Fishing From The Bank?

[BassAssassin726]

I do not own a boat and fish from shore. I fish mostly a small lake near me. Any tips about fishing from the shore?

[slaynbass365]

Whenever I go out to the lake I see guys on shore with their rod, a bag of hooks and a box of night crawlers. I see them pull in bluegill every so often but most of the time the worm gets eaten off. This has never been my approach to fishing, unless i was actually out to catch buckets of bluegill.

My tips are to get yourself a reel/rod with a good casting distance. Get some good plastics, and the appropriate hooks to rig them. Since you are fishing from shore, im sure you run into weeds a lot- so rig weedless. From shore i've been having good luck with senko worms and flukes. Cast out far, let them sink and slowly return them back to shore. As they hit the water, make your you keep an eye/feel on your line because a LOT of the time you'll get at least a small strike.

Also, if the lake you fish has any decent spots for it, grab yourself a frog. The amount of strikes I get on a frog in grass patches is amazing.

[BassAssassin726]

Yea im not big on putting a worm on and just sitting there catching tiny bluegills. Boring. I have a nice selection of Senko, YUM, and Zoom plastics. I usually Texas rig them or Wacky. Also love using spinnerbaits and lipless crankbaits and jigs. I usually will just hop in the water at the lake up to my knees without waders. I have no qualms about getting wet. I do agree about the waders though. I like fishing the Deleware for smallies and the waders would definitely help.

[bassin is addicting]

i fish from the bank 90% of the time.. i don't own a boat but fish as a non-boater in a bass club.

i fish 3-4 times a week from the bank..

i usually take one rod (spinning) and have a duo-lock snap tied on so i can change baits quick and easy.

i have a decent sized tackle bag with a shoulder strap for ease of carrying.

i take 3-4 soft plastics each out of their original package and put in a zip lock baggie. i'll have maybe 5-6 different types of plastics....worms, beaver, hula-grub, craw..etc.

i'll have 3-4 spinner baits and a few top water baits...popper, buzzbait, spook..etc.

i take very few crank baits...if you get hung up..you're not gonna get them back.

i've had a lot of luck...i cast parallel to the bank to start...then fan cast...working different depths..looking for cover..i fish most of my plastics weightless so i don't get hung up as much. my favorite bait right now is a lake fork tackle live magic shad rigged on a scrounger head. i can cover a lot of water and get a decent distance too.

i used to carry 2 rods but it just was too much hassle and i couldn't be as mobile to cover more distance..so i went to the duo-lock snap..good luck

[Marty]

Move around and cover a lot of water until you learn what spots are good and what aren't. Like a previous poster said, cast parallel to the bank, although I've had a few places where casting straight out can catch fish. Don't rule out any lures just because you're on the bank. You can use a wide variety of lures, so choose lures based on conditions. Get out as often as you can and try being there at higher percentage times, like mornings, evenings and overcast days. Don't let yourself get frustrated at the good-looking cover out there that you can't reach; just concentrate on what you can reach.

[bigbill]

I mainly fish from shore and my biggest LMB have been caught near the shoreline in the late evenings and early am. Being stealthy and quiet is the main thing not to spook these bigger gals near the shoreline. I coff'd once to clear my throat and i watched a large bass swim away from me she was 2' from the waters edge. Do not step on any rocks near the shoreline as you walk up and get close to it. if you step on rocks sticking out of the grounds surface it actually sends vibrations into the water telling the fish to beaware. I also use a hummingbird portable fish finder the one we cast out so i can learn where the rocky points drop off in what direction, where the flats start and end plus how deep is the water where i'm fishing. Years ago i would let my sons drill holes for me when the ice was on so i could learn the bottom structure that way. But with the new cast out fish finder i use it for tha only.

I would go out between 3:30am to 5:30am to start fishing while its still dark and fish till dawn or 9am. I start off with a topwater spook type bait. Then try a shallow crank depending on how deep the water is. I will fan cast the whole area and even parallel to shore sometimes too. Work the area over really good. I stay in one place too and try different size and color baits till something works. I know the fish are there its finding the correct bait, color and size. I also use a scent too. One shot of YUM helps too. Learn to vary your presentations too.

With my topwater baits i move them by counting while moving the rod 1, 2, 3 times then pause and do it exactly the same everytime your presentation has to be picture perfect timing wise. I make cast and the 1, 2, 3, and the pause exact.

If the bass are feeding on the top cast past them or to the right or left past them and work your lure slowly past them not into them yet close enough not to spook them and make them go to your lure. Just wait and watch for the torpedo thats going for your lure. Just stay calm and let it pause and watch for the strike or your line to start running. Don't set the hook too quickly when you can see the action rather than feel it.

Remember to work the weedlines along the channels were the water feeds in too. Work the edges of the lilly pads too.

Fishing from shore is the same as fishing from a boat only its backwards. You can have success too. I caught 19 bass standing in one spot, another evening we caught bass after bass (we had doubles the two of us) for over and hour just before the front hit(rain). Timing the incomming fronts and the moon phases helps too.

Fact; In the low light and night conditions the bass ambush the baitfish near the shore line. As it gets lighter they move to there deeper haunts. So in the dark and low light conditions I make longer casts and bring your lure slowly near the shoreline. Be stealthy. Bigbill

BTW; You may need to move around till you find the honey holes near the shoreline. They are there you just need to find the hot spots then fish them everyday and mainly in the early am if your looking for a hog. I fish up the rocky points to the shoreline and even across them were i can too by fan casting.

The challange for me is usng lures too. At first i was spending over $50 a week on livebait.

