Today Was Different..

[Vancestilley]

I went to a pond today that ive fished pretty religiously the last 5 years everytime ive ever fished it visibility was at most a foot or less for some reason today it was pretty clear probably 3 to 4 feet of visibilty i had a tough time and actually got skunked i almost always atleast catch one on texas rigged soft plastics but ive never seen it this clear just wondering what yall would do in this situation. What do yall do when you see that your favorite spot thats usually muddy just cleared up? 

[Bluebasser86]

The fish probably did 1 of 2 things. 1. They aren't use to the extra light penetration so they buried into cover. 2. They aren't use to the extra visibility and are out roaming around instead of being on targets. 

 

This time of year in clear water it's pretty tough to beat a suspending jerkbait or a wacky rigged stick bait. In your situation I probably would have opted for the latter. 

[Vancestilley]

in that situation do you think they stay out of the shallow water and head for deeper water? 

[CJV]

in that situation do you think they stay out of the shallow water and head for deeper water?

Either deeper water or there holding tight to cover.

[bigbill]

First, In fishing the same places every year I notice what was the hot lure last year isn't so productive this year. We're like a baseball pitcher when he throws a change up. When your about to leave when your skunked throw a crankbait in firetiger. The water conditions might not be the same as the water gets deeper.

 

Now with a big change from muddy to clear water conditions it's like being in a dark room and someone turned on the lights. Now there out searching for food in the dark conditions and moving into cover as the night turns to daylight. It's the same game but there normal cycle has been broken. You change from brighter colored, larger sized lures for muddy conditions to smaller sized, more natural colored lures. Now the speed of your presentation should change too. Remember in muddy water conditions the lure speed is the slowest. In stained water conditions it's a slow lure presentation. In clear water conditions the lure speed is the fastest presentation so the bass can't get a good look at your lure.

 

Now mother nature has turned the light on with the clear water conditions. Ok it's natural colored lures fished a little faster. Your shad natural colors(example). But the fish are probably in deeper cover during the day. It's a good time for a bottom bouncing deeper crankbait or a Carolina rig with a wacky rigged senko, a brushog, or a split shot rigged worm.

 

There on a schedule now. There near the shoreline ambushing baitfish in the dark/ low light conditions. Then they start to move deeper as the sky starts to light up. When daylight arrives there in the deeper cover. Now if you have submerged weeds I use crankbaits that float and stop and twitch them over the open weed pockets. I also drop a seedless mister twister/mepps timber doodle in these pockets too. Just let it fall with little twitches.

 

I have out fished my buddy using live minnows while I used the timber doodle size 0 silver with the 4" mister twister split double tail grub trailer. We both were dropping our baits into the weed pockets. My point is there are many needless lures out there so never let the weeds stop us from fishing.

 

It's skill not luck in fishing, luck is at the casino.