Working the grass

[Catt]

Let me make one thing perfectly clear if you are fishing grass you will spend a lot of time picking it off regardless of lure; it is the nature of the beast, accept it or quit fishing grass. A percentage of the bass you do catch will bury you up so fast you will not even know what happened so when you set hook do it with authority and move that bass to the surface as fast as possible.

Tackle: you don't need a broom stick but you don't want a buggy whip either; I will not tell you what rod, reel, or line to use but keep in mind you will be moving the weight of the bass plus the weight of the amount of grass said bass is tangled in.

This technique works with Jigs or T-rigs but not in matted vegetation or with some types of vegetation. Any time I'm in a matted or near matted situation then I'm going vertical, meaning I'm Flipping or Pitching straight under the boat.

Ok now pay real close attention cause this is where it gets real complicated and I don't want to loose anyone.

Make your cast letting the jig/t-rig settle to the bottom

After a decent pause I reel down to about the 11 o'clock position maybe a little past and pull up with the rod tip.

When the lure starts to hang STOP and simply shake the rod tip

The best way to describe what I'm doing is when your lure hangs a small limb; you know how it feels when you pull and the limb pulls back? It's like that! If my lure aint loose by now I'll simply apply slightly more pressure by pulling harder or returning to the 11 o'clock position and taking a half turn on the reel. By using this shaking technique what will happen is my lure will pop free and spring forward.

Let me add a warning right here; be prepared be very prepared because at this exact moment that ole hawg was sitting back watching all this commotion and she will pounce the instance she sees your lure move forward.

Y'all ever have a cat and while you're sitting on the couch you scratch the couch? The cat will turn facing the commotion not moving until it sees something; well that ole hawg is doing the same thing.

Extremely complicated aint it

[Busy]

Great post.

I've been learning to never, ever think I'm hung up while fishing grass.  You're not hung up, just getting into position .  No jerking.  Just gently work it out.  As soon as you're free be ready to set the hook.

[Steven Ladner]

Great post! Your right, very complicated stuff right there  ;D

[fishfordollars]

Fishing the grass is a pain, but it's worth all the aggravation.

[Paul Roberts]

Now wait a minute. I'm confused. Do you shake up and down or side to side, or a little of both??

[WRB]

There was an excellent series of articles in the early In-Fishermen magazines called "Bass in the grass" that I believe became a video. Every weed type is discussed and how bass relate to each. Illustrations and photographs that clearly detail weeds edges, including the tunnels that bass make through weed beds to use the weed edges created by openings within the weed beds; inside and outside break lines.

WRB

[tyrius.]

Now wait a minute. I'm confused. Do you shake up and down or side to side, or a little of both??

Is there a limit to how many times you can shake it before people start questioning you?

8-)

[bigtimfish]

Now wait a minute. I'm confused. Do you shake up and down or side to side, or a little of both??

Is there a limit to how many times you can shake it before people start questioning you?

8-)

after 3 shakes you are just playing with it.

[Bassin_Fin@tic]

I do the same when working root clusters in pads from time to time.

Thanks for the post/reminder Catt. When I think about it I get too caught up working my rigs the same way whether it be brush,grass,or humps. It's called concentration and awareness.A little goes a long way.

[Paul Roberts]

Now wait a minute. I'm confused. Do you shake up and down or side to side, or a little of both??

Is there a limit to how many times you can shake it before people start questioning you?

8-)

after 3 shakes you are just playing with it.

Playing is not allowed.>

More seriously, I think that new anglers freak out (get their confidence down) when they get into weeds. Fishing vegetation is not a chuck-n-wind kind of thing, unless you want a wad of weeds. There are certain specific things you can do to get you through weeds and trigger strikes. Ignore these and you'll likely be frustrated.

That shake is a way of working your jig/T-rig through vegetation without fouling up. You feel your way through, then pop it free, and BAM!

It's similar to fishing a crankbait (treble hooks and all) through dense vegetation. You gently feel your way through, then rip it free at an edge. But you have to know where in a weed clump you are. I fish milfoil a lot, (many of us probably do too) and it's easy to bury a lure, especially a crank.

A tip that will work for jigs too: Cast short. Identify prime breaks in the weeds and target them. Pull and shake (don't shake a crank) the lure through deftly, then when you reach the break, pop it free. Rip too soon and you've got a wad of gunk.

It's not chuck-n-wind. ID your target, fish deftly, and throw the trigger (the rip) when you can. The more triggers you throw the more fish you catch.

[Hammer 4]

I find that by doing what Catt talks about or in my case something very simular..I haven't lost a t rig ect for a long time..the harder you pull, the more tangled you get..

heck, I don't mind cleaning the snotgrass off my lures anymore, I just make sure to bring a nice rag with me to wipe my hands. lol

[DINK WHISPERER]

I have learned you can work a T-rig through just about anything if you go slow and be patient! I absolutely love fishing grass on my lakes!

[Mottfia]

Haha Man I'm glad I ask questions!  ;D

Simple and Concise is just my style.

Mottfia

[Catt]

Many anglers think a silent approach when fishing grass is the proper approach; by that I mean they want the lure to fall quietly through the grass and come through the grass cleanly. My approach is to be noisy, that is I want my lure to cause a disturbance by moving grass as it falls and when its coming though the grass.

I can not tell y'all how many bass I've caught by casting my lure into the thick outer edge of a grass mat and then simply applying pressure, releasing, applying pressure, releasing until my lure springs free. The instant the lure clears the grass BAM a bass nails it with such aggression you might think it was ticked.

I think of it like this, unless the bass is facing your lure as it enters the grass with the silent approach your lure will likely go unnoticed but create a little commotion and that bass will not only turn but swim towards your lure.

This technique is the main reason I do not peg my weight; I want my plastic separated from my weight, I want my plastic to get tangled up a little bit. It is the exact reason I prefer lead over tungsten; the larger lead weigh causes commotion.

If the bass can't see it they darn sure aint gonna bite it

[Paul Roberts]

Many anglers think a silent approach when fishing grass is the proper approach; by that I mean they want the lure to fall quietly through the grass and come through the grass cleanly. My approach is to be noisy, that is I want my lure to cause a disturbance by moving grass as it falls and when its coming though the grass.

I can not tell y'all how many bass I've caught by casting my lure into the thick outer edge of a grass mat and then simply applying pressure, releasing, applying pressure, releasing until my lure springs free. The instant the lure clears the grass BAM a bass nails it with such aggression you might think it was ticked.

I think of it like this, unless the bass is facing your lure as it enters the grass with the silent approach your lure will likely go unnoticed but create a little commotion and that bass will not only turn but swim towards your lure.

That's really good advice. Bass are curious critters. Sound can bring them in to investigate.

Fishing a jig below is not too much different in this regard than fishing a frog on top. The bass often can't see the frog but will come to the action of it moving over the mat. They then ascertain the size and direction of the frog and POW!

I use two basic hollow frog types: One with a tapered head that will slip through algae and walk in the openings. The other is one with a popper head. The difference in the number of strikes you can get with that popper can be amazing. If I had to bring one topwater frog the popper would be it for the exact reason Catt brings up.

There are times to be quiet. But in dense vegetation, making some commotion is one of the best things you can do.