Tips For Being Successful All Day Long

[MikeOGNR]

Hey Guys, I have been bass fishing for many years now I have fished 1 tournament ever in my life and it seems to me that I only fish during the morning and late evening is when I most produce. Then I look at these other guys that fish almost all day even throughout the afternoon heat and they are constantly catching fish. Now I do not own the most expensive boat being how I am only 18. In fact I own a small V hull boat with trailer electric motor and a 6 hp Johnson motor. Nor do I have enough money for a decent set of electronics. I;m just wondering if you guys can give me any tips on maybe how to be more successful during midday bite and where might be able to produce fish all day long. For more info I live in New Hampshire where shad and other forage baits like that are not prevalent.

 

 

Thanks

-Mike

[gripnrip]

Depending on what time of year this would vary.  So I will give you a normal springtime day with decent weather on how I'd fish.  

 

Morning- think topwater.  A frog or buzzbait. The first couple hours anyway.

                                         If it stays cloudy throw a spinnerbait or a chatterbait.

Mid day- white tube/black fleck or creature bait in same color.  Pitching around visible cover.

                                         A squarebill crank or carolina rig.

Afternoon-Jigs and shaky heads.  (including swim jigs)

 

The only thing I would change is, if conditions are tough, I'd use a drop shot and shaky head throughout the day more.

[MikeOGNR]

What kinds of structure and or cover do you fish mostly??? and what makes them more successful then the next??? 

[MikeOGNR]

Also I am looking for a more spring and summer time approach as well just so everyone knows.

[gripnrip]

What kinds of structure and or cover do you fish mostly??? and what makes them more successful then the next??? 

Laydowns. Chunk rock. Main and secondary points.  Depending on the time of spring it could be spawn or post spawn.  Basically throw everything everywhere.  Carolina rig the points though.

[tbone1993]

You need to pre fish every tournament you can and find spots close to the launch point. With a 6hp I would suggest only going into tournaments with a 10 hp limit. If you enter a tournament with a 250 hp limit guys will beat you to all of your spots.  The key to tournaments is being able to move to spots quickly so I suggest mapping out the fastest routes.  When we have team tournaments and some guys only have 50 hp boats we make sure they stick close to the launch while the guys with 250s and 150s make the longer runs. 

[Shane J]

Hey, Mike, we fish a lot of the same bodies of water. Here's the key. GET OFF THE BANKS!!! Don't think that the early shallow bite is going to hold up. It doesn't, and that's where everyone else gets caught up. If you can get out on the water, one lake at a time, and just plug in waypoints all day by idling around, and marking spots where shallow flats or rocky points drop into deeper water, then you will be miles ahead of the game. Spend the time finding spots, and then when it comes time to fish, you will have an idea of where to move to, so you're not blowing your time guessing, trying, moving, and getting frustrated. Work those waypoints with a 3/4oz jig/Rage Craw, casting or pitching up onto the shallower part, and working it down to the deeper stuff. Look for bigger rocks, stumps, rock piles, channels, anything different. Those places are going to be your Wal Marts. The one type of place the fish can go, to meet all their needs. Food, current, oxygen, and protection. You fish these places, you will be able to find fish all day, all season, and all year. 

[Jig Meister]

TO go along with what these guys have said. Quality electronics will not make up for lack of knowing what to look for in the first place. You should use the sonar to find structure more than to find fish. The keep to fishing all day long and catching fish as well is going to be finding places where the fish are going to be. Sounds easy, but once you have practice finding locations, it is that easy. Remember you cant catch fish where there are no fish, and sometimes it is more productive to spend a day searching out locations instead of just blindly fishing.

 

I would buy a topo map of where you normally fish, learn how to read that map, then circle the areas on interest, go there with your sonar and check them out, then place an attack and see what happens.

 

You dont need the newest hi def down imaging gear to be catching all day, so please don't get caught up in that.

[LgMouthGambler]

I can walk the banks and catch fish all day long. Fish finders are only goo to show you layout or structure and depth of water. You will learn through experience how to read the water and what to look for in certain situations. You need a wide variety of attacks from topwater to swimbaits to jigs. It comes with time. I have been fishing for 20 years, and sometimes its just your day.

