Wacky Worm For Bass

How to rig, and fish with a wacky worm

I think last time I talked about how to find bass. Today, with Spring just around the corner, I'm going to talk about one of my favorite techniques of rigging a soft plastic bait not only in the Spring, but basically any time of year. The term "wacky worm" is not a brand or particular type of plastic bait. It is simply a different method of hooking a plastic worm or other soft plastic lure which gives it an erratic fish attracting action and folks believe me when I say it's deadly! on bass.

How To Rig A Bait Wacky Style

Rigging a worm or whatever soft plastic you choose to use wacky style is not complicated or difficult. In fact it's the easiest of all the popular rigs. And the method can be used on almost any rig. It can be rigged to fish shallow with nothing more than a hook tied to the line, Or fished deep on a drop shot, carolina or texas rig.

To rig a worm or soft plastic wacky style, you can simply estimate where halfway is in the length of the worm or bait and stick the hook through the center of the bait. Or use the kid in this video's cool idea.

How to fish a wacky worm shallow

What makes this method of rigging a soft plastic lure so deadly, is the action that it gives the bait. When bass aren't in a feeding mood, it's important to keep in mind that you need to trip their killer instinct and get them to strike out of reaction. And rigging the worm wacky style allows the angler to give the bait lots of strike triggering action while keeping the bait in the strike zone.
As I mentioned, the wacky worm can be extremely effective fished deep or shallow. But it's most often used much like a jerkbait, but on a weightless rig to fish shallow cover such as wood, vegetation or rock. The rig can be used on bait cast or spinning tackle. I personally prefer spinning reels for this technique.
To fish the rig around shallow cover, simply cast to the target, holding the rod tip low in a downward position give it a couple of short twitches. I like to use the twitch and pause method. I give the bait 2 very short twitches then pause for a few seconds and let it sink then repeat. The strike will usually come while the bait is slowly sinking. It's very important to remember, this is simply the standard wacky worm retrieve. If you're not getting bites using it, you should ALWAYS! experiment with different retrieve's until the fish tell you how they want it.

2 methods of fishing the wacky worm deep

Rigging a bait wacky style is equally as effective on bass in deep water, as it is in shallow. Probably the most used technique to fish wacky style in deep water these days, is to fish it on a drop shot rig. The rigging method for the bait is no different on the drop shot than for fishing the rig shallow. The difference is in the size of the bait and hook. The wacky worm on the drop shot rig will usually be most effective when its downsized to a small 3 to 4 inch worm and fished in a more vertical fashion. I don't think I've written anything on the drop shot yet, but I will very soon. The drop shot is a very effective deep finesse fishing method. which allows the angler to present the wacky worm to fish on deep water cover or structure with the same erratic action as in shallow water with the weightless rig.


A second method of getting a wacky worm down to those deeper bass is one of my personal favorites, the carolina rig. This rig can be just as effective on deep water bass as the drop shot. However It's a more horizonal fishing method that works best for fishing structure such as points with scattered stumps or rocks.

Tips for fishing the wacky worm

1. One very useful tip for fishing a bait wacky style in shallow water on a weightless rig, is to use a 16 to 18 inch leader connected to the main line with a small barrel swivel. the erratic action of the bait fished wacky style causes a lot of line twist. Using the barrel swivel and leader will minimize or completely eliminate this problem.


2. when fishing the wacky worm weightless in shallow clear water you will often be able to visually see the fish come up and hit the bait but not completely engulf it. The first reaction is to immediately set the hook. However you will have a much higher chance of hooking and catching the fish, if you wait until you can no longer see the bait in the fish's mouth to set the hook.

3. This tip is a good rule with a wacky worm as well as any other lure. If you are seeing fish chase the bait but not hitting it, try changing to a different color or size lure. Many times the simple color or size of a lure can be the difference in catching a limit of bass, or catching nothing.

I hope this has been helpful. If you have questions just use the comment section and I'll do my best to give answers. Meanwhile if you find yourself having trouble catching bass this Spring, Try a wacky worm!






 

How To Consistently Find Bass

Tips for locating bass

It's been quite a while since I last posted, as I've been really busy with a lot of different projects. In fact my last post was on winter fishing. Today I want to give you as an angler a tip that I consider to be the most important thing you can do to learn to find bass consistently and catch them what ever time of year you may be fishing. Just so you know in advance I'm also going to shamelessly promote the best resource I know for learning this. The reason its the best is because I created it of coarse.

If you've had any experience at all at bass fishing, I'm sure you've had one of those days when catching fish was as easy as casting a lure out and reeling in a fish. And you've went back to the same spot with the same bait a day later or even a couple hours later and the fish seemed to have disappeared from the face of the earth.

Well the fish didn't disappear. They simply did what bass do. They adjusted what they were doing to meet their needs in the environment that they live in. They may have moved or they may just be in a different mood due to some small subtle change in weather, water temp or any of 1000 other different things that can cause fish to do what they do. And as a bass fisherman, it's pretty much impossible to know what the fish are going to do and be able to find bass and catch them in any given condition, unless you know something about their habits, what their needs are and how they meet their needs in the under water environment they live in. And knowing this is the difference between anglers such as pros who are able to consistently find bass and catch them and those who depend completely on luck or an article they read to catch fish.

Today I'm going to give just a quick overview of what the fish need in different seasons which may or may not help you find bass. But if you're serious about learning this stuff, The resource I mentioned is an ebook that I've written. It will help you learn what you need to know to be able to consistently find and catch bass at any time of year and under any conditions that mother nature may present on any given day see it here. 

Since we are in the beginning of Fall I'll start there. 

Finding bass in the Fall

Bass being cold blooded, will slow their metabolism as the water temps cool to below the mid 50's. they are most active in water temps ranging from the mid 50's to the mid 70's. when the water temps reach these levels in fall, bass will start to feed up for the cold winter ahead when they will be much less active. The shallower the water cools first before deep areas and that's a good place to look for them to be feeding. Feeding is their number one priority this time of year. Look for bass in the very backs of creeks, on shallow flats and in the backs of coves.

Finding bass in Winter

When water temps fall below the mid 50's bass will normally be very inactive. They will feed but usually will not move very far or spend a lot of energy chasing a bait. the best places to look for bass at this time of year are normally around deep water structure such as the ends of points, creek or river channel ledges, in the deeper areas where abundant bait fish or some other prey are located.

Finding bass in spring

Once again, when the water temps reach that mid 50's range, bass will have spawning on their mind and will start heading for the shallows to spawn. they will stage on structure near shallow area's first and move on up into the shallows as the water temps start to reach the 60 degree mark. Once again the shallow area's will warm first before deeper area's.

Finding bass in Summer  

Summer is the most stressful time of year for bass. When water temps climb above the mid 70's bass will look for cooler water. They may find it on the same deep water structure as they winter on, or at the mouth of a cooler water tributary such as a creek or spring, or the may just find shade in or under vegitation like pads grass or trees. whether they move deep or stay shallow will normally depend on the availability of food or prey and cover.

  

Winter Bass Fishing Tips

Cold Water Winter Bass Fishing Tips

Last time I talked about fishing reports. Since it's now Winter, today I'm going to give some tips for fishing cold water. Cold Winter weather can present quite a challenge when it comes to catching bass. However fishing can be very good at this time of year. And with a little knowledge and persistence Winter offers an opportunity to catch what very well may be the biggest bass of your life. Today I'm going to share some important tips to remember when fishing cold water.

Preparation and safety tips

Boring yes, but extremely important. Being out on the water in cold weather adds to the risk of boating and fishing accidents. When water temps fall below the mid 50's an accidental fall into the water can become very deadly; even if you're wearing a life jacket. Hypothermia can set-in in a matter of a few minutes. Always take an extra change of warm clothing with you when fishing in Winter. If you or your partner fall into the water get out, as quickly as possible, and get out of your wet clothing.

You should never fish alone at anytime of year. But it's even more true in Winter. Having help if something goes wrong can be the difference in life or death.

