basswest1

When I fish small lakes that dont have maps made from them I use my little boat with a deck and a trolling motor. No electronics. I still catch alot of fish deep. Like others have said the structure that surrounds the lake will give you a good lay of the underwater environment. Durring summer try to fish main lake structure like points and especially bluffs because bluffs are easy to spot and are really good structure for bass in the summer and winter, when they are near deep water. Bluffs are great because they give bass the ability to move from deep to shallow with minimal energy, and they are easy to fish. I like to use plastic jigs like twintail jigs with a half ounce. Also fish them with small worms and grubs on slider jig heads in 1/8- 1/4 oz or on drop-shot rigs. Fish parallel to the bluff and hop the baits down the small shelves that dot the bluff. On other structure in the main lake try a Caronlina rigged worm of your choice.

First of all, if possible I would mark the drop off with some inconspicuous bouys like clear soda bottles with a line and weight attatched. Mark the main drop off and then find any structure on structure like a little finger or pocket on the ledge. Next I would find out how the bass are relating to the structure, are they suspended off the deep side or on the shallow side? are they near the bottom? If they were on the deep side or suspended they may be inactive and you may have to use something that falls slowly and stays in the strike zone longer like a soft stickbait, AKA senko. If they are on top of the drop off they are most likely active and can hit a carolina rig jig, a slow rolled spinnerbait or crankbait. I would make casts at different angles. First casting straight at the structure and then after I find out their depth and where they are holding on the ledge I would move the boat so I am casting parallel to that depth. Tell me how the tourny goes. best fishes.

Ok, now I have more time. I will try to explain as much about how I go about using and choosing topwater baits. Poppers- Poppers are probably one of the best topwaters for murky water bassin, along with buzzbaits. Their strength is in their ability to stay in one place for a long period of time. They can mimic a fleeing baitfish, a dieing baitfish or even feeding sunfish. They are great for murky water because they create so much noise and stay in the strike zone. This also means that they may be a good choice for fussy bass in other situations like clear water. I normally like to use poppers on a calm morning or evening. I especially choose poppers before other topwaters when I can hear the pops of bluegills, pumkinseeds or sunfish on the surface. They are also great when a school of baitfish like shad are being chased around by bass, because they simulate an injured baitfish. I usually use them around wood, vegitation, like tules or the pockets or points of submerged vegetation. When you arive on the lake you need to try different retrieves, try it slow, popping it once then waiting awhile, or try it fast, making a series of pops quickly, or try a medium retrieve. You may notice bass coming out to instpect the popper on a slow retrieve but ignoring it after you let it sit, try popping it real fast, like it is trying to get away, like a frightend baitfish. Tackle is very important for topwaters. Line choice is very crucial. Braids are no good because they have too little stretch and you can pull the hooks right out. Flourocarbon is sinks and thus pulls the nose of the lure down inhibiting the action. Mono is the only way to go. It has a little stretch and it floats. Use a fairly heavy test because the lighter lines sink. This is also why i never use any kind of snap or swivle before the lure. I usually use 15# because it has just enough boyancy to maintain action yet is not heavy enough to restrict action or pull the lure towards you after the cast. I use a 6'6" medium heavy rod with a fast action, and a 6.2:1 speed low profile baitcasting reel. This combo is just my confidence set up, and you should find your own comfort combo. Buzzbaits- Buzzbaits are one of my favorite all around topwater baits. There is something about buzzbaits that just ticks bass off. I belive that MOST of the time, not all, a fish hits a buzzbait out of aggression or just a reaction. A buzzbait can simulate a school of fleeing baitfish. I like buzzbaits in clear to muddy water. In clear water I really burn the bait, in most situations. In muddy water I really crawl it, which may require some small modifications to the bait. A buzzbait is top dog when it comes to covering a lot of water and plowin through vegitation. It is also good on rip rap banks where baitfish are present or there is a combination of baitfish and current. i like to throw it around wood too. If you come to a really nice laydown, throw that buzzer up there several times. Make sure to run it into that hard wood as much as possible, erratic action can and will trigger a strike from an active to inactive bass. I like Buzzbaits early in the morning on a summer day with a little bit of breeze. Rainy days in summer are also PRIME times for buzzbaits. Colors for buzzbaits are really simple. I only use 3 colors black, white and chartruse. I use white on clear mornings with clearer water. I use chartruse in clear mornings with dirty water. I use black in muddy water or on days with alot of cloud cover or really early in the morning or at night. Line size and type is dictated by two things: the speed you wish to retrieve the buzzer and the cover it is plowing through. The heavier the line the slower it sinks. I use Flourocarbon most of the time when I want a fast retrieve and am around heavy cover, but when I want it slow I want Braid because braid floats and it cuts through vegitation. Mono is a great all around line too, especially 17# test. I use a 7' MH fast action rod paired with a high speed reel. With buzzbaits you want alot of commotion so tweak it by pinching the little rivet behind the prop, so it remains stationary. this makes the rivet squeel on the retrieve. Also you can drill little holes in the blades to create a bubble trail on the retrieve. Also if you want to quickly slow down the lure without changing line or lure weight add cupping to the line by bending the bent part of the prop inward. These are only a couple of helpful hints. I am not suggesting that these are the best for all situations but I find they work for me. Best fishes

