use a steady stop-and-go retrieve. Spinnerbait: Fish the lure using the same technique a Texas-rigged worm, by bottom hopping it off a steep bank. Use 12-pound-test high-impact line. Keep your drag set light, and use a medium/heavy action rod. Crankbait: Fish a stop-and-go retrieve to resemble a crawfish in 5 feet of water on 10-pound-test line with a cranking rod. Or, fish a watermelon-shad-colored crankbait with pearl and a green back along the edges of the creeks that lead into the main lake – anywhere you can catch a largemouth.

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Late Summer Spotted Bass

To catch the biggest spotted bass in September, the best times to fish are from daylight until mid-morning. Fish main river points in 15- to 18-foot-deep water with 3/8-ounce jigs and jerkbaits in the ghost-minnow and the Tennessee-shad colors. Keep the bait moving on a fast twitch type of retrieve. Pause the bait once or twice during the retrieve, but generally keep it moving at a relatively-fast pace. Casts jigs prepped with plastic trailers on 14-pound-test line far out on main points. Big spotted bass may break your line, if you use 10- and 12-pound-test line. Jerk off the bottom, and if you don't get a bite as the jig falls or as soon as the jig hits the bottom, jerk it up off the bottom quickly. Fish a 1/2-ounce jig for spots, if there's a lot of wind. Motor your boat over points, look for manmade brushpiles in the 12- to 16-foot depth range, and then fish the jig around those brushpiles. You'll generally find the biggest spots on rocky points with brush on them, except on windy days. In such cases, fish the jig across the windblown points. The wind needs to blow on the bank for at least 1 or 2 hours before the spotted bass begin to congregate on the windy points. Fish points with a jig and a jerkbait at sunup. Then, if the wind begins to blow, move to the windy banks. Big spotted bass still will be holding on the points, if there's not current running through the lake during the first few hours of daylight. A perfect day for big spots will have cloudy, overcast weather with plenty of wind.

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Early Spring Spotted Bass

March and April are perhaps the best months of the year for catching spotted bass. In early March, the spotted bass will move up from their deep-water haunts and start feeding in the shallows in preparation for the spawn. In early spring, fish with a 3/8- or a 1/2-ounce spinnerbait with willowleaf blades and a chartreuse-and-white or a solid-white skirt. Search for red clay banks where crawfish and shad congregate, which means spotted bass will go grocery shopping there. Fish a point with larger chunk rock instead of pea gravel. Fish your spinnerbait fast on 12- to 15-pound test line in water depths from 2- to 10-feet deep on these points in the early morning. As a switch-up tactic, switch to a Carolina-rigged plastic lizard with a 1/2-ounce sinker and fish waters 5- to 15-feet deep, during the midmorning period. You'll never need to fish more than 20-feet deep for spots during March and April. Target main river points and manmade brushpiles with the Carolina-rigged lizard. Use at least a 3- to a 4-feet-long leader and a leader line smaller than 12-pound test.

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TRICK WORM FOR BASS

PLACE A SMALL WEIGHT ABOUT 12" FOR THE BAIT .THIS WILL GIVE YOU A LONGER CAST PLUS YOU WILL FILL THE STRIKE BETTER BEFORE THE BASS SWALLOWS THE WORM.

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