Bait and Lure frustration.

[Jerry Zito]

I moved into a home on a fairly large lake. It's fed by a salt water creek. It has catfish, Tilapia, mullet, and best of all large mouth bass. My neighbor tells me that the lake has a large bass population, with 8lb fish and bigger. I have seen them crashing the bank for bait fish. Anyway, to get to the point, I have thrown cranks, spinners, jerk baits. I have put baby brim on a bobber, and free lined baby brim. It's been three weeks and not even a strike. I have been a salt water fisherman all my life, but I would like to add bass fishing to my life long passion. Any suggestions as to why the bass won't even take a live baby brim, not to mention lures.

[NYWayfarer]

Throw a wacky rigged Senko. That slow falling bait will get bit sooner rather than later. If you deadstick it on the bottom a Catfish might scoop it up.

 

Or drag a jig with a trailer along the bottom.

[Derek1]

Also a small paddletail on a ball head should work. 

[fishballer06]

Not a single bite in 3 weeks?! Have you seen other people actually catching fish from this body of water? Being that this body of water is fed with saltwater, I would question how well certain freshwater species can survive (like a bass). 

 

You need to establish for yourself what is actually swimming around in that lake. So I'd get some nightcrawlers and live minnows and put them under a bobber and see what all you can catch. Even throwing around a little 1/8oz Rooster Tail on spinning gear is pretty much guaranteed to catch whatever is swimming in there. 

[Big Rick]

Bass and catfish in SALT WATER?  That's a new one on me! 

[TnRiver46]

Im just guessing but i bet you are seeing mullet jump. Bass can tolerate brackish water but i dont think they can live in salt water. Where did you get the baby bream? Every time i have ever used live bream in a pond it worked like magic. If you are positive there are bass, use a plastic worm. I could fish for years with crankbait jerkbait and spinnerbait and never get a bite. I do it all the time 

[senile1]

3 hours ago, Big Rick said:

Bass and catfish in SALT WATER?  That's a new one on me! 

There is a saltwater catfish but unlike the freshwater variety it is considered a junk fish by saltwater anglers, or so my saltwater guides have told me.  

 

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hardhead_catfish

[GreenPig]

6 hours ago, Big Rick said:

Bass and catfish in SALT WATER?  That's a new one on me! 

Salt water Largemouth. ?

[Hammer 4]

That is one Big Grouper.

[Deleted account]

14 hours ago, Big Rick said:

Bass and catfish in SALT WATER?  That's a new one on me! 

Bass do ok in brackish water, as do some cats. The blues in the Chesapeake and Potomac are spreading out wider than most expected. We have had a couple of years of low salinity in both though.

[frogflogger]

Throw a topwater

[Jerry Zito]

Thanks everyone for the responses. Perhaps I was not as clear as I should have been. The lake IS fresh water, and I have seen large mouth bass. So I apologize for not being more clear. The lake is fresh water. It is somehow affected by Spruce Creek. I have caught a fairly large catfish. Anyway, sorry for the confusion. I have been fishing all my life and I was surprised when I saw bass and mullet in the same water.