Favorite Technique

[RoLo]

Realistically, it's not possible to expound on a "favorite summer technique" without first specifying the Lake-Type.

If no distinction is made between a Natural and Manmade lake, the answers will be a litany of contradictory techniques over a diverse cross-section of home lakes.

Summer Dog Days (real or myth?)

Fishing on a sweltering midsummer day with high humidity can be mighty oppressive for the angler,

but has little or no bearing on the comfort of bass. Cold-blooded creatures have no free will, and their body processes

are dictated by water temperature. In high water temperatures, bass have good fast-twitch muscle response, their forage is rapidly digested and they need to feed more frequently. Unlike spring and fall, the "summer season" is long and stable, a time-of-year when fishing patterns are more definable and reliable. Recently I read a BR post stating that low oxygen levels drive bass

to deeper water, when in fact the reverse is true. In the throes of a summerkill caused by oxygen depletion,

bass are forced into shallow water where they seek lush vegetation and cruise close to the surface.

Hypothetically speaking, the Coldest Day of the year is January 25, while the hypothetical Hottest Day is July 25.

A post I made just 2 days ago in "My Outings" forum, underscores several elements of the summer period that in my opinion represent the norm in natural lakes as far south as Florida.

DATE:......................................July 17 (8 days shy of the hypothetical zenith)

TIME:.......................................1:15 pm

SURFACE WATER TEMP:......90 Deg F.

WATER DEPTH: ....................4 feet

LURE DEPTH:........................4 inches (estimated)

Roger

[GruntVet]

"Summer" is a prolonged season and by no means a 'one-trick pony'. I don't see how it would be possible to expound

on a "favorite summer technique" without specifying the Lake-Type. If no distinction is made between Natural and Manmade lakes,

the result will be a litany of contradictory techniques representing a diverse cross-section of home lakes.

Summer Dog Days (a popular myth)

Fishing on a sweltering midsummer day with high humidity can be mighty oppressive for the angler,

but this has no bearing at all on the comfort of the bass. Cold-blooded creatures have no free will, and their bodily processes

are dictated by water temperature. When bass reside in high water temperatures, their fast-twitch muscles

are thermally supported, their forage is digested rapidly and they need to feed more frequently. Unlike spring and fall,

the "summer season" is more prolonged and more stable, it's a time-of-year when fishing patterns are more definable

and more predictable. Recently I read a BR post stating that low oxygen levels drive bass to deeper water,

when in fact the reverse is true. In the throes of a Summerkill (inadequate dissolved oxygen), bass are forced into shallow water

where they aggregate in lush weedbeds and commonly cruise with their noses pressed to the meniscus (water surface).

Conclusion to Longwinded Reply

"January 25" is the hypothetical Coldest Day of the year. Although this dates me, I learned this tidbit during my trapping days

when Sears & Roebuck offered the highest prices based on pelage in its prime. The hypothetical Hottest Day of the year

is 6 months later, or "July 25". With regard to "summer pattern" bass, just 2 days ago I made a post in the "My Outings" forum.

The key elements reiterated the summer norm and were in no way unusual. The date was July 17,

the surface water temperature was 90 deg F., the water depth was 4 feet and lure depth was about 4" below the surface.

Roger

You seem like a smart fella and passionate about fishing, but c'mon.... To say that water temperature does not affect bass migrating to deeper water is non sense. Im not saying that predatory fish don't congregate near oxygenating vegetation, but it's a well known fact that colder water holds more oxygen than warm water (I think I learned that in 4th grade). Add deeper water, structure and current , now you have a very nice hunny hole. Also "deeper water "is a word relavent to the avg depth of the body of water that it is associated with.

It is my perspective that a "favorite technique" for "summertime" is more or less concerning the specific fisherman's confidence level with a specific lure or technique. So maybe your post would be more accurate if the question wasn't "your favorite technique" but if it were "what is the best technique"...

My favorite technique durings the hot months are, cranking "deep" structure and/or skipping jigs, plastics under docks , shoreline overhangs / brush ect...

-If I'm on a farm pond ect... Than it's top water all day, everyday

-2cents

[K_Mac]

You seem like a smart fella and passionate about fishing, but c'mon.... To say that water temperature does not affect bass migrating to deeper water is non sense. Im not saying that predatory fish don't congregate near oxygenating vegetation, but it's a well known fact that colder water holds more oxygen than warm water (I think I learned that in 4th grade). Add deeper water, structure and current , now you have a very nice hunny hole. Also "deeper water "is a word relavent to the avg depth of the body of water that it is associated with.

