Rip Rap Fishing

[pennyankees]

what are some tactics that you use you fish rip rap?

Here is what i do....

#1) Position my boat parallel to the back and find a crankbait that will barely bump into the rocks during my retrieval. The deflections off the rocks get the majority of my bites.

#2) Shaky Head. I will cast into the bank and slowly bring it back. Did i say slowly? I meant VERY VERY slowly,

#3) Fat Ika. I may be different in this, but i like to parallel the bank to fish it. I throw out and fish very slowly, bouncing it and pulling it up off the bottom

[whoopbazz]

all good ideas. i feel that rip rap fish tend to be a more feeding oriented fish, so i would include spinnerbaits and top waters. don't forget about adjacent or near by deep water structure...relate to the feeding aspect.

 

 

[aarogb]

In the morning, depending on water temperature I will parallel a popper to the rip rap.  As the sun comes up I will parallel a crankbait to the rip rap as well; make sure the crankbait is bouncing off the rocks!  If the bite is slow I will usually go to the corner of the rip rap and throw a shakey head around.

The fish in my avatar was caught on a shakey head with a black and blue pro senko fishing the corner of the rip rap back in November.

[TimJ]

know your riprap...locate voids where a rock seems "missing" as well as rocks that extend outward. these are great hiding spots for bass, especially if current is present. many fish have been caught from my boat in these types of situations. once these spots are logged, especially at lower or very clear water, fish will repeatedly show up here.

oh yeah...pop-rs are my favourite in tight.

TJ

[zach t]

Its hard to beat crankbaits around rip rap. Cast to it and retrieve. You cover alot of ground, which is important on most rivers where you are fighting current anyway. If there is a little current, you won't get hung up nearly as bad, so you can bump and run the rip rap.

[Paul Roberts]

One tip I can offer is when swimming a jig over rip-rap, use a buoyant line (braid or mono) and hold the rod tip high -it'll hang-up less. Drop the rod tip, or let FC sink on you, and you are much more apt to bury your jig into a crevice. If you get stuck, immediately give slack, move to the opposite side and it should pop free.

Pull hooked bass away from the rip-rap as quickly as you can, as I've had them dive into crevices .

[Hammer 4]

Been there, done that...good info..

One tip I can offer is when swimming a jig over rip-rap, use a buoyant line (braid or mono) and hold the rod tip high -it'll hang-up less. Drop the rod tip, or let FC sink on you, and you are much more apt to bury your jig into a crevice. If you get stuck, immediately give slack, move to the opposite side and it should pop free.

Pull hooked bass away from the rip-rap as quickly as you can, as I've had them dive into crevices .

[Pitchinkid]

If i had 3 baits to fish riprap year round:

1. Spro Little John Crankbait

2. Shakey head/ Spot remover- Zoom Grn Pkn Trick worm

3. 1/2 oz. Double willow leaf Spinnerbait

Tubes would get an honorable mention.

[Jig Man]

The rip rap I fish is deep and most of the time the fish won't respond to baits up in the water column.  I fish tubes and jigs as light weight as possible depending of the wind.

[yamisoez]

Its hard to beat crankbaits around rip rap. Cast to it and retrieve. You cover alot of ground, which is important on most rivers where you are fighting current anyway. If there is a little current, you won't get hung up nearly as bad, so you can bump and run the rip rap.

x1

[K_Mac]

A jig and craw is my favorite for rip rap. I will usually try a number of different techniques to see what works the best. A light shakyhead jig and trickworm, or a wacky rigged Senko/Stick-o would be next. A crankbait is my last choice-not that they don't work, I just don't much like throwing them.

[repper]

A jig and craw is my favorite for rip rap. I will usually try a number of different techniques to see what works the best. A light shakyhead jig and trickworm, or a wacky rigged Senko/Stick-o would be next. A crankbait is my last choice-not that they don't work, I just don't much like throwing them.

x2 but I do throw cranks too, and i too have found those Spro LIttle Johns are deadly cranks!

[5bass]

In the mornings along rip rap, a topwater is hard to beat. After that bite goes away I like to quarter off the bank with a crankbait. This narrows down the depth at which the fish are using. As I figure out the depth I start getting in parallel position and mainly fishing just that target depth with a few different baits. Shaky head, jig, crank, etc...

[Fishes in trees]

Shakey head worms or cranks would be my first two choices.  Probably a Wiggle Wart or a Shad Rap.  Early in the year I'd consider a Pointer or a Rogue.  Whatever, I wouldn't spend alot of time on it, my rip rap experiences are that either the fish are there or they aren't.  15 minutes and no success = maybe check it later on in the day.

Early in the year, I think afternoons are much better than mornings.  Water color is an issue.  My thought is that murky water would have fish hold closer to the rocks than clearer water.   What about algae on the rocks?  I think some algae beats no algae.  What is the draw, i.e. why are the bass there?  If I knew there was a substantial crawdad population, I'd go low and slow.  If I was seeing more shad and bait fish, I'd go with the Shad Rap or the Pointer.

I don't know.  While I've caught the occasional keeper (15" in Missouri) off of rip rap, I've never run into a bunch of keepers on rip rap.  I'm aware that could just as easily be a function of my impatience as much as anything.

Basically my  thoughts on fishing rip rap are that I'll fish it if I come across it, but I won't drive across the lake to fish known rip rap unless my first several options are exhausted.  Just my thoughts.

[A-Rob]

ya that is what I would do as well.

I use tubes instead of a fat ika.

I think a c-rig bounced up over the rip rap might not be too bad either.