Staying Above the Moss/Crud

[gotarheelz14]

I fish a place that is covered pretty much entirely with moss down at the bottom. It is so thick that if you use a jig, or too heavy a bullet weight your bait will sink down into the moss and you will never see it again....Until you twitch it back up of course.

I recently heard from a friend of mine that the bass there are feeding up on crayfish (I also saw a dead one by the shore at the beginning of this summer). So, Jigs are out of the question because of the weight associated with them.

I have been thinking about using soem kind of crawdad imitation though. I was either thinking of using some Paca Craws or the Ragetail Lobster. I am going to T-rig them but I am not sure how. I don't know whether to use a bullet weight or if I should use one of those "Tube Weights" with the rattles in them. I would really prefer to use some kind of weight on them. I really don't like going weightless unless its with something heavy like a senko.

If I were to go with the Tube Weights and succesfully managed to stick them into the back end of the craw, do you think it would lay down flat on top of the moss or would it just sink down? I kind of feel like it might sit on top of it, especially if the weight is distributed throughou the mass of the craw.

Help! What do you guys think? How should I rig up for this type of situation?

[BASSclary]

Snag Proof's Original Soft Craw.

[Fishing Rhino]

While it may look like moss, I suspect the crud you are referring to is filamentous algae.

There is no bait known to man that is totally impervious to the stuff.  Just the knot can bring up a pound of the stuff.

Ok, that's a slight exaggeration.  Its depth is never uniform.  It can be a few feet to a few inches below the surface.  This is particularly true from mid-summer to mid-fall. 

The reason is that it is thick enough to trap gases from decaying vegetation, which will float it to the surface.

Try something like the baits you suggested or you can also try the fluke style baits.  At least you can rig them so the head of the bait will cover the knot, and rig it weedless.

Fiddle around with different speeds and types of retrieves 'til you find out what depths you can fish without snagging the stuff on every cast.

In the shallower areas, try topwater baits.

There have been times I've done well with shallow running baits.  At other times it seems impossible to avoid it.

[OHIO]

I don't think that moss grows in the water.

To address your question, I would use some type of craw (Rage Craw) or a straight tall worm because they just seem to slide through the "crud."

If you are really set on using a weight, you should try to make it as light/small as possible to avoid getting snagged.

A bullet weight would be your best bet.

Rage Craws are fairly heavy even when rigged weightless, so I don't think you would have a problem with casting distance.

[MMan16]

I would have to say something weightless is your best bet to stay out of the scum.But if you really need weight go

as light as possible and use tungsten they have a smaller profile than lead. You could try a craw pattern crank just make sure it shallow enough to stay above the scum. If not it will dig a ton into that junk. 

[FL_Sharpshooter]

Sounds exactly like the canal that I fish.  I mainly use pegged bullet weighted lines rigged with a culprit worm texposed.  I've had some pretty good luck lately fishing with a Strike king bitsy flip rigged with a tube, maybe you can try that.  I usually try to target tiny holes where you can see nothing but blackness.  I also frequently run topwater bait, such as buzzbaits, lizards, or frogs.  That could be another option too, goodluck!

[Gangley]

If you are trying to stay above the crud while using plastics, weightless is the way to go. When rigging the soft plastic, make sure that you initially drive the hook through the plastic a little farther than you normally would to make sure that when rigged completely, the plastic will cover the not rendering it more weedless. Also with jigs, you can still use them, but since there is nothing to cover the knot, make sure you trim the tag end as close as possible to the not. Weightless worms and flukes have produced well for me in weedy/algae/cruddy areas, with the worms doing better in more congested areas while the fluke does better in more open areas. lightly tugging the worm through the weeds has been killer most recently.

[aarogb]

I have that same crap in the pond that I fish at.  I have never tried a crawfish imtation lure like you are wanting to do, but it wouldn't hurt to try what the others are suggesting. 

The only lures I can "cleanly" fish at that pond are topwater baits or senkos that I just barely keep off the bottom.

[Bankbeater]

When I throw jigs in this stuff I use a heavy rod. When I pick up some of the green on my jig, I stop reeling, take up the slack, and give it a quick, sharp pull. It usually comes out of the mess clean unless something is around the hook.

[culprit71]

Weightless ragetail lobster sounds like a good bet for these conditions.  I have not tried this technique yet, but I saw one of the pros fishing these type of conditions.  He tied a heavy line with a snell knot directly to the hook after a  bullet weight on a bead is placed above the hook and allowed to slide freely (not pegged) It's almost like a modified carolina rig.  then you cast out over the area with the bottom cover and work like you would work a texas rig.  The weight will stay on the bottom in the heavier areas, and the free t-rigged soft bait will float above the cover , readily available to be hit by the fish.

[MikeinFresno]

are there any brands of tails that are floating? I have not found any at my local store.

[J Francho]

If its hair algae, then drop shot rig, unweighted or wacky jig stickworm, and any horizontal, mid water column bait will work, like spinnerbaits, shallow cranks, wakers, traps, hard jerk baits, etc.

If its coontail moss, then jigs, heavy pegged t-rigs, tossed with a powerful rod and braid are a must.  With deep coontail, penetration is usually key, as the bass are down under the crowns.

["Lunker Hunter"]

J Francho, how do you tell if it is coontail moss or hair algae?

[Fishing Rhino]

are there any brands of tails that are floating? I have not found any at my local store.

I don't know about tails, but the Strike King 3X/elaztech worms, flukes, etc., float.

They do make chunks and lizards as well.

[Fishing Rhino]

are there any brands of tails that are floating? I have not found any at my local store.

I don't know about tails, but the Strike King 3X/elaztech worms, flukes, etc., float.

They do make chunks and lizards as well.

The Rage Tail Craws and Lobsters, while they do not float, when rigged weightless, will stay at or near the top with even a fairly slow retrieve.

I fish them in the shallows a couple of ways. One is just fast enough so that they splash on the surface. The other is to retrieve it at a speed that keeps it below the surface, but will produce a visible wake on the surface.

OOOOPS!  I meant to modify the prior post, but must have clicked on quote instead.

[Sam]

Unweighted brush hog.

Unweighted baby brush hog.

Give 'em a try. 

[J Francho]

J Francho, how do you tell if it is coontail moss or hair algae?

Bring some up.  This is coontail:

This is hair algae:

[OHIO]

Hair algae is my worst nightmare.

[TrippyJai]

Hair algae is my worst nightmare.

The pond I fish is full of this stuff. I have to pick it off every cast that it becomes pretty annoying.

I do very well with a weightless brush hog or senko. These are the 2 baits that work for me the most. Spinnerbaits come through it very well as well.

[lightsout]

A nail weight inserted in the plastic of your choice has been really useful for me (just dont go too heavy). I've even sliced the heads of fluke type baits and glued bullet sinkers in place. As mentioned above make sure to cover your knot/hook eye.

Also dont over look the good ole senko! It will sink better than other weightless baits and has less appendages to grab the "mung".

[CWB]

Try carolina rigging a Strike King 3X Craw or Lizard.

The amount of gunk will determine your leader length.

All these baits float except the Zero which sinks at about the same rate as a Dinger and the Z-Too which sinks very slowly. Use a lighter wire hook unless you are after really big average size bass.

http://www.strikeking.com/products/3x/3x_softbaits_02.htm