When air temps fall below freezing, concrete or asphalt boat ramps can quickly become a sheet of ice. it's always a good idea to have a couple bags of rock salt with you to melt the ice when fishing in cold weather.

Tips for finding fish

In general bass move to deep water at this time of year. This is when your fish finder becomes an almost essential tool for locating bass. However, even if water temps are cold, it's important to remember that shallow water warms much faster than deep water. If the weather is unstable over a period of a few days, finding fish can become very tricky. As an example of what I mean by this, If the weather has been consistently cold and suddenly warms for a couple days, the shallows can quickly become warmer than the deep water. If this happens, bass will move to where the warmer water is.

Look for large schools of bait fish. This is the time when bait fish pack up into huge schools. Look for these schools to be on deep water structure such as points, humps rocks, creek channels or man made structures in deep water. Find the big schools of bait and the fish will be near them.

Look for small shallow pockets that get sun all or most of the day. Usually the best place to look for these are on the Northeast or Northwest side of the lake. If you find a shallow pocket or flat area where the water temp is a couple degrees warmer than the rest of the lake or area, there's a good chance it will be loaded with fish.

Lure Tips

When choosing a lure for cold water bass its important to keep in mind that bass are cold blooded. When the water is cold the fish are cold as well. Bass don't like to expend a lot of energy to get a meal as they will in warmer water. So in general you'll need to slow down and fish slow moving baits. Some of my personal favorites are.

Jigs: Over the years I've probably caught more and bigger fish in cold water on jigs than any other lure. Bass jigs are basically a craw fish imitation. Crawfish are a very highly nutritional food for bass and if they have the opportunity to eat one in Winter without spending much energy, they usually will.

Spoons: As I've already mentioned, bass will follow the huge schools of baitfish in Winter. When you find bass holding under schools of bait in deep water the jigging spoon can be a real killer. This pattern requires a vertical presentation. Position the boat directly over the school, drop the spoon to the bottom or to the level where the fish are holding, pop it up with the rod tip and let it flutter back down. In the right situation you can often catch a limit of nice fish very quickly with this lure.

The Zoom Trick Worm: The trick worm is a very simple soft plastic jerk bait This type of worm is made by a number of different companies and most all of them will catch fish; Zoom just happens to be my personal favorite. The Trick worm is most effective in shallow water situations such as I mentioned above. What makes this lure so effective in cold water is the fact that like the jigging spoon, it can be fished with a very erratic action while only actually moving the lure a very short distance. This lure is generally thought of as a warm water bait; however I learned many years ago, it can also be extremely effective in cold water as well.

There's lots of reasons to fish in winter and a lot to learn about catching bass in cold water. If I could give any angler only 1 tip for catching bass in cold water, that tip would be to slow down. Use lures that can be fished slow, and slow down your presentation of those lures. Fish as slow as you can, and then slow down even more.

Keep these bass fishing tips in mind this winter and you just may enjoy some great bass fishing, as well as catch the biggest bass of your life.

How To Use Fishing Reports

Did you ever wonder why the fishing is almost never like the fishing reports say it is?

Fishing reports are a good source of information when they come from a reliable source. Even pros like KVD use reports. But you should never take any bass fishing report that's more than 1 hour old literally.

This is a lesson that took me years to learn. Today I'm going to help you learn this lesson much earlier than I did. I'm going to share a tip with you on how to use fishing reports to actually help you catch more fish.

In my early days of bass fishing, before a tournament or before just going out for some fun fishing, I would literally spend hours looking for and reading fishing reports 1 day or even several days before my trip. Slowly but surely I decided that everyone who gave a report was a liar and I started to realize that the reports were not helping me catch more fish. In fact, it seemed that I caught more fish when I didn't read the reports at all. Eventually I learned that the reason reports were not helping me catch more fish, was I was taking every report literally. If NC fishing reports said that they were biting plastic worms on points 2 days ago, I spent the whole day casting worms on points; whether I was catching fish or not.

Folks, bass fishing is a constantly changing game. This is a fact, because bass are a constantly changing query. Weather conditions, water conditions or any one of a thousand factors can and usually does change what bass are doing not only daily but even hourly. This is why fishing reports usually do not help you catch more fish.

So are reports useless? Absolutely not! reports are very helpful, You just have to change the way you interpret them. The correct way to use fishing reports, is to gather as many recent ones as possible, put them all together to form a big picture of what the bass are doing in general. Then take this information and use your common sense and experience to develop a pattern.

For example, if you're fishing in Michigan, gather as many Michigan fishing reports as you can find that pertain to not only the particular lake or waterway that you will be fishing, but for the entire area of the state. Then compare the reports and isolate the factors that all the reports have in common. As an example, if it's springtime, and most of the fishermen who are giving reports seem to be catching fish shallow, then this tells you that the spawn is probably in effect and that you probably should start looking for bass in shallow water. However keep in mind that if weather conditions have changed since the reports were written, the bass have likely adjusted to the changes and may have moved to deeper water.

Bass fishing reports should be used strictly as a method of determining what the bass are doing in general. Once you've determined this, you should then fine tune your search for fish based on the current conditions; which will likely be different from the conditions when the reports were written.

How KVD Became The Best In Bass Fishing

How Kevin Vandam became the best bass fisherman in the world. And what it takes to get to where he is.

KVd took his fourth Bass Masters classic title in New Orleans this year. Proving once again that he is the best Pro bass fisherman in the business. The guy is amazing. He is living the dream that thousands of bass fishermen dream, and he thoroughly deserves to be where he is. I'm sure there are lots of beginning bass fisherman, who are dreaming of being where Kevin is today. So let's look at how he got to this level in bass fishing and what it takes to get there.

I first met a 20 year old Kevin Vandam in 1991 at a Bass Masters BP top 100 tournament on Lake Lanier in Georgia. He was in his 3rd year of professional bass fishing and until this tournament had not had a win. But he had been consistently at the pay window and was already drawing some attention. This tournament was in early December. The day before the event started a huge cold front blew in, and the first day was brutal to put it lightly. Below freezing temps, blue bird sky's and a 25 mph north wind had most of the competitors fishing deep water for the lakes spotted bass. Most of the weights for that first day were small; up until Kevin weighed in a near 20 lb. sack of largemouth bass to take the lead. His weights only improved over the next 2 days and he took his first big win.

During and after the tournament, I heard talk among the competitors that dubed Kevins win as a fluke. Statements like "the kid lucked up on this one. but he'll drop his bubble gum for the rest of the year." However I had had a chance to talk to Kevin and get to know him slightly during those 3 days; and I had a feeling that this statement was way off base. It turned out I was right. As he went on to finish in the top 3 in 3 more tournaments in the following year.

KVD, even at his young age then, knew more about bass than anyone I had ever met. The guy was, and is even more so now, an absolute expert on what bass do. And not only is he an expert on what bass do, when, and why they do it. But he is a machine when it comes to catching them, and you could see his love for the sport shinning in his eyes. He works and fishes harder than anyone I've ever met. He is indeed one of those special people that you only meet once in a lifetime. This is exactly what it takes to get to the level where he is today. But it's not all that it takes.

Why few anglers ever make it to Kevin's level in bass fishing.

Kevin Vandam's passion for fishing is much stronger than the average fisherman. Back in the days of the Top 100 at Lake Lanier, the guy had a one track mind. He ate drank and lived bass fishing. Most anglers have a passion for the sport. but it comes and goes with the seasons. And after a few years, they lose it completely. Guys like KVD have the passion 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year and they never lose it. To get to the level of these guys, it takes true dedication. Without that driving ever lasting passion for fishing, it's impossible to maintain the dedication that it takes to get there. That's why very few ever get to that level.

