Why did the bite shut off..

[Dpatt402]

Hey all. I just first wanted to say thank you for all your guys help. This forum has made me a better angler all around. Today I have a question. I live in Nebraska the fall weather is in full swing now. Water temps have dropped substantially. Started off the fall transition fishing the bass up shallow chasing shad had much success. Mid to late fall I have had great success with dragging a football head jig in a brownish green pumpkin with a subtle trailer. Just dragging slow hitting structure and a little shake and they been slamming it. Had got me some great 5 pounders this last weekend. Went out today and got 3 four pound bass in three cast. It was amazing then as soon as the sun went behind the trees the bite immediately. Not a single bite after that. Could they not see it? Should I have switched to a black and blue? Or should I have switched to a different bait all together. I was thinking when the sun was up they were kind of holding on the bottom and when the sun went behind the trees they kind of left their holding and started roaming around. Any tips or advice would help so much. Thanks guys!

[A-Jay]

That seems like a typical late Fall pattern.

Seems like in the fall for me the bite is ALWAYS best in the afternoon - during that warmest part of the day. And is OVER 90 minutes before sunset.  I've beaten the water to a froth early & late in the day and have had very little to show for it; even when the middle of the afternoon has been killer.

  So now - when it's cold, 11 am to say 4-5 pm is when I concentrate my efforts.  If I choose to go earlier (or stay later) - it's just to look for spots but I won't wet a like until the day warms up.  The lake always looks great early & late but the bass are not interested.  

Your mileage may vary.

A-Jay

["hamma"]

Keep in mind that when the "general" lights penetration changes underwater it takes a while for a bass's eyesight to adapt to that change. Sometimes it can be a severe change, and sometimes just a slight change, but change just the same.

 What I do when the lighting is the culprit is change over to a noise producing lure, or just a noisey version of what I was throwing and this will sometimes be just the ticket. If your using a jig and its producing well before the "lightswitch" flicks to the off position, tie on a jig with noisey rattles, or completely change to a single colorado bladed spinnerbait, and bottom bounce it, or slow roll it to the bottom, then reel slowly keeping it as close to bottom as possible. One of my favorite "adjustments" is to tie on a beetle spin blade, with the jig I was using. That little added vibration, sound, and yes I even believe flash.  Sometimes piques their interest, and triggers a hit

 For when the "lightswitch" flicks off the fish will now mostly rely on the other senses available to them other than sight until their eyes finish adjusting to the new light levels. Vibration, sound, and scent may now rule. And "sometimes" if you hit it just right with your reaction to the light levels change, you can now have the upper hand, and just simply slay them. For they all are under the same criteria, their eyes haven't yet fully adjusted, and they all are relying on the other senses, and have yet "honed" to the change, making them either somewhat easy, or completely the opposite.

 This doesn't "always" work, but when it does? You also have a shot at some of the waters biggest fish, as they too are adjusting and kinda vulnerable at the moment.

I think this is why for ever and a day, you'd hear the old addage that fishing in the early morning or evening can be best time to go, considering this to be a worm/shiner and bobber moment, for granddad, and little Mikey to bond. The fish are that "kinda vulnerable" instance and will react to natural vibes, sounds and scents.

 If I termed this correctly to get the point across, try it next time this opportunity presents itself. I hope it helps yank some fish over the gunnels for ya.

 Good luck, and keep ya line wet

 

[scaleface]

It just happens this time of year . They  shut down abruptly . My last day fishing last year , I had a school located at fifteen foot and was catching bass on most cast then suddenly nothing as the sun started  nearing the horizon ..  

[primetime]

I am having the same struggles, but I usually notice in the fall the fish are always on the move based on changing conditions. The bite can be hot for 20 minutes and then just stop. 

I find when the sun goes down, the fish will then move out of the shade and into the open water, but then again, you just have to keep trying and hope you can figure out a pattern. It sounds like you are doing pretty good. I would try going in the afternoon, and if sunny, fish close to cover and sometimes changing angles of casts and targeting a stump with 5-6 casts is necessary. 

Fish roam in the fall to feed and get fat, If you can find the area that has bait, the fish will be there, but how to catch them is never as simple as I think while making my first cast. I find it hard to pattern fish in the fall, I really try to just find bait and fish transition areas and I move around alot, probably too much, but if you can find a feeding spot that replenishes, that may be the best bet and then just pick it apart. The fish seem to get keyed in on certain sizes this time of year. 

So I have no answer's that would be any better than someone else's, If the place gets pressure, try rigging up something different like the MJ rig (Senko with a small blade to pitch and swim), go with a small spinnerbait or Crankbait, and always try topwater, especially a minnow bait or fluke/Sluggo on top.....When the topwater bite is on, it usually stays on for a longer time, but I know exactly what you mean about the Sun changing, just keep in mind, just because the air temps drop, the water takes several days to change. Fish may also be suspended so always try the middle of the water column or a fluke on a darter head and try a few sizes, colors. 

Fall is the time of year I get really frustrated at times. I always have expectations of easy fishing, but it is often feast or famine. Keep fishing the same place and you will likely figure out some new patterns you can use other times of year if nothing else.

Hamma made a great point. When light changes just like water color, it takes time for the eyes to adjust. Kind of like Night fishing, the first hour usually is not good, it takes the fish an hour or 2 to get adjusted, sun does the same thing, so in those conditions, I always figure the fish are holding really tight to cover if in the same place so you have to put the bait on top of them, often multiple times so a shaky rig can be good. 

They may move out to water that has the same degree of light penetration as you were catching them so maybe try fishing out a bit further or deeper than the shade lines you were fishing....Just a thought. You seem to understand the situation which makes it more frustrating at times. If Only Bass did what all the articles say they do we could all be Pro's.

[WRB]

A 2 hour active feeding period is a long time regardless of the seasonal period, where I fish it's usually less than 30 minutes. When they shut off you need to move to another group of fish that are still active using the same pattern hopefully.

Tom

[Dpatt402]

Thank you all I will definitely take a lot of this advice and techniques when I hit the water tomorrow!

[Paul Roberts]

On 10/27/2016 at 10:18 PM, Dpatt402 said:

Could they not see it?

I've wondered that too. But no, it's not that; They can hunt effectively at night. And I've had it happen in clear water. And slowing down doesn't seem to help.

I'm going with Tom's (WRB's) answer -until further notice. However, in my waters at least, it's not as simple as "putting on the feedbag" for the bass. They have to catch that prey -bluegills here where I fish- and success is less common than many of us probably realize. Most bass, in most waters, rarely, if ever, get to eat their fill. It may be different in waters, and periods, with tons of prey available -like with good shad popns perhaps. Instead, it looks more like this: periods when bass are hunting -actively looking for opportunities. During warmer seasons, they spend more time "with their eyes open". As temps cool -esp below upper 50sF- they may simply spend less time actively hunting. That's my present understanding.

What to do about it? Move! The same exact thing is not likely happening everywhere. It's easy to get dejected and paint the whole lake that way.