Where and what do I cast?

[Swamp Girl]

Conditions tomorrow morning are perfect: south breeze, cloudy, foggy, and calm. I'll be fishing a dammed river. You might remember me bewailing losing many big bass this summer? Well, I'm fishing THAT pond tomorrow morning.

 

The old riverbed is the deepest part and like a lot of dammed rivers, it has bays radiating off the riverbed. It has a couple flats, a fair amount of laydowns, and it's normally weed-choked, but with all the rain we've had this summer, the lilypads are about 12" down, which gives me an advantage at last since there's a little water to play them before they reach weeds. I was thinking of pulling a surface lure over the submerged lily pads and using a stop-and-go retrieve with a squarebill on the flats and in the deep water. I'll be launching in the dark.

 

Where would you fish? I want to hook a big girl since my odds of landing one have improved. I've caught five, six, and probably a seven-pounder out of there, but I don't think I've landed the biggest ones. I was overwhelmed by some beasts there this summer. 

[Pat Brown]

As the water cools, I like to find water that is a few degrees warmer than the rest of the water.

 

Usually that's the bank that's sitting in the sun.  This time of year there doesn't even need to be much cover for them and the shallower the better.  Also slightly dirtier water will often hold heat a little better than cleaner water.  I like in flow/out flow points and the channel swing banks and points associated with the mouths.  Of course heavy wood cover holds heat and food for large bass.  They seem to get on wood in the fall, especially sun baked semi submerged wood.

 

In the dark I'd fish a spinnerbait or a worm around the grass edges and then when the sun comes up I'd be buzz baiting those flats like it's going out of style. ESPECIALLY the very first ones hit by the sun and especially that first hour when it comes up and truly bakes that bottom.  I'd really just follow that sun all day.

[Functional]

double jointed big jitterbug close to shore and slowly retrieve it over the submerged pads. Black is the only correct color.

 

Wake bait, large weightless fluke like a jerk bait, walking stick bait, spinnerbait run shallow, buzzbait. 

 

Sounds like excellent conditions...id throw every topwater and barely subsurface lure I had. Shallow will heat up faster but I'd cast shallow and work it out over the submerged pads. I'd take a guess the big girls would hide in somewhat warmer water in the pads waiting to ambush above. 

[GreenPig]

Weightless Super Fluke, no make that a weightless Magnum Super Fluke with a rattle inserted in it fished slowly. Double Colorado spinnerbait should work too. Definitely agree with the top water, I'd go big and slow. The majority of my bigger fish have come on slower baits.

Oh yeah you ask where. Anywhere that looks good or anywhere I see bait fish. High water I'd surely try very shallow for a bit. Goodluck!

[LrgmouthShad]

Bro why are you asking us for advice

You’re good

[casts_by_fly]

I'd fish a big black buzzbait until my arm fell off if I just wanted a big fish.  That's perfect conditions, the perfect time of year, and a lake that has them (and largely unpressured).  My go to in that is a black with chartreuse tips swinging sugar buzz in 3/8 or 1/2oz with a black split tail.  Keep the rod tip high and reel it as slow as it will still plop while bringing it through everything.  With single hooks you can fish it through slop, pads, and wood most of the time so long as you can cast it into an open spot and get it onto the surface as its hitting the water.  There is something about a big slow buzzbait that makes big bass go nuts.

[GreenPig]

44 minutes ago, LrgmouthShad said:

Bro why are you asking us for advice

You’re good

Trying to make us feel good.😄

[Swamp Girl]

1 hour ago, LrgmouthShad said:

Bro why are you asking us for advice

You’re good

 

Ha! There is so much I don't know.

 

I like the idea of a big surface lure worked slowly. I also like the buzzbait. I hadn't considered a fluke, so thanks for that suggestion. 

 

As far as baitfish, I never see them. They're there because the local bass are fat, but I just don't see them.

 

Pat, there won't be any sunshine tomorrow morning, but that's good to know for sunny, cool days.

[Pat Brown]

Well they'll be even more 'roamy' on a cloudy day but still be on those flats, mostly because it's good hard edges to push bait into, and they'll still be there with the first light maybe more active even and less target oriented......I go white on the topwaters when it's cloudy and I tend to work my baits a hair faster. 😎

[Swamp Girl]

I just clipped on a big, bone-colored Whopper Plopper. Fingers crossed.

[LrgmouthShad]

2 hours ago, ol'crickety said:

Ha! There is so much I don't know.

This I know, that you will be fine catching fat bass in your bogs. That’s all good.

 

Worry more about this, buckeye

[Swamp Girl]

I AM worried! Michigan's a powerhouse again. And for the first year in many, we don't have a stud for a quarterback. 

[Functional]

Anyone other than me wonder how Crickety is doing on or getting on the lake while they get ready for work? 

 

Looking forward to the AAR! 

[scaleface]

Lily pads 12 inches down, I would have to go get every fish hooked. Sounds like stout tackle time.  Strong single hooked lures like  spinnerbaits , swimbaits on jigheads  and chatterbaits

[Pat Brown]

I reckon she went, she casted, she caught.  😎🎣😂

[casts_by_fly]

same thought here.  I'm expecting a 40 bass day for her with at least 2 over 4 lb somewhere in the mix.  

[Swamp Girl]

I hate to say it, but I couldn't crack the code this morning. I fished the backs of bays, points, deep, weeds, and flats. I fished big lures and small lures. I fished fast and slow. I tried a fluke, buzzbait, a squarebill, various surface lures, and so on. I pounded the inflow and outflow. I caught eight. My best lure was a black Senko.

 

Last year, I was catching steadily and then suddenly my count dropped to single digits and stayed there. I wonder if I'm at the same point, that the water has literally chilled and has figuratively chilled the bite.

 

The first pic is representative of seven of the bass. The second one was my big one. The last pic is the pond.

 

I did love the morning. It was melancholy with the ducks and geese honking, which means summer is done and snow is coming. 

 

Thanks for the advice!

 

 

[roadwarrior]

 

 

                                                

[TnRiver46]

Purdy 

[MIbassyaker]

1 hour ago, ol'crickety said:

I hate to say it, but I couldn't crack the code this morning. I fished the backs of bays, points, deep, weeds, and flats. I fished big lures and small lures. I fished fast and slow. I tried a fluke, buzzbait, a squarebill, various surface lures, and so on. I pounded the inflow and outflow. I caught eight. My best lure was a black Senko.

 

 

 

*record scratch*

 

Hold on, old on, lemme get this straight....you had a perfectly ordinary fishing day???

[Swamp Girl]

5 minutes ago, MIbassyaker said:

 

*record scratch*

 

Hold on, old on, lemme get this straight....you had a perfectly ordinary fishing day???

 

Yes, I did. And this is how I feel:

 

[Blue Raider Bob]

On 10/10/2023 at 1:25 PM, ol'crickety said:

I'll be fishing a dammed river.

     I get mad at mine sometimes too!

[galyonj]

3 hours ago, ol'crickety said:

 

Yes, I did. And this is how I feel:

 

 

[Functional]

3 hours ago, ol'crickety said:

 

Yes, I did. And this is how I feel:

 

Hey, you have great fishing holes...your normal is not our normal. If I was conditioned for what you typically get I can see the same feelings.

 

Great you still caught fish though! If you go out again at least you have some clues for the next outing. All part of the process. 

[Swamp Girl]

My takeaway is to wait until later in the day to go fishing in the fall. They are getting so cold-pokey in the morning. 

 

As far as feeling bad, I was just funnin'. I loved this morning's fishing. Who wouldn't love paddling that little lake with the geese and ducks honking?