deep water help!!

[bottledgt]

went out from 6-1AM night before last. storm was supposed to come in around midnight. water was 90 deg. we caught 2 right off the bat and i lost a 5lb plus at the boat....not another bite the whole night,except for a catfish on a jitterbug. the storm blowed in and we left, but it never really did anything rain or temp wise. so last night, i thought id try again,and that maybe they would bite. went from 4 pm-2am...not one measly fish,,,NOT ONE. they werent on the bank,they werent in 10 ft of water,they werent in the weedbeds anywhere. and when fish arent in any of that, i either cant find them, or cant catch them. i tried finding dropoffs,ledges,fished rock bluffs that were 25 ft deep, i found a hump 10 ft deep in 18 ft of water,which is where i hooked one yesterday and lost it.  some days, i think the whole lake just says,we're on vacation. how the hell do you find fish in deeper water? im terrible at it and cant remember ever catching one unles they were active and up top

[eyedabassman]

If a front came in it could be just a wind change and it could shut them down as well. But the good thing is fish that are in deeper water are less affected by a front! I would have been very slow when fishing my baits and I would have gone to a C-rig and evan down size my bait some. I would look for deep water docks, deep rock bars, and look for were the bottom changes like, from rock to sand ect.I like small flats or step like drop offs in deep water.

 I guide at night and I don't fish water any shallower then about 15 ft. in the summer.Front or no front, just try fishing VERY slow and add some Megastrike or J J's sent to your baits.These sents can make a big differance!

I hope I gave you some help! If you want PM me or just post your questions!

[Crestliner2008]

It sounds like you have and are using a sonar to find those humps. Are there any bait fish on or near those humps? If so, then try using tubes and/or the drop shot. Works wonders for largemouths.

[bottledgt]

well there was no temp change in the storm that passed through. still hot,lol. and yes, i have a depth finder. it wasnt a huge hump, but a hump none the less. i just suck at fishing deep water. im heading back in about 5 hours and try this again in deeper water with some jigs and deep spinnerbaits to try to find some. if that dont work, im just clueless again

[bottledgt]

didnt have much luck. of course no body is apparently...lol. i tried jigs,spinnerbait,worms,etc from top to bottom. only picked one up on a worm at the bank early. then about 11 am i stopped in a small cove about 4 ft deep, and caught 3 or 4 on a spinnerbait. went to similar coves and nothing. went back to deep ledges etc, nothing. maybe just too d**n hot i guess. never thought they would have been in the shallow dead in the sun at 11 either though

[Paul Roberts]

Hmmmm...similar things have happened to me in shallow water too.  

Crestliner wrote:

Are there any bait fish on or near those humps?

Very good question.

[Catt]

At what depth is the thermocline?  

[Wayne P.]

Good question Catt, I think many forget or don't consider the thermocline in hot weather. It's depth will lead to the fish.

[bottledgt]

no idea , and i have no idea how to even know that actually.clue me in

[ChazfromVA]

try paying attention to your sonar alot when fishing and the fish will often tell you the depth of the thermocline. Often times they will suspend just above it and it will give you a pretty good idea where its at. on your lake it could be anywhere from 10 to 30 ft. Just keep your eyes glued to that sonar and it will often tell you the answer. As for the slow activity following the front it could be because of a change in barometric pressure. Often times that low pressure folling a storm front can shut the bass right down even though it seems like the weather itself has not changed. But you have the right idea in locating these summer bass. They will indeed be on these humps and points but often times they will be located on little "sweet spots" within the structure i.e. a ditch , a slight break or depth change, or maybe even a brush pile. In the heat of the summer those fish will often group around those spots instead roaming along the the whole point or hump. try carolina rigging or drop shotting or maybe even a large texas rigged worm to pick these fish off. just remeber to be slow and methodical when fishing them because ofthen times these fish are going to be rather lethargic during the heat of the day. I hope this helped a little bit and best of luck to you. Tight Lines!  

