When To Try Something New Vs. Moving On?

[UCChris]

Hey guys, got a quick question for ya'll. 

 

I started bass fishing about a month ago. I wasn't having much luck at all until a co-worker found out that I was trying to bass fish; turns out he is an avid bass fisherman himself. He took me out on Monday and I caught my very first bass (pictured in my profile pic). I went to the same area alone on Tuesday and got skunked. I wasn't able to get out Wednesday (yesterday) but I did make it out to a different lake this morning. It is one of my co-worker's favorite lakes and he suggested an area and some different rigs to use. I fished for two and half hours without a single bite. I threw everything I've got in my arsenal. Wacky rig, drop shot, Texas rig, weightless Texas, lipless crank, frog, Pop-R, waking crank, and a jig. I used tubes, senkos, straight tailed worms, ribbon tailed worms, etc. I finally got hooked up on one using a Chigger Craw rigged on a shaky head. The lake has some crawdads, but they are few and far in between. I figured that a craw would be a rare delicacy and it seemed to work. Unfortunately, the bass jumped and shook my hook out. I'm used to catfishing with circle hooks. You don't have to set the hook, just start reeling. Anyway, I threw the Chigger Craw for another thirty minutes or so without anything further excitement and then headed home.

 

My question is, when do you decide to try a different presentation/rig or when do you move to a different spot? I'm a bank fisherman, so I don't have a ton of options as far as zooming around in a boat using a fish finder to read the bottom structure. Overall, I fished about 500 yards of shoreline this morning. I hooked up on that bass on my way back to my car, so it was a place I'd thrown other presentations that morning. So, when do you decide to change up the rig and when do you decide to find a different place entirely?

[HeavyFisher]

I bank fish as well. I'll start with a crank bait first, if they are hitting that I'll switch to rubber worms etc, if they are hitting sinkers I'll start throwing a top water. If nothing bites that as well then I will finally move to a new spot and repeat the process. It has worked out pretty well for me.

[corn-on-the-rob]

Since you are a beginner, I would actually suggest limiting yourself to just a couple baits/presentations. This way you can become familiar and build confidence with them. For only 2.5 hours, I feel that you switched lures too fast to work them properly.

 

Try taking that chigger craw and a moving bait of your choice like a spinner-bait or topwater and only use those the entire time you are there. Then the next time you are out, use two different baits to slowly familiarize yourself with them. Eventually you will figure out when each one works better than the others. As for changing spots, that can be tricky, for now stay efficient and cover water, hit high percentage targets, then move on. Don't be afraid to revisit spots like you said, fish move in and out.

 

Also, when it comes to bass fishing, remember a lot of bass will be right up on that shoreline so cast close and make parallel casts to get them.

 

When it comes to hooksets, since you are not used to them, when ever you feel a bite or feel a fish is on, reel in slack if there is any, then let it rip. For now it will be better to set the hook too hard rather than not enough as you are learning, you will eventually dial it in.

[UCChris]

You're probably right about me switching too fast. I'm going to go down there again on Sunday, so I will take just the shaky head with a Chigger Craw and Pop-R. 

 

Both fish I've caught so far have been on a shaky head rig that I've slowly dragged along the bottom. At the lake I fished this morning, there is a rocky bottom (rocks from the size of baseballs up to the size of a 5 gallon bucket). I hooked into the one bass while doing the same dragging along the bottom. The thing is, the shaky head rig hits the sides of the rocks and it feels like a bite. The only reason I knew I had a bass on was because my line started to swim away.

[68camaro]

Chris, like you I am about 30 days into bass fishing. I have been having sime success and this morning caught my biggest, a 5+ lb'er on a swimming jig thriwn at shoreline. One of my best fishing accesories is a pair of Muck boots that allow me to walk into the ponds and lakes I fish. In some areas I can walk 20 feet into the water. this gives me great angle to cast into shoreline or parrelll to shore or weed lines. In areas I cannot walk out I have had luck throwing weedless swimming jig past weed line and reeling back in to shore.

I have learned alot on this site in how to bank fish, from what I have learned here this is how I attack my fishing

- i formulate a plan while walking to water

- if I see a lot of topwater activity, I go with topwater baits, then jerkbaits than crankbaits to 6'.

- after this I hit the parrell shore or weedline on either sude of me.

- if I don't see avtivity on the yop of the water, I stand back from shore and pitch jigs in are in front of me starting a couple feet into water from shore than more out to 10' or so.

- once cleared I go to edge of water or walk in to muck or water as far as I can get away with and start pitching swimming and other weedless baits close to shore and oarrell to shore and weedline.

- i then start with topwaters, jetks than cranks

I am not real confident with pladtics yet but do try.

I still struggle with how long to use a bait or technique before moving on.

Also, this sounds real basic but I was missing it, try to focus on where you think bass are and Have a purpose for every cast. Really study area and look for cover ateas,. Weeds have lately been a friend to me.

Most of all you can't catch 'em if you aren't fishing so keep your line wet

[UCChris]

I can't remember who I was watching on Youtube that said that bank fishermen have a better chance to get into fish if they move a lot. They will catch the "eager" fish right off the bat, then you know there are fish there and can break down the surrounding area?