The driving passion, hard work and knowledge is not all that it takes. Pro Bass Fishermen are not just fishermen. Most people don't realize it. But they're salesman as well. Sponsors are the bread and butter of the business. Without corporate sponsorship, nobody goes anywhere in the game of professional bass fishing. Kevin Vandam with his knowledge, good looks and personality, is also one of, if not the best in this aspect of the business as well. KVD has no problem driving 500 miles to tournament, fishing at break neck speed for 3 grueling days and leaving the night after the tournament to drive 500 more miles to help sell Strike King Lures for 3 days. He loves this stuff.

So, what does it take to be the best fisherman in the world?

I believe that the key is having a driving, never ending passion for the sport. Some say that it takes raw talent; which is true. However a passion, like raw talent, is something that is not learned. You either have it or you don't. If you have that type of passion, then you have the talent. Next it takes total dedication. Again, if have the passion you will be able to develop the dedication. The bottom line is, if you have that driving love for the sport and competition, you will be able to put in the tons of work, and make the sacrifices that getting to that level of the sport where KVD sits today. It's been many years since I spoke to Kevin; but I can tell by his accomplishments that passion and drive is still there for him.

If you are one of the few that have what it takes and you are willing to do what it takes, you may be wondering, if it's worth going for from the financial standpoint? Well, in 2010 alone KVD took home $650,000. Over his 23 year career so far, he's made over $5,000,000 and that's just tournament winnings. Not taking into consideration all the money for endorsements.

If you think that you have what it takes to be the best bass fisherman in the world, I say go for it with everything you have in you. You just may get there!

A Day In The Life Of A Fishing Guide

What it's like to go fishing for a living

I often get comments reminding me how easy I have it. And how my job must be the easiest and most enjoyable job in the world. Well, It just may be the best job in the world; that is if you love fishing, have tons of patience and love meeting people from all walks of life and helping them learn to catch fish: as I certainly do. But the simple truth is, it's far from being as easy as many people seem to think; and not always as fun. I also often get the question, "whats it like to guide fishing trips for a living?" Well I'm going to walk you through a typical day here.

I'm up at 4 am after working until 11:30 pm the night before to get all my tackle back in order from the previous day of fishing with 2 drunken stock brokers who wanted to go catch a bunch of bass; even though one of them had only been fishing once in his life 25 years ago. And the other never tried fishing but was sure that he would catch the new lake record and likely go straight to the bass masters classic after this trip, and win. Oh, and getting the beer cans full of pee out of the cooler and the chicken bones out of the livewell in my boat.

First thing I do is turn on the weather channel to see what the weather for the day is going to be. Chance of severe thunderstorms with a tornado watch in effect. Hmmm should I call off the trip for today? I mean my clients booked this trip 5 months ago and they're here on vacation and have to leave tomorrow. So I check the noa weather radar online. looks like most of the storms are moving to the south of here so I'm fishing.

6:am, Since I'm meeting my clients at the boat ramp, I swing by the tackle shop to gas up, pick up some jigs, get a cup of coffee and a chicken biscuit. As I'm pulling into the parking lot I hear a thumping noise coming from the boat trailer. So I ease on up to the gas pumps get out to check it and see that I have a flat tire on my trailer. Since it looks like a piece of shredded up black rag, the tire must have been flat for several miles. Luckily I have a spare. It lacks any sign of tread and looks more like a peeled onion than a tire but with some luck it'll get me to the water and back home. So I quickly get some gas pull to the side and change the tire. By this time I'm running late; so I skip the breakfast and head for the lake.

6:45 am, I'm back on the road. As I'm driving I think about what my game plan is for the day. My client is a first time customer who's bringing his 2 twin sons of 9 yrs old fishing. He told me that his sons had never actually been fishing but they have a bass fishing video game, think its cool and want to try the real thing. I have some good fish located from the day before but they're pretty finicky and I don't think these kids will be able to finesse a jig well enough catch them. So I'll just give it a try and play it by ear.

7:05 am, I pull into the boat ramp parking lot. One of those storms that were moving south of us is now over the lake and rain is pouring and thunder is rumbling. My clients are already there huddled in the car to stay dry while waiting for me. They see me pull in; the dad rings my cell and we agree that the storm should pass shortly and we'll just wait it out.

7: 45 am, The rain has stopped; so I go over to the car to meet my clients. As they get out of the car, I notice that there's a lady with them. The dad shakes my hand and informs me that the mom decided to come along if that's okay? 4 people plus me is a little crowded in my boat; but I agree, and back the boat down and unload. After managing to get the huge family cooler, the moms suit case / purse and what seems like the entire family wardrobe positioned and stowed in the boat and a 20 minute argument between the family over who is going to were which life jacket and who needs sunscreen and who is refusing, We are off for a 4 mile run up the lake to my first fishing spot.

8:15 am, We pull up on my spot. The storm is over and the sky has cleared. But the front is now starting to come in and there's a 15 mph wind out of the south. I have two 9 year olds in the boat who have never been fishing in there life, a mom and dad who are counting on me to help them catch these finicky bass that are tough for even an experienced fishermen. But I've been in this situation before. I know these fish are holding out on top of a point on fairly clean bottom. So I get out a couple rods with carolina rigs and 3/4 oz weights already tied on. I put a plastic craw on each, cast them out, stick them in the rod holders and begin slow trolling with my trolling motor. in no time twin A's rod begins to bounce, he grabs it and yells "should I reel"? I help him out and he lands a fat 2lb spotted bass. Twin B is pissed and starts to pout.

9:00 am Mom has to pee. The closest bathroom is at the park 4 miles down the lake. so we're off for the bathroom.

9:30 we're back on the fishing hole again and begin trolling. Twin A gets another good fish on twin B is now red faced, extremely pissed and insists on swapping sides and rods with twin A. After some words from Dad twin A agrees and proceeds to catch another fish on twin B's old side and rod. Twin B is irate and refuses to fish anymore. I neutralize the situation by telling twin B that he gets to catch the next one no matter which side it bites on.

10:45 we're still trolling and the fish have stopped biting. Twin B is starting to get more upset by the minute and Mom has to pee again. So we're off 4 miles back to the bathroom. While waiting for Mom at the bathrooms I remember a great spot just around the corner from the bathrooms that should be holding some fish. So Mom returns to the boat and I head for that spot.

11:30 am we begin trolling on the new fishing hole. Twin B finely catches a one! and it's a fat 4 .5 pounder. Bigger than any of twin A's fish. So now Dad wants to catch one. at this point Mom is grossed out by the fish smell and ready to leave but agrees to stay a while longer. This area is protected from the wind so we decide to try casting and let Dad fish. I work with the twins helping them learn to cast at the front of the boat while Dad fishes from the back. Dad lands a small fish and twin b manages to land another 1 pounder.

1:30 pm Mom is ready to leave and the twins are tired so we call it a day early and head in. Back at the ramp the twins are happy and excited about there new experience. Dad settles up with me and they head to the lodge.

2:15 pm I'm happy to get off the water early because I have to go by the tire store before going home as I'm driving I calculate my profit for the day. Lets see I'm up $250.00 for the trip - $60.00 for a new tire - $40.00 for gas - $5.00 boat launch fee. I should clear around $130.00 for the day. Oh but my liability insurance premium is due. Crap there goes my profit for today.

Oh well, on the other side of the coin, tomorrow will be better and today I helped give a couple kids an experience that they'll never forget and they'll likely be hooked on fishing for the rest of their life. Yaaa this is the best job in the world! without a doubt.

4:30 pm, I get home walk in the door and the Wife informs me that since she has a job and is tired, and all I do is fish all day, I will be cooking dinner. I smile, agree and head for the kitchen.

Until Next Time
fishhound

Jig Fishing For Bass

An overview of bass fishing with jigs

I've been putting off posting on jig fishing for a while now. Mostly because when I get started talking or writing about one of my favorite baits, I tend to ramble on and on and usually end up with a long post that some may find a bit boring. But today I'm a bit bored myself so whata heck I may as well bore anyone else that has nothing better to do than read my ramblings on bass jigs.

