Locating Bass

[5150bass]

There is so much talk in articles and TV about all the new equipment, lures, electronics.....etc.  But one thing that I find very confusing is how to locate bass (largemouth and smallmouth) during the different seasons.  I know bass follow general movements as the tempature changes and the season progresses, but as far as when and where the movements occur is from a different world.  

Also, how much can you tell about these seasonal movements from your lake map?  Can you basically plot out the different movements (Spring areas, Summer areas......) just by studying the map?

Any help would be extremely helpful.

[Guest avid]

Your asking THE question. This is what separates the champions from the merely great fisherman. I truly believe that the ability to locate numbers of catchable fish quickly is the great skill needed to be a bass tournament pro who is sponsered and actually making a living fishing for bass. I think that lure selection is secondary. Once you locate the fish, choosing the best lure is dictated by the conditions. How deep are they? what kind of structure are they relating to? What kind of cover is there? how bright is the day, water temp. primary forage etc. In short, I think picking a lure that will get a few bites is less challenging than finding the largest concentrations of active fish. To me, this is the essence of competitive fishing.

[Panamoka_Bassin]

Everything Avid said is true, but I dunno if he really answered your question.  In my own limited experience, there are several factors I consider when trying to find bass:

1) Season - I generally hash this out into 6 different time periods: Pre-spawn, Spawn, Post-spawn, Summer, Fall, Winter.

 During the Pre season, bass will be moving in from the deep winter water to more shallow areas to feast on bait before spawning.

 Spawn time is usually the hardest to catch, but if you make a nesting bass angry enough, there's alot of great action to be had.  Try clean bottom shallow areas.

 Post-spawn can be difficult as well because the bass are shagged out after expending alot of energy spawning.  As the bass move off the nests, they'll move into areas with more cover and structure.

 Summer is my personal favorite time to catch fish.  They may move into deeper water as the top water gets warmed up, or they may just be lurking under lillies, hydrilla, millfoil, etc.  Lots of different styles and techniques can be used.

 Fall is also a great time to catch, as the bass are looking to fatten up before the cold sets in.  Look for places where the bass can ambush bait, like points, rock/brush piles, or even a ledge.

 Winter is all about patience, and getting the bait down to the bottom, where the warmest water will tend to be.

2) Water Temp - This corrolates with the season, but takes it a step further.  If you can find the area with the right temp, you'll generally have luck all day.  If you can't find which temp the bass are holding in, you may get skunked

3) Weather Conditions - Any seasoned angler will tell you that the daily changes in weather will make all the difference when they choose where to fish, i.e. leeward vs. windward, dry vs. rain, overcast vs. sunny.  Personally, I like to be leeward, dry, and overcast.  However, I had great action during the week-long storm that raged here in the northeast a few weeks ago.  Go figure...

4) Luck - Not much you can do to plan for this, but I do try to keep a "lucky thought" in my head as I am fishing.  Hey, it can't hurt...

-These basic factors, I think, will certainly help you increase your odds of finding fish.  The next step, and much more involved, I feel, if learning HOW to catch them...which is what 90% of these forums is all about.  Hopefully I haven't put my foot in my mouth anywhere here, and anyone feel free to correct me where I'm wrong... make us both better fishermen!