[MuffinMan]

I stay away from anything that has treble hooks and dives more than 2' due to all the weeds.

[John G]

I fish from shore all the time. Most days I catch nothing. The last bass I caught was over a week ago. My problem is that I don't like to explore and find new places. I will stay in the same vicinity for hours catching nothing. I also have the latest high tech rods and all that crap and I still catch nothing most days. It's all about location.

Funny story and very true. A few months back I get to my usual spot where I know that will probably not catch anything and I've got a GLoomis rod and a Shimano baitcaster and I haven't caught jack........This guy shows up and he starts fishing and the usual conversation starts up. He ask me if Iv'e caught anything and I say no and then I find out that he has caught a few. In fact he wants me to take a pic of him posing with his biggest. So we go over to his car and he opens the cooler and I am like d**n man, where did catch all these at. The dude had a cooler full of LMB. They were gonna have a fish fry today is what he told me. He said that he caught all these in "neighborhood ponds". He had a junky little Walmart special spinnging outfit and the only lure that he was using was a little countdown black on gold Rapala. I think it was a CD9.

It's all about location.

[I.rar]

i fish from shore 100% of the time. i used to bring a bag full of baits and other things that i wouldnt ever use simply because i didnt have the time to effectively fish them. so after some time , i narrowed my selection down to what i have most confidence in. for me it was spooks , shallow cranks (floating rapalas and shad raps), traps , stick baits , flukes, cut tails and lizards. i may have some in different sizes and in a shade of green , purple/red and white/baitfish colors. most of my baits share the same hook size too so that helps keep hook selection down. 1/16 , 1/8 and 3/16 or 1/4oz are my most used weight sizes. i can carry everything in my cargo shorts pockets. i feel better not having to worry about what my tackle bag is doing when i have to set it down on the bank and can focus more on my baits presentation.

speaking of which...

when i got more and more into fishing (especially from shore) , i realized i have to make every cast count and present my bait the best i can every time. when fishing from shore , the area you can fish is very limited. when you make lousy casts or have terrible presentation in those limited locations , the fish become very weary about taking it. especially true for pressured lakes. you dont want to be bombing baits into prime areas. a quiet entry makes a difference.

[Jim_M]

Good stuff everyone.

Bigbill, Great post! Thanks.

Jim

[TeamDaiwa69]

I used to be in that exact situation before my parents finally got me a fishing boat. Panfishing is no doubt the easiest to do from shore but you can fish for bass too. My favorite thing is to texas rig a 3/8 oz worm weight with the Berkely Gulp 5 1/2" sinking minnow in Green Pumkin flavor. Just cast parallel to the shore and before long you can be catching almost as many fish as if you were on a boat.

[H2O21a]

Good Afternoon,

I am about to start fishing from the shore myself. I assume, you use spinning equipment (rod/reel), my question is how far can you cast those "1/16 , 1/8 and 3/16 or 1/4oz are my most used weight sizes". If you could please give approximate yardage distance and what length rod do you use

Thank You.

i fish from shore 100% of the time. i used to bring a bag full of baits and other things that i wouldnt ever use simply because i didnt have the time to effectively fish them. so after some time , i narrowed my selection down to what i have most confidence in. for me it was spooks , shallow cranks (floating rapalas and shad raps), traps , stick baits , flukes, cut tails and lizards. i may have some in different sizes and in a shade of green , purple/red and white/baitfish colors. most of my baits share the same hook size too so that helps keep hook selection down. 1/16 , 1/8 and 3/16 or 1/4oz are my most used weight sizes. i can carry everything in my cargo shorts pockets. i feel better not having to worry about what my tackle bag is doing when i have to set it down on the bank and can focus more on my baits presentation.

speaking of which...

when i got more and more into fishing (especially from shore) , i realized i have to make every cast count and present my bait the best i can every time. when fishing from shore , the area you can fish is very limited. when you make lousy casts or have terrible presentation in those limited locations , the fish become very weary about taking it. especially true for pressured lakes. you dont want to be bombing baits into prime areas. a quiet entry makes a difference.

[QUAKEnSHAKE]

Good Afternoon,

I am about to start fishing from the shore myself. I assume, you use spinning equipment (rod/reel), my question is how far can you cast those "1/16 , 1/8 and 3/16 or 1/4oz are my most used weight sizes". If you could please give approximate yardage distance and what length rod do you use

Thank You.

Here are some actual measurement

used #6 Nanofil 8'MedLt Mod St Croix Avid rod and Shimano StradicFI 1000 reel.

A 1/8oz bitsy minnow, 1/8 oz jig w/RT baby craw, zoom fluke.

[Marty]

If you could please give approximate yardage distance and what length rod do you use

I use 6'6" rods and have no idea what my casting distance is. It's also hard to generalize for a given lure weight because the aerodynamic efficiency of lures varies. For example, a Senko is very efficient and will probably cast considerably farther than, say, a skirted jig of the same weight which is less efficient.

[I.rar]

i also have no idea what my casting distance either but i know its very fishable.

for the most part i do use spinning gear. both are 2 piece.

6'9"? fenwick elite tech river runner light/fast paired with a shimano saros 1000. currently spooled with 6/20 sufix braid and i use 6# pline cxx as a leader.

im fishing weightless 4" cut tails , 4" lizards , fluke jr's and smaller t rigged plastics with this along with small cranks like size 5-7 rapalas.

6'6" shimano compre medium/fast paired with an abu garcia cardinal 602 alb with 6/20 sufix braid and 10# cxx leader.

i throw 6" cut tails , stick baits , flukes and quite a few other things with this.