Jigs or the jig and pig as it is commonly known as, has been one of the most popular baits available among pro's and tournament fisherman for as long as tournaments have been in existence. Among the reasons they're so popular is the fact that they are so versatile and are well known as a great lure specifically for big bass. The average size of the bass caught on a jig is usually much bigger than those caught on most other lures.

Jigs come in so many different styles and forms that I will not even attempt to explain each one and how to fish it in one post. There are jigs that imitate craw fish some that imitate shad, minnows, grubs and just about any other form of life that walks, crawls or swims. Today I'm going to focus on just 2 types of jig which are most commonly used for bass.

The typical basic bass jig

The most popular and widely used is the silicone skirt jig with a fiber weed guard. This type of jig is designed to mimic a craw fish. A trailer is almost always added to the hook to give the bait legs and added action. And the weed guard makes this lure one of if not the best lure available for getting to bass in thick cover.

The selection of trailers that are available is almost endless. Commonly used trailers are soft plastic craws or pork chunks. The soft plastic trailers are the most preferred by bass fishermen these days. But many of the old farts including me, still prefer pork trailers. By the way if you havn't figured it out yet, the pork chunk trailer is where the name jig & pig comes from.

How to fish with a bass jig

This lure with its weed guard is designed to be used in thick cover such as wood, grass, mats and lily pads. But it is so versatile that with the exception of casting it into bushes and trees which are on the bank and no where near the water, there is really no wrong way to fish a jig. However there are common techniques that work best most of the time.

Flipping and Pitching

Flipping is a technique that usually works best in stained or dirty water; as it requires the fisherman to move the boat up very close to the cover where the bass are holding without spooking them. The technique usually involves using a long seven foot rod and heavy line to pull the bass out of the cover. Flipping is a really effective technique of catching bass out of thick matted cover and the technique doesn't just work with jigs it is a also very effective using other weedless baits such as plastic worms, creepy crawlers, spider jigs or any other soft plastic critter.

Check out this video made by Tim Horton, on flipping and pitching jigs




Swimming a jig

Swimming a jig is pretty much what it sounds like. This is a good technique to use when bass are suspended in, or holding on the outside of cover. To swim the jig you want to cast the bait and reel it through or past the cover. Basically fish it just as you would a spinnerbait. I like to swim the bait along the outside edges cover and give it short twitches with the rod tips. This gives a little more erratic action and will often trigger more strikes.

Deep water jig fishing

This lure is not just for fishing shallow cover. In fact, the jig is one of my personal favorite lures for catching bass off of steep rock banks, bluffs and deep water structure. Again here, I normally fish the jig with the same basic presentation as a plastic worm. That being said there are 2 presentations that usually work best for me when fishing the jig in deep water. The first is called hopping the jig. With this method I simply cast the jig out onto the structure, let it sink to the bottom. Then I use the rod tip to pop the jig up about 8" off the bottom; and then let it sink back to the bottom on a tight line. As with most other lures fished in this manner the strike will usually come as the lure is falling.
The second presentation I use is simply dragging the jig along the bottom very slowly keeping contact with the bottom. Just let the bait sink to the bottom. Then lift the rod tip very slowly from 9: o clock position to the 11: o clock postiton. Then reel up the slack line and repeat. This presentation is deadly on those inactive, lethargic fish; especially in cold water.

Hopefully this has given you a good overview of jig fishing for bass. As I mentioned I love to ramble on about my favorite bass baits and the bass jig is certainly one of them. I did say that I would be talking about 2 types of jigs today but this thing has already gotten long so I'm going to leave off here and discuss Hair jigs and give some jig fishing tips another day soon.
Meanwhile if you have not tried jig fishing, I recommend you get a few and get started. You just may catch your biggest bass yet.

Try Bass Fishing Tournaments

Bass tournaments can teach you a lot about bass fishing.

Along with learning about fish finders Out of all my fishing experiences through the years, I would have to say that bass tournaments have taught me more lessons about catching bass than any other.

I doubt if there are more than a handful of bass fishermen in the entire world who have not dreamed of being a pro tournament fisherman. Even though very few who dream the dream ever realize it; most all do try their hand at tournament fishing at some level during their time.

One of the most often asked questions I get from those who are new to the sport of bass fishing is "how long do you think it will take to learn enough to be able to fish in tournaments?" My answer is, as long as it takes you to pay the entry fee and get on the water. You do not have to be a good or even an experienced bass angler to get in a bass tournament. In fact I encourage all beginners to get involved in tournaments as soon as possible.

Now, before you start thinking that my motives are sinister and I want you to lose all your money fishing tournaments that you have no chance of winning, let me explain. I'm not telling anyone to go throw down big bucks to fish against pro's or much more experienced fishermen. I'm simply saying that bass fishing competitions with other anglers whether it be more experienced, less experienced or at the same level as you, is an extremely valuable tool for learning bass fishing even if you yourself do not catch a single fish.

How you will learn from bass tournaments

When you fish at the same time and on the same water with a group of other fishermen who are all willing to share their information with each other, its equivalent to getting a month of experience in 1 day.

Whether it's for money, trophy or just bragging rights, each time a tournament is launched, there are a number of different fishermen using different lures and techniques on different parts of the lake or river and the results of this scenario is a world of fishing information if shared by all. You will learn what worked and what didn't work even if you don't catch a fish.

The best bass tournaments for learning are those that involve little or no money. When dollars are at stake in competition it motivates fishermen to keep the information they gain secret or even worse they lie. As a beginner you should look for small pot tournaments or even start your own. It doesn't take very many fishermen or even any money to have a bass fishing tournament that can be extremely beneficial to all who participate in terms of a learning experience.

How to start your own bass tournament

If you have a few friends who like bass fishing then you have a potential bass tournament. You don't even have to have boats; you can have a bank fishing tournament. Make up your rules, set a date and place, call up your friends and tell them about your tournament. You can buy a small trophy or plaque for $20 show it to everyone and tell them this is the prize for the winner. I guarantee that at least some of them will show up if a trophy is at stake; people love trophies.

If you don't want to buy a trophy you can have a pot tournament. In the pot tournament format everyone puts a set amount of money into the pot. it can be per person or per boat; and the winner gets the pot. the entry fee can be whatever amount you decide on. However I recommend that you keep the entry fees low. The more money that's involved the less willing the fishermen will be to share information. On the other hand, the smaller the pot the less fishermen you will draw to your tournament. But those who are only interested in the money are not likely to honestly share fishing information with competitors so you don't need them anyway.

Whatever tournament format you decide on, since your motive for putting on a tournament is to learn; one of your rules should be that the winner has to tell everyone how he caught his fish. You should make it known to all the competitors that the tournament is about learning to catch bass. and everyone will be expected to share fishing information honestly.

Bass club tournaments

Joining a bass club is another great way to learn to catch more bass. There are hundreds of bass clubs located in most every state here in the US. If you live in this country, odds are good that there's a local bass fishing club near you. While being in a club can be a little more expensive and require more of your time; joining a club is certainly a great way to learn and have a lot of fun fishing. You should understand before joining a club however, most clubs are extremely competitive and not every member will be willing to share information with others.

There are clubs who use a tournament format of fishing against other clubs. In this format the club works together in tournaments as a team to catch more fish than the other club. This format is designed for learning bass fishing and is in my opinion the very best and most beneficial to all who participate. In this format all the members of the club are much more motivated and willing to share fishing information with other members of their club.

No matter what format is used, what the stakes are, whether you just use bass fishing as a relaxation method or you plan to make it a career, a bass fishing tournament is a ton of fun and one of the very best ways to learn and gain experience as a bass fisherman. So no matter what your experience level is, I encourage you to get involved in tournaments at some level.

The Fish Finder - Part 2

How To Use a Fish Finder

Last time I talked about choosing the best fish finder. So today I'm going to help you learn how to use your fish finder.

