Finding Bass

[Needemp]

Need, I don't think your missing anything..I was simply trying to show that you can fish slow-er, and get fish. I only used that seniro as an example. everyone has their own ways of fishing, whatever works for you, and your lake, pond ect is what to do. Again, there's no Set way imho to get fish, ...I love worm fishin so I feel really confident when I toss a worm, or any soft plastic out there. hope that clears things up..

BTW, I haven't used a sonar since the mid 80's...Just got a portable a few weeks ago, and I'm dyin to try it out.

Thanks for your response. I like fishing slow as well. Just trying to get up some conversation about finding fish.

[Catt]

Wondering aimlessly down a bank rapid firing casts in all directions kind of reminds me of spray-n-pray shooting, if you put enough lead in the air you're bound to hit something. Yea the sky!

What if the bass are not on a reaction lure bite and you just spent all day throwing one?

And is a reaction bite bass hitting spinner/crank bait zipping by on a 7:1 retrieve or is it when that Hawg makes that sudden move to ****** up a slow falling worm?

What if that structure where you started at day break has now turned on 5 minutes after you left?

"Take nothing for granted," Buck states flatly. "Never assume bass are shallow, because they may be deep. Never believe they will hit a fast-moving lure, not a slow one. You've got to work an entire structure from shallow to deep with lures that touch bottom [but do not gouge trenches in it], and at different speeds, to be certain the place has been completely checked.

Elwood L. " Buck" Perry

[Needemp]

Wondering aimlessly down a bank rapid firing casts in all directions kind of reminds me of spray-n-pray shooting, if you put enough lead in the air you're bound to hit something. Yea the sky!

What if the bass are not on a reaction lure bite and you just spent all day throwing one?

And is a reaction bite bass hitting spinner/crank bait zipping by on a 7:1 retrieve or is it when that Hawg makes that sudden move to ****** up a slow falling worm?

What if that structure where you started at day break has now turned on 5 minutes after you left?

"Take nothing for granted," Buck states flatly. "Never assume bass are shallow, because they may be deep. Never believe they will hit a fast-moving lure, not a slow one. You've got to work an entire structure from shallow to deep with lures that touch bottom [but do not gouge trenches in it], and at different speeds, to be certain the place has been completely checked.

Elwood L. " Buck" Perry

Big shocker here!!!

Catt, no one ever mentioned "wondering aimlessly down a bank" and "rapid firing" casts "in all directions" and only "in the shallows" with a "7.1 reel". Who would fish a fast reaction bait "all day" if it is not working? And your spots can turn on "5 minutes after you leave it" whether you are there for 15 minutes or 4 hours. But what if there are other spots that are hot that you are missing because you are s-l-o-w-l-y dissecting your one area? The fish may not even be on that one area, so go find them elsewhere.

Let's not make up extremes to try to make someone look bad. That is irresponsible on your part. We can have a discussion that doesn't result in childish behavior.

I myself acknowledged in this topic that there are times to start out slow, i.e. cold water, cold fronts, etc. I also said that after fast isn't cutting it, I slow down. Besides, there are several versions of "fast". A lot of times my fast is with a 5.1 reel.

Your Buck Perry quote seems to support what I am saying more than it supports what you said. That is basically how I fish an area. I very rarely throw a reaction bait in open water. It has to deflect off of something or dredge the bottom.

There is not clear cut way of doing it. It is a matter of being versatile. I'm disappointed in your pigeon-hole tone. However, even though this comment you made was not well thought out, I bet you will come back with a good reply. I do look forward to it (and I am not being facetious). Sorry if this comes across hard. I know you have a lot of experience and you are well regarded, as you should be. I just don't think you showed respect. Thanks Catt and I look forward to your response. (Big meanie head) >

[balsabaiter]

Some great replies guys. WRB, Raul and fishfordollars especially.

I agree, very good stuff!!

You can book study some of this, such as the conditions and probabilities for seasonal patterns.  As WRB suggested, break down the lake into sections.  Study your maps and run a lot of water following the channels, and coordinate that with your map study and your observation of the terrain that is out of the water.  by understanding your seasonal patterns (bass biology and its relation to habitat) you'll begin to connect that knowledge with the underwater terrain, and pretty soon the fish arches and schools of baitfish you see on your sonar will begin showing you places or pointing you toward places or cover you get the feeling you should be fishing.

