bass fishing tips

Just got back from Potomac on a scouting trip for the FLW Tour next year.  I will talk more about that later on.  A few weeks ago I went to Jordan Lake, NC and the bite was pretty good again.  Caught a lot on shallow rip rap using squarebill cranks and caught a 5 ½ and some other smaller fish on a jig on bluffs.  Fun day on the water.

I’m excited for the cooling water temps.  With that will come better shallow water fishing, which is my strength.  The key in fall is watching your electronics along with watching the surface of the water for signs of baitfish.  Most of the time you will see pods of bait in the back of creeks.  When I see this I know I am fishing in the right areas.

The reason the shad go toward the back of the creeks is because plankton feed more heavily there.  Plankton is there because they are seeking the nutrition rich waters found in the upper end of creeks.  The water is usually not that muddy in the fall but the upper ends of creeks still has a lot of nutrition from older run ins where silt has built up.  With clearer water comes increased sunlight penetration which is great for plankton to grow.

One of the reasons why I like fall fishing it is because bass are normally found on predictable targets.  Isolated laydowns in creeks, docks, and rip rap are great places to start.  Normally once you find the type of target they are holding on you can run a pattern in other areas.

I like to fish fast moving baits in the fall to cover as much water as possible.  The baits I usually throw are shallow squarebill crankbaits, topwater, and chatterbaits.  I throw the cranks around wood because it deflects easily.  The chatterbait is my choice around grass or docks.  Topwater usually gets the nod if I am seeing a lot of schooling activity with baitfish near the surface.  Don’t be afraid to fish very shallow.  A lot of people fish too deep in the fall.  As far as colors go, I stick with shad colors until it gets real cold and I will switch over to a craw pattern.

Fall is my favorite time of year to fish behind spring.  You won’t find me in a deer stand this fall.  I will be on the water!

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