I'll never forget when I was starting out as a young bass fishermen; I had never even heard of a fish finder. Until I saw a guy on tv with this new contraption that looked like a small TV which allowed him to actually see the fish under the the water. I was absolutely fascinated! I was sure that if I only had one of these, I could catch all the bass I wanted. All I would have to do is ride around until I saw a bunch of fish under the boat and catch them. It seemed like this fish finder thing would make catching fish a snap.

Well, needless to say, it didn't work quite that way. Although, after a few years of experimenting with, and using fish finders, I did come to realize that they are an extremely valuable and almost essential tool for catching bass in deep water.

Fish Finder Settings

In order to get a clear accurate reading on a fish finder, it's extremely important to set it up correctly. Settings and functions vary depending on the brand and type of fish finder you have; if you have a new 3D unit, I'm sorry, but I have no experience with those; settings may or may not be the same. Most units however will allow you to set the following.

For settings I'm going to start with the depth scale. In Part 1 of this post I touched on the depth scale. I believe it's essential that any fish finder have a manual mode function for the depth scale. This is even more important if you're learning to use a fish finder.

The automatic depth scale allows the unit to show bottom depth in different scales. For example if your boat is in 10 ft of water the side scale on the screen will be showing 0 to 10 ft then you come over a spot where the bottom drops off to 20 ft, the scale will change automatically from 0 to 10 ft to 0 to 20 ft.

The default depth scale setting for most fish finders out of the box is set on automatic. I recommend changing the setting to manual. Running the automatic scale takes away from the power and can become confusing if it's constantly changing scales as you move over bottom changes. If you're not interested in anything that's more than 40 ft deep, manually set the scale at 0 to 40 and leave it. You can change it anytime if need arises.

Next is the digital depth setting. If your unit allows, turn it off. This function is another power sucker and you can use the side scale to read depth.

Sensitivity, The sensitivity basically turns the units power up or down. For the maximum clarity and detailed readings you will want to run the the sensitivity as high as possible without getting noise or static on your screen. This setting will often need to be re adjusted to compensate for water conditions. For example if you're in muddy or dirty water and are getting static on your screen turn the sensitivity down just enough to get rid of the interference.

Grey Line. The grey line represents the bottom on your fish finders screen. This function can give you much much more information than just the depth and contour of the bottom. I'm going to talk more about grey line in a moment but for the settings you'll want it just dark enough to give good contrast in the lower and upper.

Chart Speed, Chart speed controls the speed that the chart scrolls across the screen. This setting should be set at maximum speed
The only time it should be set slower is for extreme depths such as 100 ft or more which never comes into play in bass fishing.

That has your main settings ready. I recommend you turn off any and all bells and whistles such as alarms etc. These things can be fun to play with and useful in certain situations but if you're learning to use your fish finder they're just a distraction. Most are simply put in units as a selling point. The only exception to these is the chart cursor. The chart cursor is a very useful function for pinpointing the exact depth of fish or other objects. You should keep this function turned on.

How To Read Your Fish Finder

A fish finder does find fish; but not always in the way you may think. After a few years of experience with my fish finder, I realized that it is much more valuable for finding the places fish live or the schools of bait that they feed on than for seeing the actual fish themselves.
This is especially true with bass. Bass are very cover oriented. When they get inside thick cover such as weeds or brush, you may see the cover on your graph but not the fish. If you do see fish around the cover it's a plus. But NEVER EVER let not marking any fish on your fish finder when you run over a good piece of cover or structure be a reason for not fishing it. I can't tell you how many times I've caught limits of nice bass off a spot that I graphed with my electronics and never saw a single fish.

There is no magic article or book that can instantly teach you to read your fish finder . However, with experience you will eventually be able to read your graph well enough to know what you're seeing on the screen at all times. Once you become experienced with this tool, you will be amazed how much information the fish finder can give you about whats under the surface of the water.
Just for example, a couple things that you may not know the fish finder can tell you: 1 the grey line which represents bottom can tell you the bottoms composition. A wide darker, or double grey line represents hard bottom and a narrow or weak gray line represents soft bottom. 2. A darker band on the screen between the bottom and surface is usually a thermocline. A thermocline is the depth where water temperature changes. This will normally come into play in summer when the upper layer of water is warmer than the deeper water. Bass like to be near the thermocline when water surface temps are very warm.

For those of you who have never used a fish finder at all, here are a couple good videos that should help give an idea of what fish, schools of bait and different types of structure and cover look like on a fish finder. fish finder Video 1 fish finder video 2

How to know where objects or fish are in relation to the boat.

The transducers cone angle determines how large the area you view on your fish finder. To give a more detailed explanation, the signal leaves the transducer and spreads wider as it travels down, hence the term cone angle.

I briefly touched on transducers and cone angle in the last post. I recommended that beginners use a standard 20 degree cone angle transducer which is commonly included with most fish finders. Without getting too technical, just to give you an example of the size of the area you'll be viewing on your graph: With a 20 degree cone angle transducer over a 20 foot deep bottom, you will be viewing a 15 foot radius of the bottom. Basically when you are traveling at idle speed, as soon as an object comes on to your screen the object or fish is directly under the boat. Once the fish or object is in the center of your screen it is behind you.

If you have your units settings correct. Arch shaped lines will indicate fish. However unlike the simulations you see on fish finder ads, you will seldom see complete arches. The reason for this is, the fish must be directly under the center of the transducer to get a complete arch. Normally fish will be to the sides causing your reading to be half arches or if the fish are moving, you will see a continuous long line; sometimes all the way across your screen.

Fish Finder Tips

Always check the fish finder transducer before putting your boat in the water. Make sure the transducer is level and not pointing back or forward.

Most fish finders have a simulation mode. You can use this to practice with your unit before you even put it into use on the water. It will also help you learn to identify what you're seeing on the screen once you get on the water.

Use a buoy marker on deep water structure or cover. When you see fish or structure that you want to try on your fish finder, drop the marker to mark the location. Keep in mind that the actual spot will be behind you when you drop the buoy.

Mount a fish finder on front of your boat and the transducer on bottom of your trolling motor. With your sensitivity setting turned up, you can actually see your lure on the screen and its location in relation to the fish or cover. Many time you can see the fish move up and strike your lure.

Once you are experienced with your fish finder, you will realize just how valuable this tool is for catching bass. There's a lot to learn about using electronics in bass fishing. I know I have not addressed every question that you may have on the subject. So feel free to use the comments below to ask any questions you may have on how to use a your fish finder; I'll be happy to answer all questions as best as I can.

The Fish Finder - Part 1

 Tips to help you choose the best fish finder for your bass fishing needs.

Whether you're going after Fall bass, Winter bass or getting ready for Spring, a good fish finder is a tool that every bass fisherman should consider seriously. Your fishfinder / depth finder is your eyes under the surface of the water.

Since marine electronics can be a sizable investment, you should make sure you don't spend more than you need to; and get a unit that fits your needs.

The fact is, most people who own a boat with a fish finder never learn to use it correctly. It's easy to find information on the internet on how to use a fish finder. The problem is, it's mostly geared to promote a particular brand or sales there of. And most give you nothing really useful. So this will be a 2 part post. Today I'm going to help you decide what unit would be best for you. Later I'm going to have another post on how to use a fish finder. There is a lot to learn on both these subjects; so get a cup of coffee and get ready to learn about fish finders.

Fish Finder Power

The power or wattage of a fish finder is most important for deeper water aplications. If you fish mostly visible cover in extremely shallow water (2 to 4 ft) and never fish deep water structure, you may only need something to tell you how deep the water is and show you whats on bottom . In this case most any cheap unit on the market will give you an accurate depth reading and will work just fine for you.

On the other hand If you fish deep water structure at all (deeper than 6ft) Your needs are going to be met best by a unit with at least 3000 watts peak to peak power. The more power the better readings / detail you will get.

Fish finder Pixel

Pixel as in power is also the more the better. The picture you get on the screen of your fish LCD is made up of individual pixels. Simply put the more pixels the unit has per vertical line, the more clear and distinguishable the readings will be. Pixels also play a huge role in giving you detailed readings are vital for distinguishing fish from other objects. If you fish deep water at all, a minimum of 640 vertical pixels is going to meet your needs best.

