Clear Water Baits?

[The Young Gun]

I've been looking into doing my first real bass tournament on a clear water lake in Wisconsin.. It's a 20ft deep lake and you can see the bottom.. What are some sure fire baits to use and colors? And what are things to stray away from?

[DelfiBoyz_One_and_Only]

Clear water usually calls for natural colors. What will be just as important as the bait is your gear. Sometimes in clear water bass get a little spooky, so long cast w/ good line can be beneficial. I would try swim baits, wacky rigged sinkos with a split shot, heavy jigs, drop shots, flukes, and tubes just to name a few.

Jay-

[iabass8]

What time of year and which lake? 

[ww2farmer]

#1 Rule in clear water..............don't let the fish know your there. If you can accomplish that, you can catch them on just about anything.

[AGOSS]

Go with natural colors,I start with a green pumpkin color thats what always works for me.

[The Young Gun]

What time of year and which lake?

Summer.. Lake Owen

[The Young Gun]

Clear water usually calls for natural colors. What will be just as important as the bait is your gear. Sometimes in clear water bass get a little spooky, so long cast can be beneficial. I would try swim baits, wacky rigged sinkos with a split shot, heavy jigs, drop shots, flukes, and tubes just to name a few.

Jay-

Jigs won't spook them if hopped along the sandy/rocky bottom in clear water? What colors do you recommend?

[PondHunter]

Almost all the lakes I fish are clear. Natural colors like pumpkinseed, green watermelon, and black are good colors for soft plastics. Naturals for crankbaits work very well, and clear crankbaits and topwaters work surprisingly well too.

 

Long casts, Flourocarbon leaders, and fast retrieves will help as well.

[motodmast]

Also, if your using cranks or a jig with a rattle, you can take those off, the bass should have no problem seeing the bait, and sometimes the extra noise will spook them

[DelfiBoyz_One_and_Only]

Try throwing a natural color I would try a pb&j, pumpkin seed, or green watermelon. Make sure to make long cast. Jigs are one of the best baits to use. They can resemble a bunch of different things and if fish properly can fool fish time and time again. The thumping on the bottom should not spook the fish it should do the opposite and call them in like a dinner bell.

 

 

Jay-

 

 

Jigs won't spook them if hopped along the sandy/rocky bottom in clear water? What colors do you recommend?

[aceman387]

I fish some crystal clear strip mine pits and stealth is the key,like ww2farmer stated the key is to not be seen and heard.I fish mainly soft plastics and jigs and i have caught bass on all sizes and colors.I have been out there fishing on flat calm sunny days and would see bass flee from a good distance just by turning on my trolling motor.The best thing i ever did was buy a fishing kayak,they are so quiet and stealthy that i have bass and turtles swim up to it and try to figure out what the heck i am.I caught the biggest bass of my life at the strip pits on the very first time out in it,she was 24"long and over 7# easy and i caught her on a wacky rigged 4"watermelon yum dinger at 1.15 pm on a flat calm sunny day,the worst type conditions for clear water fishing. Long casting distance is a must so all my spinning set ups i use are the u s supercaster reels,the wide spools give you better casting distance.

[A-Jay]

As farmer and aceman have pointed out, it's all about your approach when fishing in clear water conditions.

 

You usually must adapt to this in order to put the odds in your favor.

 

Sometimes super fast retrieves can illicit a reaction strike.  Wind on the water is definitely an advantage too.

 

Try putting your boat way up shallow so you're not sitting on the bass and fish up hill.

 

Often you can still flip / pitch to fish in visible cover - it's just usually a bit deeper.

 

Good Luck

 

A-Jay

[ww2farmer]

Some things I have learned over the years from fishing some very clear shallow water are, just because you don't see bass in that area, don't assume they are not there. They are masters at hiding. BUT if you don't see any bait (bluegills, perch, etc....) Chances are they are few bass around either, go look for signs of life elsewhere.Also, cruising bass.............don't waste your time. For every 50 you see out just "swimming" around you might catch 1 or 2, and work your butt off and waste a lot of time doing it. For me it's an exercise in frustration to fish for them. Those fish are not interested in eating. Other guys are probably better at it than me, but for me it's more productive to fish for fish I can't see (unless they are on beds, but that's a different ballgame).

