early mornings this early?

[Pondtooner]

Hey guys was wondering what you all thought of the early morning bite so early in the season?

[Fishing Rhino]

I've always been an early morning guy.  It's usually calmer, quieter and sometimes better.  Plus, I always liked to make my fishing days as long as possible.

I still enjoy sunrise on the water regardless.

But, I've found the best early season fishing, for me anyway is between ten in the morning and two in the afternoon.

Been out just after daybreak, while it's still frosty, and spent two or three hours with little action.  

Between 9 and 10, it picks up, along with the breeze.  After two, it slows down.  Possibly because I've worked the best spots.

Possibly coincidence, but I've been out more than 15 times in the last three weeks.  For me, fishing has been consistently better during the two hours before and after noon.

[tritz18]

Last saturday I caught fish from 8-12. Nothing really early but still are caught in the AM

[unhbass37]

So far for me I have not got one Bass yet in morning or afternoon. I can't wait for warmer weather as I do better then. LOL

[Fishing Rhino]

So far for me I have not got one Bass yet in morning or afternoon. I can't wait for warmer weather as I do better then. LOL

Have you tried jigs?

There is an article on here about pre spawn bass fishing.

In a nutshell, it's this.

Find drop offs near shelfs.  A drop off may only be a couple of feet.  Work the jig at these "drop offs".  

This is my first year using jigs, and I'm wondering why I ignored them for so long.

I'm using 3/8 and 1/2 ounce football jigs.  Strike King or BooYah seem to work equally well.  Strike King calls theirs a football jig, BooYah a pigskin.  Black blue flash in the SK and river craw (also black blue flash) in the BooYah.

Flappin Hogs, watermelon w/ red black flake makes a good, but fragile, trailer.  I switched to AlluringBait's beaver craw, and chunk in watermelon red.  Much cheaper, as effective if not better, and much more durable than the GYFH.

Cast, allow jig to settle on bottom, twitch, pause, drag, twitch.  Vary the retrieve, and mix it up.

http://www.***/articles/jig-fishing.shtml

[unhbass37]

Thanks for the tips. I appreciate it.  I have tried Jigs (black/blue with Pork trailers and craws) No luck yet. I see them on the graph, But can't catch them. I am still new and have a ton to learn about cold weather fishing, But I am hoping to figure it out soon. I had no problem catching them in the summer.

[Pondtooner]

Thanks to all for the input.

As far as jigs go i always say I'm gonna give it a real chance and then give up rather quickly.Probably because I still haven't caught that first bass on a jig.I also find myself always casting to the shore line.Sounds like this might not be the best method for jigs.

Thanks again

[unhbass37]

I am new to Jigs to, But since I just caught a nice 4 pounder today on a jig I am hooked now.  

[Fishing Rhino]

Thanks to all for the input.

As far as jigs go i always say I'm gonna give it a real chance and then give up rather quickly.Probably because I still haven't caught that first bass on a jig.I also find myself always casting to the shore line.Sounds like this might not be the best method for jigs.

Thanks again

I had not caught my first bass on a jig either, until I made a concerted effort with them this year.

Now, I feel like the kid in a candy store.  

I started with jigs in the middle of March.  On the first day, I caught one bass on a spinnerbait, and one on a chatterfrog.  They were my favorite baits last year.  

Then, I started working with a jig, and I caught nine more, just fumbling my way around with a jig.

I've made a couple of half-hearted fruitless attempts with the spinnerbait, and a swimbait.  After a few casts, they went back on their slot on the pole rack in my canoe.  Back to the spinnerbait.

I can only imagine how effective they are in the hands of someone who really knows how to use 'em.

I cannot say this is the best way to fish them, but it's what is working the best for me.

Try working them parallel to the shoreline, in various depths, and preferably rocky bottoms.  Most of the bass I'm getting come from 4 - 6 feet of water.  The pond has a shelf around most of its perimeter.  The shelf varies in width, but at some point it drops quickly from three or four feet to six feet deep.  

I'm fishing the slope.  At six feet, the bottom levels off, then gradually drops to seven feet in the middle of the pond.

When I get away from the bank, I get nothing.

When you're alone on the pond, get some marker floats, and use them to mark the drop off, preferably in the water just away from the bank.   Place them at intervals so you can see them.

Then you can work the bank from that reference.  

A few minutes setting your markers will save you many times over from making casts outside of the area that is holding the fish.

[masssilversrt4]

Thanks to all for the input.

As far as jigs go i always say I'm gonna give it a real chance and then give up rather quickly.Probably because I still haven't caught that first bass on a jig.I also find myself always casting to the shore line.Sounds like this might not be the best method for jigs.

Thanks again

Jigs work at your local pond.. I was there last night and caught one off some wood..

[tritz18]

Well went out this morning and my friend caught 3 and I caught 2, including this nice one. it was caught on a red eye shad. all the other fish were caught on shallow crankbaits

[bassmedic46]

Been going out early and haven't caught any Bass. Will try Jigs.  

[unhbass37]

Just remember to fish SLOWLY. I am new to jigs also and had to learn myself to slow down. I prefer crankbaits or spinners, But it is tough to catch them on those with the water still a little chilly.

[Pondtooner]

OOOOO I love me some crankbaits esp shallow runners!!

[Lauren]

] I have not been out in the morning this season. Mainly because I cannot find anyone up in the mornings to go fishing they are all sleeping in then again most of them are in college. I wake up at four, get dress and grab something to eat and drink. Start fishing at like 4:30Am then comes back at 9:45 or ten. Then eat again at like noon and head out to do more fishing.

I did get tired last season and walk to the lake at four in the morning. I came back at like 11 and my roommate asked, "When did you go fishing." I told her with a grin, "I left at four and woke up at 3:30." I ended up promising her I would not go out so early in the morning by myself. So far I have been true to my word but yesterday I woke up at 3 and could not go back to sleep. I really wanted to go fishing. Instead, I read a book about fishing. It was not the same but oh, well. I plan to go fishing tomorrow late at like eightam[/tt].

[patbfishing123]

Last Year I logged all the fish I caught for the whole month of april... it was a amazing to see the trends in the fishing. I logged the time, air temp, water temp, barometer, cloud cover, lure, and water clarity. I fishing 15 days out of the month.  Most days from 10 til 3, I found that I caught most of the fish from 11 until 12:30. Although every morning the bite would start earlier and end earlier. It seems like the fish would turn on for an hour to an hour anda half... but hold on for that hour because its pretty intense, when they're hungry... they're hungry!! I Caught most of my fish on an xcalibur lipless crankbait, burning it through 4-6 feet of water.  

Also in the spring if it is windy... I like to fish on the bank that the wind in blowing onto because the warmer water piles up there.  This time of year the fish are looking for the warmest water... and a degree or two can make all the difference in the world when it comes to finding the fish.