Fish Finder Transducers

Basically fish finders are under water sonar. The transducer is the component which mounts on or inside the boats hull. It sends down a signal which bounces off the bottom back to the transducer which sends the information back through the transducers cable to your screen translated into a picture of whats under the water. I Know, it's amazing isn't it?

As complicated as it may sound, transducers are fairly simple when it comes to choosing one. Most fish finders come with 1 basic, standard 20 degree cone angle transducer and a bracket which mounts the transducer to the outside Bottom of the boat. This transducer will work just fine.

Because it's Important and relates to learning to use your fish finder, (Which I'll be focusing on in the next post) I'm going to elaborate a little more on the transducer.

If you've read my blog in the past you know that I believe in keeping my tackle choices simple; and the same is true when it comes to electronics used for fishing. If you've been looking at electronics recently, you probably know that today's fish finders are very advanced and most include a wide variety of bells and whistles such as gps, side finder, and color view capabilities just to name a few.
All these features are great; but can make things very complicated for you if your just learning to use a fish finder. So I recommend starting with a good simple unit with adequate power, pixel and a standard 20 degree cone angle transducer. Unless you fish extremely shallow water as I mentioned above in this case it's fine to go with a wider cone angle transducer. You'll understand my reasoning for this when we get into learning to use your fish finder.

Fish Finder Brands And Prices

Before I talk about brands, just for the record, I am not affiliated with or sponsored by any of the companies that I may mention. Any recommendations or reviews I give are strictly based on my personal experience with the product.

There are lots of good fish finders on the market. And you don't have to spend your kids college fund or your own retirement to get a decent unit that will meet your needs.

Some of the best cheaper units that I've used are sold by Eagle Electronics. If you don't mind spending a little more for your fish finder Lowrance is the parent company of Eagle and makes what I believe to be the best. I've used Lowrance units on my own boat for 25 years. They have always been very dependable and I've never had any reason to change.
Another good brand that I've used on occasion is Garmin . I have lot's of friends who use Garmin consistently and I have not heard any complaints about their product. Hummingbird also makes a good fish finder. However it has been my experience that some of their cheaper units don't have a manual depth scale, which I consider a very important feature.

Whether you choose a bare bones cheaper unit or a top of the line with all the bells and whistles, there is one very important feature that your fish finder should have. That feature is a manual depth scale mode. This allows you to set the depth scale at the depths you desire and stops the scale (which is usually in automatic mode as the default setting on most units) from changing automatically. A constantly changing depth scale can become confusing; especially for an angler who is learning. Also the automatic depth scale setting takes away from the power of the unit and can sometimes cause distorted or false readings. I consider a manual depth scale mode feature to be a must on any LCD fish finder. I will also elaborate on this in the next post.

Hopefully what I've talked about so far will help those of you who have not gotten a fish finder yet choose one. For those who already have one, I'll be talking about learning to use a fish finder next time.

I know there are lots of questions you may have on this subject. Please feel free to use the comments to ask any questions you may have about fish finders.

Fishhound

Fall Bass

Fall bass fishing tips

I was just thinking back trying to remember my last post which was topwater frogs. Fall is a great time for topwater fishing as well as for many other techniques. So today I'm going to touch on Fall bass.

It's that time of year again. Fall is one of my personal favorite times for bass fishing. Things are happening at this time of year. The water is cooling and the bass are on the move. The mood of Fall bass, is very similar to bass in the Spring; however the bass have a different motive for being very active. In Spring the motive is the spawn. Fall bass on the other hand have feeding on their mind.

Where to find bass in the Fall

As I mentioned bass become very active in fall as they do in Spring and they will often be found in the same area's as in Spring. When the water begins to cool in the fall, bait fish and craw fish start to migrate toward shallow areas where the water cools first. These areas on reservoirs are, the very backs of creeks, shallow flats, secondary points and the backs of coves. My main objective when looking for fall bass is to find bait. The bass are looking to prepare for the long cold Winter ahead; this means they have one thing in mind; Food. When you find large concentrations of bait fish in the Fall, the bass will be there.

I begin my search for bass in the Fall season, in the back of major creeks and work my way back toward the mouth. I'll be idling my boat, watching my graph and looking for any signs of large schools of shad or other bait fish. Some of the things that can signal bait is in an area, are birds such as loons, or herring. These birds often feed on bait fish. If they are in an area there's a good chance there's a concentration of bait there as well. Also watch for signs of feeding fish shad skipping along the surface of the water or bass actually busting the bait. once I locate an area that's holding bait, start fishing any visible shallow cover that's present.

Lures for Fall bass

Generally the bass are active and will feed aggressively in the Fall. So there's a very good chance they will chase a fast moving lure. I will start with one of my favorites for Fall the spinnerbait or a lipless crankbait. However as I always preach, keep an open mind and let the conditions dictate your methods; until the bass tell you what they want and how they want it. See Learn to Think Like A Bass

Some of the other lures which can be very good in the fall are topwater lures, jigs, and jerkbaits.

Fall is a great time to be on the water. The bass are bitting and nature is putting on the best show of the year. There is no better time to enjoy bass fishing. so get out and chase those Fall bass.

Frogs For Bass

When, Where and How to Fish With Topwater Frogs

Of all the topwater lures and techniques used these days, very few are more effective than bass fishing with frogs. When the season and other condition call for this type of lure, frogs are deadly!

If you read my last post on fishing line or any of the other posts, you should realize how important it is to consider fishing conditions in choosing your lure, as well as every other aspect of fishing.

frogs in my opinion, are one of the most misunderstood and mis-used lures available. Most fishermen try a frog once or twice in the wrong place or at the wrong time and chalk it up as a failed experiment. This is a mistake. Like every other lure, you should consider the frog as a tool; you need the right tool for the particular task that you want to get done.

Where to fish with frogs

Frogs work best in places where they are a natural prey of bass. In other words places where frogs actually live. Typically this will be shallow water area's with thick vegetation such as weeds, matts, lily pads or thick brush and stumps. As a good indicator, if an area is shallow and looks swampy, it may be a good place to fish a frog.

When to fish with a frogs

The frog lure that we're discussing today in general is a topwater lure; and should be used accordingly. While topwater baits can be effective in many different conditions and situations. Typically they work best in warmer water situations with surface temps from 60 to 80 degrees. The frog is no exception. The frogs spawn coincides with the bass in most parts of the country; making early summer one of the more productive times to fish frogs. However this lure may be productive any time bass are in shallow warm water.

How to fish the frog

The frog is one of the most weedless lures available and it's design is perfect for fishing in or on top of thick vegetation and brush. The ability to fish this lure move across or through those thick nasty matted places without snagging is one of the things that makes this lure (or tool) so effective on big bass in the places they like to hide and ambush prey.

As with any bass lure no one presentation works best all the time. Every day is different and you should experiment with your presentation and let the fish tell you how they want the bait presented. That being said one method that has worked best for me many times is a very slow twitch and stop retrieve. I cast the frog up on top of the mats or next to brush or stumps, twitch the bait once or twice and let it sit for a few seconds. I repeat this action all the way back to the boat.

If I'm fishing the frog on lily pads, milfoil or some other type of vegetation mat, I like to pull the frog off of the vegetation into an opening or hole in the mat and give it 2 short twitches and let it sit for 10 seconds. The strike will often come as the frog sits motionless on the water.

How to set the hook

The most common of mistakes that most beginners make with topwater lures, frogs included is in the hookset. The mistake is setting the hook too soon after the strike. Given the sudden explosive action when a big bass blows up on a frog or any topwater lure, it's easy to understand why. It's a natural reaction to jerk the moment the strike occurs. You must learn to delay your hookset until you feel the weight of the fish on the rod.