Grunvet what Roger and your 4th grade science teacher also understand, and you seem to have missed is that when it comes to lakes, water temp to oxygen level is not a simple equation. I would suggest a study of the different types of lakes and how aging and nutrient levels affect oxygen levels. Eutrophic lakes (usually older lakes) with high nutrient levels and generally high levels of vegetation will stratify with little or no dissolved oxygen below the thermocline during summer months just as Roger described.

[dmac14]

Here is exactly what they are talking about, this was a study I did during late September early October. Although this was not in the heat of the summer you can still see that the Conesus graph has oxygen below 6 mg/l below 10 meters, further into the fall the lake will become less stratified and thus "turn over". This lake is heavily eutrophic, with almost no light penetration past 9 meters, with Secchi disk visibility of about 2.25 meters.

So to answer the question yes they do migrate to deeper water but you need to know your lake as to where O₂ levels get to a point where bass cannot be sustained. This lake would have productive "deep-water" between 20-25ft.

[Packard]

Texas Rig

[BassThumb]

Frogs, heavy spinnerbaits, jigs, and dock skipping.

[Nitrofreak]

Saturday evening my daughter and I were fishing from the shore. I was about 200 feet away from her when about a 3 pounder hit my jitterbug. My daughter said from the sound of the splash she thought I fell in the water.

Ha thats pretty cool, My daughter told me the same thing a few years back.

We were on the boat and the fish hit so hard it almost pulled the rod out of my hands and caused me to take a step witch in turn rocked the boat a little.

Glad to hear you take your children and thanks for sharing!!

[Bass Junkie]

Topwater style carp fishing on 6lb. line and a spinning rod, the more docks ivolved, the better.

[Crestliner2008]

Very interesting thread. I enjoy following large smallie on their deep, off-shore structures this time of the year. Although, due to family stuff going on, I haven't had much opportunity to engage in it.

Drop shotting will definitely get you into the big smallies; if you can find bait on those deeper structures. I've also been having some decent luck with the largemouths on the edges of weedpatches up shallow.

[oconn]

Finesse fishing the shore, or deep water structure fishing.

[sexy shad 12]

I've gotten extremely hooked on frogs.Paycheck transporter frog pops & spits and walks the dog.

i can't find anyone who has the colors that i want!

[GruntVet]

Grunvet what Roger and your 4th grade science teacher also understand, and you seem to have missed is that when it comes to lakes, water temp to oxygen level is not a simple equation. I would suggest a study of the different types of lakes and how aging and nutrient levels affect oxygen levels. Eutrophic lakes (usually older lakes) with high nutrient levels and generally high levels of vegetation will stratify with little or no dissolved oxygen below the thermocline during summer months just as Roger described.

For simplicity sake, colder water holds more O2 than warm water. Generally... Fishing is an art, not a science...

I.E - Ice in the live well reducing stress to fish

Thanks for putting me in my place though

[K_Mac]

Grunvet you are welcome. I agree that there is art to fishing. Watch KVD pick a spot apart with a crankbait or Dean Rojas throwing a frog around cover, especially when everyone else is doing something different, and you realize you are watching an artist at work. That is not to say that understanding the science of how fish exist in different environments isn't a critical part of fishing. Roger has made a life-long study of that science. I respect his views, even when I don't agree with them, and I'm pretty careful about challenging his knowledge. As Forrest gump would say, "that's all I have to say about that."

BTW welcome to the forum. The occasional cranky old guy notwithstanding, it is the best bass fishing site on the Internet IMHO.

[GruntVet]

BTW welcome to the forum. The occasional cranky old guy notwithstanding, it is the best bass fishing site on the Internet IMHO.

Thanks!

I've been an avide viewer for sometime, felt the need to register and hopefully help support a great network of knowledge and fish tales... Glad to be here, the ole lady hardly lets me get out on my boat these days, so at least I can talk fish and visualize being out on the water haha.

Different perspectives lead to enlightened thought process, plus my pops was about your age and I've always learned to take his word with a grain of salt

[Wisconsin Heat.]

Ive been flipping and pitching alot

[Bankbeater]

Jigs, t-rigs, and c-rigs in deep water.