Help me target the correct area

[Kyle Kronewitter]

Good evening,

 

making my first post on here! I’m not new to fishing but I am new to taking  Bass fishing in a different content and using tactics to maybe help my finishing experience more enjoyable. Anyways here goes, I’ve recently purchased a small 14’ v bottom fish master and lowrance elite ti 5 finder to take my bank fishing to the actual lake. Stone lake is 5 minutes away from my home. Small lake with sand , rock bottom and heavy grass and pad areas. My question is I’ve obviously only fished the bank but with my current setup and contour maps, I’ve been out getting familiar with the cover and composition of the lake bottom and what grass or other  cover the fish are hiding in . What I need help with is where should I focus more of my casts too? I’ve attached my local map in hopes a more verteran fisher can set me in the right direction on points of interest, breaks or Contour spots  so I can become better familiar with what I’m seeing on the map and then taking it out on the water and actually seeing it. I guess should of read maps better in the army! Life of an helicopter mechanic! So thanks again and hopefully this post can help . I’m not shy to dumming down info but just not very good at this forum stuff. YouTube and google search does so much. I’ve also attached a link to c-maps in case someone is Into this stuff and wants a more detailed map 

https://www.genesismaps.com/Dashboard/SocialMap/Index?mwID=1050716

Kyle

[deep]

Shoreline cover is good! No need to beat the banks all around the lake though.

 

LMB or SMB? Are there any pelagic/ offshore baitfish? Does this place get a lot of fishing pressure? Seasonal period (post-spawn/ summer)?

 

Also, before I forget; next time you go out, mark some fish and note their depths.

[Kyle Kronewitter]

2 minutes ago, deep said:

Shoreline cover is good! No need to beat the banks all around the lake though.

 

LMB or SMB? Are there any pelagic/ offshore baitfish? Does this place get a lot of fishing pressure? Seasonal period (post-spawn/ summer)?

@deep ! Thanks let provide better detail of my post. LMB , minnows and shiners. Seen people catch catfish and I’ve caught a dogfish, heard their is perch but  Not fimilar with fish species but small bait fish. Amish wipe out gills and panfish during spawn but other than that not fished hard. DNR recent shock of lake state biggest fish was 16”? The channel between the lakes with bank is mostly where I’ve fished near the boat dock located on the south west portion of the map. Sand and shallows in northern end big enough to visually see on this map. Also been crud weather but no beds visible so assume post spawn or I’m close .. water temp on sonar yesterday was 72 but deeper 68 degrees last week was in mid 60’s. So warming quick but next 3 days call for warm rain weather also trolled for 2 hrs noticing tons of fish in the 8’-12’ water column.??‍♂️

[Ktho]

Looks like a rather small lake without a many big defining structure elements. 

 

Id go out find the grass and figured out what depth they’re liking. I’d favor the deeper grass closet to shallow water but in a small lake sometimes they don’t necessarily follow traditional locations since they don’t have as many choices to pick from. 

[papajoe222]

For starters, I'd conentrate on that underwater point (around 2:00 on the map). Another spot I'd give serious consideration to would be either of the cuts at the southern side (5:00 & 7:00), especially if there is any shoreline cover. I can't tell from looking at the map what graduation the contour lines are set (5ft.?) but regardless, the one at 5:00 gives quicker access to deeper water.  The east and west bank where the lines are close together would be where I'd target late fall and any ice fishing. There and where that underwater point peters out. 

After checking out the lake on Google Earth, those docks on the southeast end of the lake and the south shore by those two cuts I mentioned, have good access to deep water. I'd be giving those a shot during mid-day.

[scaleface]

Its 540 acre bowl shaped lake and not a lot of structure that stands out  .As  papajoe222 stated, theres a small point at 2 o'clock .  

[Kyle Kronewitter]

13 hours ago, papajoe222 said:

For starters, I'd conentrate on that underwater point (around 2:00 on the map). Another spot I'd give serious consideration to would be either of the cuts at the southern side (5:00 & 7:00), especially if there is any shoreline cover. I can't tell from looking at the map what graduation the contour lines are set (5ft.?) but regardless, the one at 5:00 gives quicker access to deeper water.  The east and west bank where the lines are close together would be where I'd target late fall and any ice fishing. There and where that underwater point peters out. 