Different types of topwater frogs

The two most common types of topwater frog lures are the Popper frog and the kicking leg frog. Both will catch bass and you should try both in your own fishing situation to determine which works best on a given day. Some of the better brands I've used are

The Spro Bonzye frog, Stanley Ribbit, Scum Frog

Frog Lure Colors

I use the same principal for choosing color in frog fishing that I use with any other lure. The darker colors, Black, amber or darker green for dark water or low light situations and lighter or natural colors for clear water situations.

When used in the right places and at the right time, frogs are a very effective lure; especially on those big momma hawg bass. So dig down into that box of discarded lures and go fishing with frogs this summer.

Until next time
Fishhound

Choosing The Best Fishing Line

 How to choose the best fishing line based on bass fishing conditions

My last post on spinnerbait fishing, seems to have triggered a lot of email questions on the best fishing line to use; so today I'm going to try to address some of those questions.

How to Choose the Best Line Size

The right line size to use depends on fishing conditions. In general I like to spool my reels with the largest strongest line that I can get away with.

Water clarity and line visibility are the first factors to consider when choosing line size. The more clear the water, the easier it is for the fish to see the fishing line and be spooked by it. If you fish stained or dark colored water heavy fishing line may be best.

The Best Line For Clear Water

When fishing very clear water such as found on most deep highland reservoirs and using slow moving finesse baits such as plastic worms jigs, or dropshot riggs, I often go down to line as small as 8 lb test; sometimes even 6 lb if not in heavy cover. I have experimented a lot with the best fishing lines over the years and I have come to the definite conclusion that It doesn’t seem to matter as much with faster moving reaction type lures but overall in clear water, the smaller the line size the more bites I get.

Some anglers seem to be programmed to believe that it's just impossible to pull big bass out of heavy cover unless you use big, heavy fishing line. This simply is not true. That being said, when conditions call for the use of light line sizes, there are a few ways to help compensate for the light line.

1. Use tough abrasion resistant line. One of the best fishing lines I've used for this situation is Berkley Trilene XT (extra tough) this fishing line has a very tough coating on it that resists abrasion when fishing in heavy cover. Just for the record I am not affiliated with or sponsored by Berkley.

2. Always keep the drag on your reel set light enough to compensate for light line. The drag is what makes it possible to land big bass on light line. Even the best fishing line in the world is going to break on a big fish if your reels drag doesn’t do its job.

3. Check the line for nicks or damage by sliding it through your fingers , from the lure 6 feet up the fishing line every 10 casts. If you feel any roughness or nicks in the line cut it off and re-tie above the damage. One small nick in your fishing line can be the difference in landing a big bass or losing it.

The Best Type Of Fishing Line

Monofilament Line

Even with all the advanced fishing line technology today, monofilament fishing line is still one of the best fishing line choices; and still used by most bass anglers in most fishing conditions today. Three factors are the reason for this. Low visibility, strength, and it's lower cost than most of the new high tech lines. Mono line has a higher stretch factor than most of the new line types. Stretch in fishing line does take away some of it's sensitivity; however stretch is not always a bad thing. mono with its high stretch can be much more forgiving for mistakes; such as a reel drag set to tight or a bad hook set when a big bass is on the line. For most all round fishing situations Monofilament is my personal choice for the best fishing line.

 Braided Line

Braid is one of the hottest new line technologies on the market today. This type of line is extremely strong with very small diameter. Braid is one of the best choices for heavy cover in stained or dirty water conditions. With its high strength small diameter it can also be very good in relatively clear water.

Braided line has no stretch at all, making it very sensitive; this is one of the best lines for fishing finesse style baits in vegetation. In my personal experience, the biggest drawback with most braided line is, I have found it to be far from the best line for heavy wood cover because of it's low resistance to abrasion.

Fluorocarbon Line

Fluorocarbon line is one of the best new fishing line technologies that has been introduced in many years; especially for clear water fishing conditions. This line becomes almost invisible in the water. It has great abrasion resistance, good strength, low stretch and is in my opinion and experience, the best fishing line available for fishing any type of cover in clear water. The only drawback to fluorocarbon is the price. It cost is on average about 50% more than mono.

The Best Fishing line Color

Line color, like lure color is a big controversial subject. Many anglers these days swear red fishing line is best; others, myself included, don't buy into the theory that red line is less visible under water than other color lines. I've experimented with red line, and have found it to be neither an advantage or disadvantage over clear line. My thought on the subject is, if the color red is so invisible under water, then why are red colors on lures and hooks marketed as being so effective?

When it comes to fishing line color, my goal is to keep my line as invisible to the bass as possible. So I match my line to the color water that I fish. i.e. green water green line clear water clear line. Dirty water doesn't seem to matter much.

Now that being said, hopefully this will help you with line selection based on conditions. However I have my own ways of doing things that work for my bass fishing. This doesn't mean that my ways are best for your particular fishing conditions on your water; and I encourage you to keep an open mind and experiment to find the best fishing line for you, in your waters.

Until Next Time
Fishhound

Spinnerbait Fishing

Tips & Techniques on Spinnerbait fishing for Bass

In my last post Night Fishing, I touched on spinnerbait fishing in that particular application. since then I've had several request for more info on bass fishing with spinnerbaits; so today I'm going to talk more about the subject. There's a lot of information that you should know about this lure, so this will not be my only post on this subject.

Spinnerbaits or blade baits are one of, if not the, most versatile lures that a bass fisherman can have in his or her tackle box. And they don't just come in many different sizes and colors, but there's also a couple different types that you should know about and add to your tackle.

First I'm going to talk about the component of this lure that gives its name to get those of you that may not be familiar with spinnerbait fishing educated on the different blade types. The best spinnerbait blade to use depends on the fishing conditions. If you would like to know more about how to approach fishing based on conditions, you need to see Learn to Think Like a Bass


Spinnerbait Blades


Colorado Blade




The Colorado blade as you can see in the photo is the shorter more round shaped blade. This blade gives of more vibration but less flash than the willow leaf or Indiana blade; and typically works better in low light or dirty water situations where the bass are more dependant on hearing or picking up on vibration through the lateral line than finding prey visually.

Indiana Blade



The Indiana blade is a happy medium for vibration as well as flash. This is a blade that you should consider in most any spinnerbait fishing situation




Willow Leaf Blade


The willow leaf gives less vibration, more flash and the shape mimics a bait fish very well. This blade is typically best in clear water situations where a more natural looking lure works best.
All the different types of blades can be mixed and matched on a single lure as well, when using the

Safety Pin Spinnnerbait

This is the most common type of spinnerbait used for bass. These come in weights from 1 1/2 oz down to 1/32 oz and lots of different blades and blade combinations. As you can see, this type bait has a stainless steel or some brands such as the terminator have a titanium wire arm which the blade and swivel are attached to. This arm also acts as a weed guard making the lure much more weedless and more suited for fishing in heavy cover such as brush grass or stumps. I use baits with both the stainless wire and the titanium. Personally I prefer the titanium; because when they bend they snap back into place. However they are quite a bit more expensive.

Inline Spinnerbait

This type of spinner bait is normally smaller and usually can be found in sizes 1/32 up to 1/2 oz the inline as you can see doesn't have an arm and is more commonly used for trout or pan fish than for bass. However don't be put off by this fact. The inline can be a deadly bait for bass in situations of very clear water, heavy fishing pressure, or when bass are feeding on smaller bait fish; which calls for a smaller profile lure; and should definately be incorporated into you spinnerbait fishing tackle.

Spinnerbait trailers

It's common practice and usually a good idea to ad a trailer to your spinnerbait. A trailer is simply added to the hook on the lure to give the bait a little more or different action or larger profile. There are many different types of trailers available in different sizes, with different actions. However I personally prefer to use a pork chunk or pinch a 6 inch plastic U tail worm in half and use the end with the U for a trailer.