[bottledgt]

cool, thanks. but ive seen fish at 8 ft,15 ft,25 ft and on the bottome in 30 ft of water,so how do i know from that? and what does knowing where the thermcline is do for me? im not up on that or what it tells me to do actually

[ChazfromVA]

well judging from that it means that there isn't much of a thermocline on your lake ... with bigger lakes the wind will often stir up the water enough to create ample oxygen levels for the bass so there wont be a thermocline. Essentially the location of the thermocline means that below it there isn't enough oxygen for the fish to survive hense the suspending and what not.  but if they are right on the bottom then you probably dont have one so just keep fishing those humps and points and look for the "sweet spots".

[fishfordollars]

You should be able to pick it up on your sonar unit. You may have to adjust the gain, but it will show up if you get your unit dialed in.

[WRB]

The thermocline is simply where the upper layer of warmer water transitions to cooler water within a few feet. Power generating lakes it is common to have more than one thermocline that bass, smallmouth and largemouth relate to.

Carp, catfish, trout for example can easily live below the thermocline, however bass and the baitfish the prey on tend to live near or above the thermocline.

Since colder water is more dense than warmer water, a sensitive sonar unit can be adjusted to display the thermocline as a dark line or zone located at a specific depth.

The life zone is another way to look at this; the depth the baitfish and bass are suspended. Find the food source and the bass should be close by.

WRB

[eyedabassman]

well judging from that it means that there isn't much of a thermocline on your lake ... with bigger lakes the wind will often stir up the water enough to create ample oxygen levels for the bass so there wont be a thermocline. Essentially the location of the thermocline means that below it there isn't enough oxygen for the fish to survive hense the suspending and what not. but if they are right on the bottom then you probably dont have one so just keep fishing those humps and points and look for the "sweet spots".

X 2= I agree I guide at night and have taken SM and Lm in 34 ft. of water and they were wright on the bottm with there bellies on the rocks.Now that is not the norm, last year on lake Delavan at night I get my bass fromm about 28 to 15 ft. of water.

[bottledgt]

well, im gonna hang up the deep water thing for now. i cant catch one fish if its not near the bank. ive tried jigs,spinnerbaits,worms, on the bottom,to all the way up. just aint happenin. boring and frustrating as hell...lol.

[ChazfromVA]

yea it is a bit odd.. i guess the natural current in those bigger lakes shakes the water up enough so those bass can sit right on the bottom.. like on kerr dam reservoir in carolina where i fish. when the summer finally hits, those fish sit on the bottom in 20-30 ft of water because the lake is so broad and wind-beaten, plus they pull water periodically so it keeps it pretty stirred up. But on my home lake, its small and the thermocline is only at 10 ft so they suspend in the standing timber that consumes the 1000 acre lake. It can be pretty tough but i pick em off pretty handily by counting down a spinnerbait or swimbait or maybe even a spoon ! haha

[bottledgt]

whats the opinion on braid? i got 15 lb on one reel,and 30 on another. i love the stuff, but it fades and turns whitish,so thinking that may be a factor? maybe ill put some flouro on,but i never used it,and not sure if its worth a crap or not

[ChazfromVA]

i like braid but only in certain circumstances( punching threw grass or flipping some heavy cover with murky water) but as far as working offshore i never use the stuff. i feel like it sacrifices bited to use it. fluro is pretty good but i use IZORLINE XXX . its a pretty good copolymer line but if i was you i would lose the braid when your going deep.. i think the fish might be able to see it haha

[bottledgt]

hmm....well i would think in the deep it wouldnt mater as much. i could be wrong though

[Crestliner2008]

well, im gonna hang up the deep water thing for now. i cant catch one fish if its not near the bank. ive tried jigs,spinnerbaits,worms, on the bottom,to all the way up. just aint happenin. boring and frustrating as hell...lol.

Try using a drop shot. You'll change your mind fast about fishing deep water!  

[bottledgt]

ive tried a drop shot several times...either the fish arent there or want nothin to do with it

[Catt]

http://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_forums/YaBB.pl?num=1186055966

http://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_forums/YaBB.pl?num=1214969797/0

http://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_forums/YaBB.pl?num=1217761577/12#12

http://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_forums/YaBB.pl?num=1230916254/6#6

[bottledgt]

so i did nothin this morning but fish a c-rig and drop shot worm on various dropoffs. forgot how many i caught today. only thing that sucked was every one of them but 1 was 10" or less. and one 12.