[ClackerBuzz]

Hey, Mike, we fish a lot of the same bodies of water. Here's the key. GET OFF THE BANKS!!! Don't think that the early shallow bite is going to hold up. It doesn't, and that's where everyone else gets caught up. If you can get out on the water, one lake at a time, and just plug in waypoints all day by idling around, and marking spots where shallow flats or rocky points drop into deeper water, then you will be miles ahead of the game. Spend the time finding spots, and then when it comes time to fish, you will have an idea of where to move to, so you're not blowing your time guessing, trying, moving, and getting frustrated. Work those waypoints with a 3/4oz jig/Rage Craw, casting or pitching up onto the shallower part, and working it down to the deeper stuff. Look for bigger rocks, stumps, rock piles, channels, anything different. Those places are going to be your Wal Marts. The one type of place the fish can go, to meet all their needs. Food, current, oxygen, and protection. You fish these places, you will be able to find fish all day, all season, and all year. 

wow you need to send Shane  J a pm and ask him to take you out!  nothing will help you develop faster than being on the water with a knowledgeable person that can also EXPLAIN what he's doing.  bribe, case of beer, hot dinner, gas money...do what it takes to get out with him! you'll probably learn more being out with him 2 outings than a season fishing by youself

[Teal]

Take some time to read some articles on bass habits. You need to learn why they do what they do and where they do those things. I challange you to go out on your boat, dont take a rod, just a notebook. Drive to different places and take notes of the bottom depths, what the bottom composition is (rocks, chunk rock, gravel, sand, clay). Make notes on your map where the depth changes are and how drastic they are. Make notes of any deep stumps,rocks, trees or any thing that you can see with your eyes or depth finder. After youve done that go back home and read more seasonal bass articles. After seeing the things that you saw on the lake, the things that you read will really start coming together.

Once your start finding where the fish are, and where they go once they leave the shallow banks. Then you can find a way to catch them.

This website has tons of articles, read read read

[aharris]

Hey man, these guys are throwing some very useful info your way. Regardless of what you may hear, it's very tough to consistently catch fish all day all year around. You can stay around the banks and probably catch a lot of fish, especially in the spring and even the fall. But, in the summer, you'll have to adjust when the morning bite turns off. Winter time is a totally diff monster. I went out yesterday and the only fish I caught were in a foot of water or less. I had one bite in 20 feet of water in a brush pile but that was it. Don't be scared to hit some off shore stuff when the bank bite cools off.

[ClackerBuzz]

Awesome tips.  when the bite is tough, consider lighter, smaller and slow moving bottom contact baits (i have to take the same approach in 30 deg winter water here).  bottom baits consistently produce for me year round.  jig, light t-rigs, senkos, drop shots. if i was in tourny's i'd add C-rig for covering water.  after you find a good location, its just a matter of fine tuning the action, weight and finally color. color is the least important for me.  (i really just use black and green pumpkin. maybe white if shad present).

 

i came across an old post by A-Jay last year which really helped solidify things i had learned on the water and the direction my fishing had subconsciously taken.  ie bigger fish, consistently caught, year round.

"As a result, I have changed my approach a bit when it comes to initially fishing a promising spot. Traditionally I would use "search" type baits to find biters and then slow down with a jig to find a bigger bite. But recently I have reversed the order and fished the jig first. Instead of initially beating the water to a froth by machine gunning a spinner bait through it for 30 minutes I spend some time sneaking a jig around the best spots. It's been a good deal for me and sometimes I end up never putting the jig rod down all day."  

(Tks again A-Jay).

[Shane J]

" But recently I have reversed the order and fished the jig first. Instead of initially beating the water to a froth by machine gunning a spinner bait through it for 30 minutes I spend some time sneaking a jig around the best spots. It's been a good deal for me and sometimes I end up never putting the jig rod down all day."  

 

 

Bingo! A lot of info out there to the contrary, but this approach is the way to go if you are on the hunt for big fish. Start with your big fish baits, and catch the biggest one around! In fact, catch ALL the biggest fish in the area, then move on to similar spots, and do it again!

[ClackerBuzz]

" But recently I have reversed the order and fished the jig first. Instead of initially beating the water to a froth by machine gunning a spinner bait through it for 30 minutes I spend some time sneaking a jig around the best spots. It's been a good deal for me and sometimes I end up never putting the jig rod down all day."  

 

 

Bingo! A lot of info out there to the contrary, but this approach is the way to go if you are on the hunt for big fish. Start with your big fish baits, and catch the biggest one around! In fact, catch ALL the biggest fish in the area, then move on to similar spots, and do it again!