Trailer Hook

A trailer hook is commonly added to the hook. This is simply a common type hook with an enlarged eye which slips over the point of the primary hook. Personally, I only ad a trailer hook if I'm getting strikes but having a problem hooking the fish; as the extra extended hook takes away much of the weedless aspect of the bait. However the trailer hook can be very useful in situations that don't require a weedless bait.

Spinnerbait Tactics

As I mentioned at the beginning of the post, Spinnerbaits are one of the most versatile lures used by bass fishermen. They can catch bass at any time of year, in most any type cover, or structure shallow or deep. I have caught fish on this lure in 8 inches of water and as deep as 50 feet on brush, rocks, grass and clean bottom as well.

Slow Rolling

This is a very effective spinnerbait fishing tactic and one of my favorite tricks for deep water bass. I normally like to use a heavier weight bait for this method. I use a 3/4 oz if I'm fishing depths down to 15 ft. Deeper than 15 I go to a larger 1 oz spinnerbait. The reaseon for the heavy bait is because I want to keep the bait down on bottom.

I typically use the slow roll method when fishing on structure such as ledges or points. I cast the bait up on the structure, let it sink to the bottom. Then I reel just fast enough to make the blades on the bait spin without losing contact with the bottom. You always want to keep the lure bumping into rocks, stumps or whatever is on bottom. If you're not beating the paint off the head of your spinnerbait, you're not fishing it correctly.

Bump and Flutter

This is a spinnerbait fishing technique that I use often when fishing shallow cover such as grass, weeds or brush. I will normally use a lighter weight bait for this; a 1/4 to 1/2 oz. Cast the lure into the cover and reel; when you feel the bait hit something stop your retrieve and let it flutter down on a tight line counting to 5, then resume and repeat. The strike will usually come while the bait is falling so be alert.

Pump and Fall

This is another very effective deep water tactic. This method is deadly on deep ledges, bluff walls or steep banks.

I cast the lure up to the bank or out on the ledge and let it sink to the bottom. Then I slowly pull the rod tip up from the 9 o clock position to the 11 o clock position and then let it fall back to the bottom on a tight line; then real up the slack and repete all the way back to the boat. Again the strike will often come when the bait is falling so be alert and ready to set the hook.

Burning the Spinnerbait

This is a tactic that seems to work very well in clear water and windy conditions and has been extremely productive for me on spotted bass on points or humps in the fall season. I normally want a 1/4 to 3/8 oz bait and a single or double willow leaf blade for this spinnerbait fishing technique. Also, a high speed reel helps. 6:1 or 7:1 gear ratio.

Simply make long cast up onto the structure and real the bait back very fast keeping it just below the surface no more than 3 inches. In clear water, bass will often come up from very deep water and nail the bait like a mack truck using this technique.

Spinnerbait Color

The same color principals apply to this lure that apply to all the others. I plan to devote a post to talking about lure color sometime soon but for now you can get more tips in the post Best Bass Lure.

The key to successfully getting a bass to strike a spinnerbait is to make the bait act erratic or different from every thing else in the bass environment; as is the same with many other lures . Always keep your bait bumping into obstacles, hitting the bottom, or change retreive speed. Keep experimenting until you figure out what the bass want and capitalize on that.

So no matter what time of year, or what kind of conditions you may encounter on the water, always keep spinnerbait fishing in your list of bass fishing tactics.

Unitl next time

Fishhound

Night Fishing

Tips on Night Bass Fishing

Last time I talked about using the baitcast reel. Since we're getting into the summertime, today I'm going to give you some tips on night fishing.

Summer brings hot weather in most parts of the country and hot weather can and often does mean inactive bass. When water surface temps approach the 80's and above, bass start to slow down their metabolism just as they do in the colder water periods and become less active. This does not mean they don't feed; it just means that their feeding periods change. Fishing at night can be one of the best tactics to catch bass during these times because the water temps cool slightly after dark and the bass become more aggressive and active.

Night Fishing Safety First

Ok, I'll get the most boring, but most important aspect of this tactic out of the way first. There's always certain risk involved in being on the water in a boat; but the danger is tripled when operating a boat at night. But it can be done safely. you just need to use common sense and take a few more precautions when night fishing. Here are a few safety tips.

1. Always become familiar with the waters you fish during the daylight hours before fishing at night. Know where all the obstacle that could be a danger are before you get on the water.

2. never run faster than idle speed after dark no matter how well you know the water. It's very easy to become confused as to your exact location in relation to obstacles in the dark. The slower your speed the more time you have to correct and avoid a collision.

3. NEVER EVER! be on the water at night without running lights. This is a mistake I see people make very frequently. And some of those fishermen are no longer with us.. Some people think they are ok without lights because they can see other boats that do have lights and stay out of the way. All that it takes is 2 boat operators with this mind set on a collision course to turn a night of fun fishing into a tragedy. Plus it will get you a hefty fine from the dnr in most states.

4. I hate to sound like a broken record but ALWAYS wear your life jacket, Your life may depend on it.

Finding bass at night

Finding bass at night is really no different than finding them in the daytime. Bass on most lakes or reservoirs will typically be on some type of deepwater structure or cover during the daylight hours in summer; and move up to nearby shallow water when they get ready to feed. If one is available, a good topo map can help you find likely places where bass will be.

Look for shallow area's on or near the main lake, that are close to deeper water drop offs or ledges. A good example of this on most lakes is a long tapering point. Bass will hold on deep water cover or structure off the sides or end of the point during the day; and move up on top of the point to feed at night. Points that have a creek or river channel adjacent can be particularly good during the summer months.

Lures for Night Bass Fishing

Most of the same lures that work well in the daylight such as I talked about in the recent springtime post best bass lures will work at night. Generally when bass fishing at night you're targeting actively feeding bass; so this is a good time to try those faster moving reaction baits. However, as always, you should keep an open mind. If one type of lure isn’t working, try something else. Although the fish may be active, a slow moving finesse bait such as the plastic worm or jig may be the favorite for the bass on a given night. Here are some of my favorite night bass fishing baits.

Night Fishing Top Water Lures

Bass feeding at night are often aggressive and will readily come up and bash a lure on the surface. Some of the best for my clients and myself have been.

The Buzzbait:

These are made by most all the same companies who make spinnerbaits.

Heddon Zara Spook or Lucky Crafts Sammy

Rebel Pop'R

The Spinnerbait

Spinnerbaits have been the most consistent night fishing lure in my tackle box over the years; and have been responsible for catching more of my clients big bass at night than any other lure.

Spinnerbaits for bass are made by lots of different companies and the quality varies. some of the better ones I've used are made by Strike King, Manns, and Booyah. The most important quality components to look for in a good spinnerbait are a good sharp hook, and a ball bearing swivel. some of the cheaper baits will use bad hooks and plain barrel swivel's as opposed to the ball bearing swivel.

Typically I use a ½ or 3/8 oz with a single large # 3 or # 4 Colorado blade. The Colorado blade gives off maximum vibration which seems to draw the fish from long distances at night. I use the heavier weight baits because I like to slow roll the bait along the bottom and keep it bumping into any rocks, stumps or other structure that may be present.

A word of caution when using this technique, when bigger bass hit this bait at night they will often slam the lure like a mack truck. I have had them laterally take the rod out of my clients hand; so be alert hold on tight to your rod.

Night Fishing Lure Color

Common sense may tell you that lure color would not be as important when fishing in the dark. Well, in this case don't listen to your common sense. I have found that color seems to be just as important at night as in the day. However the choice is easier. Dark colors work best 99% of the time. I use 3 colors in my night fishing applications no matter what type of lure I'm using. Those colors are Black, Black & Red and June Bug (June Bug is a dark blue with purple flake)

Summertime can be a challenging time to catch bass for most beginners as well as experienced fishermen. But remember, It's not because the bass aren’t feeding; it's because their feeding periods have changed. Summertime fishing is often a matter of timing. So, If your bass fishing has become more fishing and less catching during the hot summer months, try night bass fishing. It just may open up a whole new world of fun fishing for you.

Until Next Time

Fishhound