Trust that feeling and start fishing those places with confidence because of your knowledge, and fish every chance you get.  I used to say that there is no substitute for time on the water, but you can accelerate you learning curve by learning all you can about the biology of the fish, and learning the habitat where you fish for them.  If you stay with it it will become a transferable process.  You'll go to a new place and approach it confidently.  Bass fishing is a thinking man's game, and simply learning all of your available choices in a day's fishing is the first step.

And it's all fun.  Good luck!

[silvercliff_46]

Some great replies guys. WRB, Raul and fishfordollars especially.

I agree, very good stuff!!

You can book study some of this, such as the conditions and probabilities for seasonal patterns. As WRB suggested, break down the lake into sections. Study your maps and run a lot of water following the channels, and coordinate that with your map study and your observation of the terrain that is out of the water. by understanding your seasonal patterns (bass biology and its relation to habitat) you'll begin to connect that knowledge with the underwater terrain, and pretty soon the fish arches and schools of baitfish you see on your sonar will begin showing you places or pointing you toward places or cover you get the feeling you should be fishing.

Trust that feeling and start fishing those places with confidence because of your knowledge, and fish every chance you get. I used to say that there is no substitute for time on the water, but you can accelerate you learning curve by learning all you can about the biology of the fish, and learning the habitat where you fish for them. If you stay with it it will become a transferable process. You'll go to a new place and approach it confidently. Bass fishing is a thinking man's game, and simply learning all of your available choices in a day's fishing is the first step.

And it's all fun. Good luck!

Sounds like solid stuff to me.  One thing though, watching the pros on the show "Day On The Lake" nothing succeeds like hard work.  You see those guys throwing 300, 400 and more casts the first half of the day for a couple of fish sometimes.  

You can do that, OR! start a little later and get your 300-400 casts in by noon and join me for Gimlets in the air conditioned pub. ;D

[zelmo]

Sounds like solid stuff to me. One thing though, watching the pros on the show "Day On The Lake" nothing succeeds like hard work. You see those guys throwing 300, 400 and more casts the first half of the day for a couple of fish sometimes.

You can do that, OR! start a little later and get your 300-400 casts in by noon and join me for Gimlets in the air conditioned pub. ;D

One of the episodes a little while ago had two guys on the same lake.  One found fish chasing the baitfish out in the open (it was overcast and foggy).  He kept catching them by watching for activity and casting a jerk bait to the area.  He tried to move a few times and got nothing until he went back to the same spot.

The other angler never figured that out and had a very difficult day.  I think about that show and wonder if the first guy got lucky and was smart enough to realize it, or if the second guy was just unlucky because of the parts of the lake he went to.

Thanks for all of the responses.  I went back to my lake again this weekend and found it muddy in parts to very stained in others.  Using the suggestions about spots and covering all of the water column I did eventually figure out something that worked.  Not a great day but I didn't get skunked.  The tips I got here helped.

[fishing1971]

I can only speak from my Aussie experience, and with that I stay in the one spot and try every trick in the tackle box until something works.

Cheers

BB

[zelmo]

I dug this thread up to say thank you to all who contributed.  Last summer I had my best season since I got back into fishing after following the advice given here.  Rarely did I get skunked.  I am not about to say I have all of the answers but at least I have a better strategy now.

This year I want to build on that knowledge.  My next challenge is to find fish on water that I am not as familiar with and that have a different profile.  Within driving distance are lakes that were built as reservoirs and are much deeper.  I think I know enough now about seasonal patterns to find some likely spots, and I will try what has been suggested here to search.

[WRB]

Another misunderstood bass behavior is rhythm; the pace they live their daily life. Bass, like other predators, have several levels of activity; inactive, neutral, active and very active. When a predator is resting or sleeping, they are inactive and it doesn't matter what you cast near them, they simply ignore it.

When bass are inactive the bait fish will ignore the bass and swim very close. However when the bass shows signs of becoming active, the prey recognizes the change and leave or school tightly for protection. Very active bass are hunting for prey and will react to lures that resemble what they are looking for.

To put this in context; bass are active or very active for short time periods during the day or night and are neutral or inactive for much longer time periods. You can be fishing the right place at the wrong time and the odds are that will happen more often. The bass don't leave a good location and go to another area, they just stop feeding and become inactive for several hours. If the bass are not biting, then come back and try it again in an hour or so. If it's a good spot that holds prey, has good cover and structure, it's worth giving the area several tries or camp out on it until the bass become more active.

WRB

[roadwarrior]

Isn't that what KVD did at this year's Classic?