Lily Pads

[Mike H.]

What do you guys use for fishing lily pads? They are the main cover in my lake besides the random submered log, and docks(atleast that Im aware). We have some small patches, and a few big ones, infact, the end of the lake that i fish at, about 1/8 of is it lily's(the lake is 56 acres). And they're thick lily's  . So what do you guys use?

Thanks,

Mike

[bigjohnstud5]

Hey how's it goin man?  Im in seattle too (we should fish someitime) so I know alot of lake around here have bunch's of lily pads,  and my favorite and I think the funnest way to fish the pads is with a snagproof frog, its easy and the strike are awsome!!  But it takes awhile to get used to setting the hook with them (wait for weight of fish).  I also like to pitch and flip jigs into openings but I like to use light gear doin this.  Fishing the edges with a lipless crank or plastic worm s good also, same with spinnerbait

[Nick.Culver]

I personally throw spinnerbaits along the edges of the pads on cloudy and pitch jigs and texas riged craws and lizards into the middle of the pads on sunny days. That's where I usually start at. I use a couple other tactics. But that should help you get started. The other tactics are kind of keyed towards the Northwest's weather patterns.

[Marty]

I love pads, but don't get to fish them as often as I used to. Soft jerkbaits, plastic worms, Senkos and topwaters. Bring the plastics over, across, between and through the pads, and let them sink into holes and edges. Also fish the edges with cranks and spinnerbaits if you can get away with them.

[Mike H.]

Hey guys thanks for the quick posts. Bigjohnstud5: The lake Im refering to is Martha Lake in Lynnwood, my grandparents live on it(look it up at washingtonlakes.com). And to Nick.Cluver, I live in Washington(state), so Im about as Northwest as you can get in the states  ;D .

Thanks again guys.

[KU_Bassmaster.]

I like plastics, texas rigged or weightless.  You can fish them on top of the pads are flip and pitch the holes.  I like shallow cranks and spinnerbaits on the edges early in the morning.

[BassMaster]

Try flippin or pitchin a jig and pig combo.  When it hits and sinks into the water, slowly twitch it a bit until u feel confident that no fish are hangin around that area.( 18+ pound test line, half-ounce jig).  Also, you can throw some frog and rat lures.... slowly skitter these guys along the pads as if a helpless frog or a rat would do! ;D 8) ;D 8)

[Chris]

I take a single colo blade spinnerbait and throw it to the edge of the pads and let it fall to the bottom. Now take about six hard fast cranks and let it fall back to the bottom. It looks like a baitfish that just figured out a bass is in the area and takes off. If you can get a spinnerbait through the pads take the arm of your spinnerbait and bend it up that will make it more weedless and will deflect off the pad stems better.

[tritonman]

I like a lizard weightless slow rollin almost as its like walkin across the pads. Use a 2/0 hook on braided line, hook it weedless

[squid]

I throw a finesse worm or lizard.  Throw them on top of the pads and work it to a hole and let it drop...wait the slowly bring it in while stopping to let it fall to the bottom again.

[bassinjack]

my go to for pads is weedless spoons you can work them up and around and through the pads with ease gliding them over the top and letting them drop is vary deadly

tight line

Jack

[Zaraspooker]

I like to fish the soft plastic scum frogs. You can literaly cast these things into patches of floating grass and not get hung up. They are great for lilly pads because you can cast them on top of them and kinda jump them around just like a real frog would do. Wanna see a crazy strike? Watch a bass jump up to hit a frog that is sitting on the edge of a lilly pad.

[basswest1]

First of all you need to find the right patch of lily pads, which is the hard part.  If you find those you will have an easy time finding the correct bait.

You need to find pads that are close to deep water, preferibly adjecent to a creek channel or other big dropoff.  It would be great if you could find a small patch of lilly pads all by themself in 4-6 ft of water with deeper water around them.

You also need to ask yourself what season the bass are in.  If its spring and their spawning, try to find pads that are barely reaching the surface and are very sparse so there is enough room for bass to build a nest and have enough sun come through to incubate the eggs.  In this case you can use a trick worm and target brush in the lillypad fields.  You can use a buzzbait,  or you can use a slower approach and pitch and flip something like a tube or a  creature bait.

When water gets warmer and the fish start to hide from the sun in the lilly pads it is key to find the biggest pads there is near deep water.  Like I said find isolated patches.  Pads with wood are great.

In the morning the fish will be on the outside weed edge so concentrate your casts there.  Fish parallel to the weed edge with a shallow crank, large spinnerbait with double willows, pop-rs, spooks, and buzzbaits.  Then as the sun gets higher the fish will dig deeper into the weeds.  Concentrait on any irregularities like a hole in the pads or a log, then pitch a jig or some kind of soft plastic bait with a pegged half ounce weight.  You could also throw a frog over the mats and pull it over.  Use 65 pound braid for frogs.

[Nick_Barr]

1. flippin a creature bait

2. buzzbait

3. plastic frog

4. spinnerbait

Good Luck!!

[Shad_Master]

I used to fish pads a lot as a kid.  We would use a Johnson Silver Spoon with a white Uncle Josh pork trailer.  Throw out onto the pads and pull it along until it drops off.  Be ready for the bite.  Don't fish much in the pads anymore and had forgotten about this until a few weeks ago when I was telling another guy about it.

[playmaker47]

ive never fished on lily pads. i guess we just dont have the right conditions up here in kansas. id like to go fish where there is some pads like lake okechobee or lake fork or somthing

[Aaron_S]

My favorite lilly pad technique is a heddon moss boss.  If you pop these things over lilly pads when you get to the break of water between lilly pads there is often an explosion on topwater.