Epic advice  

[papajoe222]

The biggest difference in fishing morning/evening vs. mid day is fish location. Fish are more active at certain times and adjust their location accordingly.  That location change could be as little as moving deeper or shallower, tighter to cover or structure, or as much as a migration from a shallow feeding flat, back to the deep water they call home when not feeding. 

Often during mid-day the fish aren't active. Where they go and how they position themselves in relation to that cover or structure is two fold.  The difficult part is determining where they go. Wind direction, current, shade, light penetration etc. will dictate where they'll likely be on that cover or structure in most cases.

There are fish that stay shallow or use shallow water as their home base all summer and many bassers target these fish as the first part of that equation is eliminated for the most part. They, those fish, don't move great distances. If you find them on a flat when they're feeding, they'll likely still be there during their off feed hours providing there haven't been any drastic weather changes.

You know your lake fairly well, or well enough to catch fish during the low light, high activity periods. Take that information and fine tune it paying attention to the details and you'll find the fish.  Then it's just a matter of getting them to commit to your offering and hoping that the wind, or sun or whatever doesn't change without you noticing it, because I guarantee the fish will.

[MikeOGNR]

Thanks for the help guys. The problem is I cant really identify structure like some pictures of structures to look for on these lakes would be helpful because it seems like every time I fish these places I cant find the fish. 

[MikeOGNR]

Do I necessarily need electronics right now??? or should I just spend time on the water show me what to look for could I just try to train my eye per say ?? Also by looking at the shore could I read what might be happening down in the water and go off of that possibly????  Another thing I do enjoy fish Senkos,Carolina Rigged Lizards, Tubes, and Spider Grubs on football head jigs. I am not a fan of most lures seeing as how I haven't had much luck with them and I also like throwing top water frogs in weeds or lily pads in the morning. Also if I do find structures such as points and drop offs and offshore structures how would I fish them per say with like a Carolina rig. Would I work my way down the point also how far off should i be from the structure. One last thing seeing as how I am only in a 12 ft V hull the wind pushes me around quite a bit any tips on how to make it so when I fish these structure on how I should approach them with my boat.

[gripnrip]

Do I necessarily need electronics right now??? or should I just spend time on the water show me what to look for could I just try to train my eye per say ?? Also by looking at the shore could I read what might be happening down in the water and go off of that possibly????  Another thing I do enjoy fish Senkos,Carolina Rigged Lizards, Tubes, and Spider Grubs on football head jigs. I am not a fan of most lures seeing as how I haven't had much luck with them and I also like throwing top water frogs in weeds or lily pads in the morning. Also if I do find structures such as points and drop offs and offshore structures how would I fish them per say with like a Carolina rig. Would I work my way down the point also how far off should i be from the structure. One last thing seeing as how I am only in a 12 ft V hull the wind pushes me around quite a bit any tips on how to make it so when I fish these structure on how I should approach them with my boat.

Nah. Time on water is priceless.  If you want to find structure that you can't see you'd obviously need electronics. Start with the obvious structure.  Structure you can see.  Standing timber, laydowns, and points.  

 

Fan cast points. Drag it every direction.  

 

The best advice I can give you is this; Decide what 3 baits or techniques you want to use.  Take those only.  Leave everything else at home.  If it is a technique your not familiar with make yourself figure it out.  I try new things every year.

 

When I pre fish for a tournament, all I have is a John boat with a trolling motor.  I always take something that I have no confidence in and give it a try.  I have in the past taken something I have never tried or had confidence in and gained confidence.

 

Good luck!

[Big Bassman]

Remember Mike, what you see above the water often relates to what is under the water. Also, per a couple of previous posters, if you can fish with someone who has bass fished for awhile do it. Some of us here have fished for 50 years and still learn everytime we go out. Go as often as you can, learn and enjoy. I fished a long time before I had a sonar unit and still caught plenty of bass. Trust me son, if you love to bass fish and put your time and effort into it, you'll be just fine. Read about bass fishing and go bass fishing as much as you can. It is like anyother sport, practice makes perfect! You will get out of it what you put into it!

[MikeOGNR]

Not to sound like a noob but the terms you guys use such as lay downs  standing timber, flats. I kinda get lost a quick description would be ideal. Also when you say look for structure you can see for example would an island that is in the middle of my lake that has a sand bar off it and then drops down to deeper water be considered a structure I could see. Sorry guys for some noobie questions I just have never fished deep structure during midday.