[Bass newb]

^I've never seen a bank fisher catch a fish and then stay there. They keep moving. I've seen a fair number of them too.

[tholmes]

I can't remember who I was watching on Youtube that said that bank fishermen have a better chance to get into fish if they move a lot. They will catch the "eager" fish right off the bat, then you know there are fish there and can break down the surrounding area?

 

I'm not sure that I agree with that. I'm a bank fisherman and, because I'm limited to the areas that I can fish, I tend to stay in one place for a long time. I've found that after I catch the "eager" fish, if I'm patient and persistent, there are other, usually larger, fish in the area. I'll sometimes spend an hour or more picking through a brushpile with a T-rig or jig and catch fish that I would have missed if I had moved on after a few minutes. THey are there, you just have to convince them to strike.

 

Tom

[Bass newb]

Tholmes you're right. I don't have a trolling motor so I stay places for longer than most, and I was stubborn for my first few weeks and I wouldn't move at all. Sometimes it would be hours later, but I'd catch a fish there. 99% of the folks I see bank fishing from a bass boat move constantly. Even after catching a fish.

[Evan K]

As a bank fisherman I move a good bit too. If I see a particularly fishy looking place (brush pile, structure, grass, etc.) I'll work it for a good while, but otherwise I'm mostly covering water. As soon as I get my Deeper on something that will actually throw it out I'll probably slow down a bit, since I won't be fishing completely blind.

[bassinhole]

You may find more success if you consider the following:

 

Do the fish know you're there?

    Bass are easily spooked by the presence of large moving bodies above the water. 

    -Try not to cast a shadow over the areas you want to fish

    -Wear muted colors that blend with the surroundings, green, or camouflage work well 

    -Walk softly the Bass can feel your movement the same way they can feel a Lipless crank bait's vibrations through their lateral line

    -If you're moving along a focus most of your casts in the direction of your movement, not behind you.

 

How many other people fish this spot?

  Pressured fish are more critical on presentation, and line visibility

  -Try to avoid making large splashes when presenting a bait to cover pitch or flip when possible

  -Downsize your line most ponds can be fished effectively with 8lb mono

  -Try something that they may not have seen; try a Neko rig with a high flotation worm

 

 

Do the conditions match your technique? 

  Fish tend to key in on particular colors or presentations during various conditions

  -Note the water Clarity use more natural colors in clearer water

  -How is the lighting/light penetration? If the water is shaded or it's overcast try darker colors which create a better silhouette in contrast to the sky

  -What's the wind doing? if the wind is not blowing or blowing lightly try top water, if your fishing a storm or heavy winds up-size weights and fish submerged or bottom

  -Cast into the wind or against the current fish will typically align themselves to swim into the current/wind and hide behind any current breaks that are available

  -Wind also effects the positioning of bait-fish as it churns the water on the windblown banks and increase oxygen and food supply in those areas

 

 

 

What were you doing when you caught your fish?

  Developing a pattern is a great way to find more fish!

   -Where was your bait in relation to cover?

   -How fast were you fishing?

   -How deep?

 

 

How did the fish react to your presentation?

  Observation of hook placement gives you clues about the fishes attitude towards your bait

   -How did the fish react? Was it a hard hit or did he just pick it up?

   -Was the fish hooked deep in the mouth? Good sign the bait your using is being treated as food, or you waited too long to set the hook.

   -Just barely on the lip? The fish may have been attempting to move your bait off a bed, or kill and not eat it.

   -Foul hooked? Maybe try a different presentation, bait, or add a trailer hook.

 

 

 

Wow this ended up being a lot longer than I planed. Hope it helps! 

[Paul Roberts]

Good stuff above.

 

There are no rules.

 

If I'm catching, I may stay put.

 

If I know there are fish at the spot, I may spend some time there trying to figure them out.

 

If I find myself spending more time re-tying than keeping a lure in the water I oughta stop that.

[WRB]

Bass anglers have a belief that they can make bass strike lures if they can find a specific lure the bass want.

Consider this; bass are not active 24/7, they eat and rest. Every single adult size bass is on it's own time table, smaller juvenile bass are still in groups or small schools and on a group time table, more activity with higher numbers.

To catch bass isn't finding the specific lure, it's finding active feeding bass that counts. During the spawn, feeding isn't a priority, it is every other seasonal period.

My advice is focus your efforts on fewer high percentage lures and become skilled with those lures so you have confidence using them. You need 3 groups of lures; top water, mid water column and bottom bumping.

Bass are active feeding about 20% of the time each 24 hours, sometimes less then that if the water is cold.

You need to learn when bass are active where you fish and where those bass are located. Depending on location you select a lure that works at that depth and location. Bass spend more time resting than eating, meaning they will not chase fast moving lures about 80% of the time and will react more often to lures moving slower very near them. When you find active bass use faster moving lures, less active use slower moving lures.

Being very versitile with several different lure types doesn't equal bass fishing success. Being an expert with fewer lure types does equal bass fishing success. Over time you will become very good at catching bass using lures you prefer to use.