[naynayshimer]

Some things I have learned over the years from fishing some very clear shallow water are, just because you don't see bass in that area, don't assume they are not there. They are masters at hiding. BUT if you don't see any bait (bluegills, perch, etc....) Chances are they are few bass around either, go look for signs of life elsewhere.Also, cruising bass.............don't waste your time. For every 50 you see out just "swimming" around you might catch 1 or 2, and work your butt off and waste a lot of time doing it. For me it's an exercise in frustration to fish for them. Those fish are not interested in eating. Other guys are probably better at it than me, but for me it's more productive to fish for fish I can't see (unless they are on beds, but that's a different ballgame).

He said this advice perfectly. CRUISING FISH AREN'T BITERS. last year in one clear, deep lake that doesn't turn over, I made good casts to at least 50 cruisers without a bite. I like to focus on fish that are holding on laydowns, usually with green pumpkin worms and jigs, and tubes. i fish from shore, so I am even more limited.

[The Young Gun]

What color jigs for these clear water situations?

[aceman387]

My favorite is black & blue.I have green pumpkin and watermelon but i have the best luck dragging or hopping or swimming a 5/16 black & blue color,you would think the greens would work better in the clear water but i also have great success with a 7"berkley power worm in blue fleck color in the clear strip pits on cloudy or sunny days.

[iabass8]

Wow i really didnt expect lake owen there. That brings back memories. I have friends that went to the skate camp there and my family has a cabin in danbury which is roughly an hour or so from cable. Its been years since i have fished that lake but it wss extremely cover oriented. I had a lot of luck pitching jigs and shakey heads on all docks away from the swimming area thats roped off. Im sure the area is even more so commercialized and pressured than it was when i was there. The lake as you know has a decwnt amohnt of size. I didnt have a lot of time to pick it apart but in the few times i did fish it i focued on the coves.

[The Young Gun]

Wow i really didnt expect lake owen there. That brings back memories. I have friends that went to the skate camp there and my family has a cabin in danbury which is roughly an hour or so from cable. Its been years since i have fished that lake but it wss extremely cover oriented. I had a lot of luck pitching jigs and shakey heads on all docks away from the swimming area thats roped off. Im sure the area is even more so commercialized and pressured than it was when i was there. The lake as you know has a decwnt amohnt of size. I didnt have a lot of time to pick it apart but in the few times i did fish it i focued on the coves.

Yeah my plan was to hit the coves and find some bass stuck on structure. I think jigs and tubes will be my only way to go..

[papajoe222]

If you're talking Lake Owen in Bayfield, you're talking one deep lake.  If fishing deep isn't your strong suit and the bass have spawned, a dock pattern in either of the two north narrows could be productive. Also, the shallower slopped shore in Horseshoe bay, I believe it's the west shore has some excellent docks that seem to hold fish all summer. Tubes and Flukes are good choices and green pumpkin and watermelon are good color choices.  If you decide to fish Otter Bay in the south section, stick to the upper portion just off the main lake. Top waters in bone or with red heads and square bills with a wide wobble work well there and the locals don't often use in-line spinners, but they can be killers, especially a squirrel tailed Mepps with copper blades and body. 

Stick with flouro as your line choice as, even in any off colored water you can find, it will give you an edge over guys fishing mono. On your top waters, I wouldn't go heavier than 10lb. test mono.

This is a great fishing lake, but pre-fish it if you get the chance. If not, check out Google Earth's satellite photos and you'll get an idea of the color variation throughout the lake.  Good Luck and let us know how you do.

[A-Rob]

I use finesse worms and senkos on those lakes

Drop shot, wacky rigged, and T-rigged

then I use whatever the environment calls for.

If the wind picks up and puts a chop on the water, I'd chuck a spinnerbait as well