[MikeOGNR]

I like to think of Bass Fishing and Hunting more of a passion then my hobbies. I try to learn everything I can its just there's always learning gaps where I am afraid to try new techniques that I am not comfortable with outside of fishing the weeds and banks per say. Until I fished a tournament with my uncle and fished with him a couple of times I would have never even thought about fishing deep structure, but I can sure see that it produces.

[PAL]

^{The key to midday fishing is to get off of the banks. That pattern usually won't hold up throughout the day.  After morning when your shallow bite slows down, find shallow flats and or points that both drop off into deeper water and have structure. These are best when they drop into creek channels. If you have good electronics these are easy to find using your local lake map. If you can simply do this you will be ahead of most anglers. Before you know it, you will have increased your chances of catching bass all day long by tenfold. The name of the game is locating fish. At midday, that means getting off of the bank. I have developed a chart that can help you pattern fish.}

 

^Pic-A-Lure

[ClackerBuzz]

time on the water is invaluable. however there is the ole saying "even a blind hog can find an acorn". if i had to do it all over again i would buy my electronics first.  this will be my first season using them and yes i learned a lot the last 5yrs w/o them....BUT i wasted 1,000's of hrs of unproductive fishing, blind casting, beating the banks, casting in all the wrong seasonal places, right lures in the wrong places etc.  I could have cut my learning curve in half by starting with electronics first.  looking back... i upgraded spinning tackle. then bought baitcasters w/ cheap rods.  next season tons of lures for different techniques (head was spinning that year).  then a couple nice rods.. a kayak and canoe.  next season all nice rods. my sonar unit came last.  stupid mistake but hey it was a heck of a fun ride.  if i were young like you, had a passion for fishing and already had a BOAT...i'd buy a $300-400 sonar w/ down imaging...make due with all the other equipment i had...maybe get out with shane j a few times to learn how to read the structure on the unit...man ur off to the races

[WRB]

Mike,

Everyone assumes that bass angler must own a bass boat with high end electronics to be successful and may be true if you complete for the same bass the average bass angler targets.

Your boat has a few advantages over today's modern bass boat;

1. You can troll, not in tournaments, but to learn where and at what depth active bass are located.

2. You go into places a bigger, heavier boat can't go without getting stuck and flip ot pitch heavy brush cover.

3. You can fish with live bait, but not in tournaments, to determine what the bass are ering when you find them.

Your boat isn't designed to fish outside deep structure very well unless you anchor, something bass boaters rarely do.

You should get a basic depth finder to know how deep the outside water ( water away from the shoreline) and find a topographic map of the lake you plan to fish, so you have an idea where the shallower areas off shore are located.

You don't need to buy a lot of different types of lures, start with lures that you can fish effectively with the rod & reels you have. If you like tell us what type of rod/ reel you have.

Last but should be your first, learn about bass behavior and their food source where you fish.

No lure can catch bass if the bass are not located where you fishing or are not active, this is important to understand; inactive bass are extremely hard to catch on lures.

The basses annual life cycle is divided up into 6 calendar periods;

Winter, cold water. (40-55)

Pre spawn, cold water warming before the bass spawn. (55-60)

Spawn, warmer water protected from wind where bass nest. (62-67)

Post spawn, the bass leave the nest areas. (65-67)

Summer, the warm water period. (70-80)

Fall, water cooling before it's turns to winter cold water. (65-55)

Bass in every lake locate at different places and depth during each of these periods.

I recommend Bill Murphy's book; In Pursuit of Giant Bass to learn basic and advanced bass behavior.

If you plan to tournament bass fish, you need to first be able to catch bass consistantly, then focus on catching 5 bass every time you go fishing. Tournament fishing is about catching 3 lb bass 90% of the time, 4+ lb bass about 5% of the time. You will need a mentor to become a good tournament angler but you can learn on your own how to catch bass consistantly. Tournament bass anglers need to locate active quickly, recreational anglers just need to learn to locate active bass and catch them.

Dee Thomas, the man who introduced tournament anglers to flipping, won a lot of tournaments fishing out of a boat like yours. Dee is a master flipping expert and he believes shallow bass are active bass. I fish differently and target deep structure bass, however I am a big bass angler and only tournament fish at night events.

Good luck.

Tom