After checking out the lake on Google Earth, those docks on the southeast end of the lake and the south shore by those two cuts I mentioned, have good access to deep water. I'd be giving those a shot during mid-day.

@papajoe222 thank you for the knowledge and yes I understand it’s not a big lake. It’s water and I have access to it along with the lake connected via the channel. I’m using the “home lake “ to better understand structure, contours and cover as well as fish routine. I have 15 lakes in a 20 mile radius twice the size so in my mind stone is a tool to help me navigate bigger waters. I’m thankful you were open to giving advice. I’m planning on heading out to the lake in a few hrs. No need to advance this topic further and I will inbox you with details on my finding if interested. The rest is up to me. @scaleface @Ktho and @deep thank you as well for input . Much appreciated and glad to be apart of the community. Sounds childish but my obsession to learning is addictive and glad I’m at a time in my life I have the time and resources to further a hobby that most of you probably have been doing for years. It took 2 ice fishing trips and I was hooked, Since then I couldn’t wait to start open water fishing! ????

 

Kyle

[papajoe222]

Let us know how you did. I target a similar lake about 50mi. east of Stone that I plan on hitting next week. 

[ClackerBuzz]

Getting off the bank can make your head spin with options.  Seems like you want to make 10,000 casts fishing every square inch of the lake.  Here's a couple of lessons I learned over the last 3 seasons:

 

--You don't have to cast every inch of the shoreline.

 

--You don't have to catch every dink in the lake.

 

--You don't have to blindly fish forward.  It's insanely difficult to do but you learn far more by putting down the rods and getting on the trolling motor.  Try to spook every bass possible and observe what cover they are holding on.  Observe birds, baitfish, insects, surface and subsurface weeds, rocks, timer, water temps etc.

 

-- Polarized sunglass are a must.

 

--"If you ain't snagging, you ain't bagging".

 

--Fishing sonar and fishing without sonar are 2 very different skill sets so choose which you are focusing on in the moment.

 

Non-sonar fishing:  Troll forward 50-100 yards forward without casting.   Use polarized sunglasses to identify only high percentage cover.  Turn around and only fish it i.e. laydowns, shallow surface weeds, deep subsurface weeds, drop offs, boulders, lily pads, docks with deep water access, underwater ledges, drain pipes, beaver dens, dams/chunk rock, visible weedlines, weed/lilly pad/rock transitions etc.  Don't waste time casting every inch of shoreline, every small stick/branch, solo lilly pad, 2ft log etc.  Bass relate to structure or cover but until you learn more focus on cover.  They love hiding in the nasty stuff and ambushing prey so have plenty of weedless lures rigged and cast right into their living room.  Repeat every 100 yards and after a few outings you'll start to learn which shorelines, cover, weeds etc are best.

 

Sonar fishing: Most guys position their boat one full casting distance from shoreline and troll parallel to shore all day long not realizing there are tons of unpressured bass right underneath their boat path.  Use your unit to ping 10 ft or less i.e. the area where your sunglasses stop working.  Focus on weed lines or visible ledges/drop offs.  Save the center of the lake and 15-20 ft depths until you get better.  Use marker buoys to kick overboard when you see something good b/c they make it so easy to effectively cast an area.  

 

Don't fall into the trap of trying to fish shallow visible cover at the same time as learning to fish structure with the sonar.  Dedicate separate time to each.  Learning/catching sonar fish is harder so I'd spend an hour learning/getting skunked then head back to the shallows for 2 hours of catching before heading back for more sonar learning.

 

There is a whole new world in front of you.  Good luck and have a blast.

4 hours ago, papajoe222 said:

Let us know how you did. I target a similar lake about 50mi. east of Stone that I plan on hitting next week. 

Holy crap if you live this close to @papajoe222 try to beg, borrow or steal to get on his boat and learn from him.  Buy lunch, contribute some gas money, case of beer... we're family friendly so I can't mention other temptations ? He is definitely on my list of who I'd like to fish with from the forum.