Now to answer your question; fishing from the bank you have only a few options where you can fish. During the fall-winter cool to cold water period focus your efforts on points or where the water drops off into deeper water, that is a good location. Use bottom bumping lures to start with; finesse C-rig, T-rig with sliding bullet weight. You do this with 1 outfit by using a glass bead between the sliding bullet weight, peg the bead to make the finesse C-rig about 24" above the hook, take the rubber peg out for the T-rig. Mid water lures; diving or lipless crankbait or spinnerbait. You can use a weedless spoon like a Johnson Silver minnow for both surface weeds and mid water lure, good choice for bank angler.

Keep it simple, make fan casts to cover the area you fish and slow down to enjoy your time fishing.

Tom

[Fishes in trees]

In olden times, when I was a bank fisherman, I had 1 bait - i.e. a Brewer Slider head with some sort of plastic on it.  My strategy was to keep it moving, low and slow, polishing the bottom as it were.  Later, after I began to use a bait caster, I had 2 baits, a spinner bait and a slider head.  I think that the best strategy was to keep moving, i.e. throw the spinner bait once or twice (paralleling the bank worked much better than throwing it straight out and then follow up with the slider head, throwing it a few times in different directions.  No bites - move on, sooner or later you'll find active fish or you will throw the slider head into the mouth of some fish.

 

I've mentioned this before, but it bears repeating that as a bank fisherman, one of the most useful pieces of gear you can get is a set of hip waders, to get you off the bank a little bit and make it easier to  parallel the bank with reaction type baits.

[monkeyman3dee]

1. Good to have two rods for two different presentations

2. Cast along the bank and it helps to have a lure to interpret bottom structure

3. Rocky reservoirs it may be less pertinent to be quiet. No saying it isn't a must, just don't get discouraged if your trekking along a you cause a boulder to slide down the hill into the water. Just got back from a trip where a big bass I caught was probably less than 6 ft away from me. This was after a rather exciting perilous trek across rocky sliding rocks who betray you at any given moment you set foot on them. Made 3 casts with no hook up ( he bit my craw claw off) then bam bass on a hook. I was usin a jig

4. For me I took maybe 2 hrs to move maybe 20 yds down the bank. Just take your time, thoroughly cast and work you area then move down a few feet and work the shore some more.

5. Study bassinholes post, good info.

[blckshirt98]

Time of day has a lot to do with success bank fishing.  I fish 100% from the bank and unless it's dawn or dusk, I won't fish.  Dawn and dusk more fish will be actively feeding in the shallows, when the sun comes out and it gets scorching hot they'll retreat to deeper water/cover that you may not be able to reach from the bank.

 

One thing you'll notice from the bank is that unless it's spawn season when bass will hunker down on a bed, the bass will be "cruising the shallows" looking for food.  One spot you've fished with no luck may suddenly have a feeding bass pass through and then suddenly you'll get bit.  It's one of the reasons why I like fishing a drop shot where I'll cast out at an angle from shore, maybe 20 feet out, and I'll let the bait sit there and I'll lightly "tick" it for 4-5 minutes.  The 4-5 minute window is to give a feeding bass cruising the shallows a chance to swim by to see it and eat it.  If I don't get bit I'll try a different size/color until I find what's working that day, and then stick with it.

 

You can up your odds by moving along the shoreline looking for structure/dropoffs/coves/points where fish might congregate/stage/feed, but that comes with fishing that particular body of water and becoming familiar with hotspots that produce.

[UCChris]

So if I'm fishing dawn/dusk and trying to hit the bass that are cruising the shallows, should I use a bit that can cover water quickly? Something like a spinnerbait or crankbait?

[blckshirt98]

I'll usually bring a spinning rod for finesse (dropshot) and a casting rod for a reaction bite (squarebill/chatterbait) - I'm more comfortable and confident fishing a dropshot so I'll start there, but will switch to reaction depending on the time of year and what the water is telling me.  LIke right now in the fall where I'm at, a reaction bite with a squarebill is probably a better bet because the bass are chasing shad, but other times of the year I'll look for baitfish boils on the surface or look for them scattering along the shoreline because a hungry bass is chasing them.  That's when I'll start chucking the crankbait/chatterbait near those boils.

 

On the flipside one of the guys at the local tackle shop likes to fish crankbaits as close to 100% of the time as he can, any season, any time of day, burning them as fast as he can, and does well.

[bigbill]

Early evenings,

Don't fish too fast.

Do not fan cast your casts next to each other I skip fan cast. I desperate my multiple casts.

Evenings

inline spinners

Mepps Anglia #3 silver blade gray tail.

Joe's fly 1/4oz blackgnat

Joesfly 1/4oz firetiger apache

Topwater

Rebel pop r blue or black

Mister Twister top prop

prop spook

Rapala f7. Blue.

Bomber crankbaits redapple craw, green craw, fire craw Brown craw, baby bass orange bottom.

Rebel BIGCLAW CRAWFISH crankbaits.chartruese

Bass scent