Sorry man, I didnt mean to cause any confusion, not all poppers mimic bluegill, I didnt say that I said if there were alot of bluegill hitting the surface a popper mimics it quite well, even if the color is a shad color or a frog color or even a baby bass color. The point is that if there is alot of bluegill hitting the surface a popper mimics them better than other topwaters in MOST SITUATIONS but definintly not all. Sorry if I didnt write more I just wanted to explain some tips that I thought would fit your needs. There are many different variables that I didnt want to get into. One thing though, and some may argue with this, color isnt a real issue with topwaters, all the fish see is the base. I use white, yellow clear and black. IF i was wanting to imitate a bluegill in clear water I would use a white or yellow bottom, in murky and muddy I would use black or straight white. The reason I say this is because if you looked at a clear water bluegill, it has vivid colors, usually a silver or yellow base, depending on time of year. In muddy water a fish becomes more dull. I try to match the hatch. SOrry for the confusion though. I just wanted to give some simple tips, not write a book about the different characteristics on topwaters. TO the angler who mentioned my previouse article: thanks for pointing out that there are different things that a popper mimics. You are very right.

Spinnerbaits are relatively easy to use but to be a really effective angler you need to learn to use them in all conditions. Here are a couple quick tips. Blades- Willow- Willow leaf blades have little drag so they can fish faster. They go through vegitaion better and they have more flash. They create little vibration. They are good for clear to stained active bass fishing. Colorado-These are the exact opposite. They are great in muddy water or cold conditions. you can slow roll these alot on slow days. Tandem- This is where a small (#3-3.5) colorado is before a Willow leaf (4.5-6). This is my favorite combonation for most situations. You can fish it very fast and keep it high in the water column or you can slow it down alot. Weight: Use the right weight for the conditions. Use lighter weights when you want to fish slower but still maintain a high position in the water column. Use a heavy weight when you want to fish fast or slow roll deep. Best fishes

humidity isnt really a problem for the bass, but the weather system that brought the humidity may be. This sounds like a very low pressure stalled front, which isnt the best but not the worst. Try fishing slower, or faster. I know that sounds vague but if you cant catch them you need to think about getting a reaction bite or slow down and be more precise. Personally I really like those conditions in the summer. It sounds like this may be some kind of farm pond or other man made pond. Try throwing a 3/8 oz black and blue jig or throw a shallow running crank like a wiggle wart and try to hit any hard cover you can. Best fishes

what are the baitfish doin? A popper immitates bluegills popin on the surface so if there are a lot of bluegill hittin the surface that may be a good choice. In my opinion both are great murky water baits. If there is alot of vegitaion the buzzbait will produce some times. Throw around vegie points pockets and edges. A buzzbait is good at simulateing a school of small baitfish like shad or minnows. I think that a buzzbait is a great choice early in the morning. Both work in tough bites, both can be fished in a manner that really ticks bass on to the point when they want to kill it. I like buzzbaits when there is a steady breeze most of the time and poppers with calm protected water. Try poppers on the edge of tules or other standing emergent vegitation. Best fishes

Very good question. Frog fish are the one of the hardest fish to land. Most of the time you are fishing in some nasty lookin vegitaion. First of all you need a rod that can handle a heavy load. Go to a heavy, medium action rod. Long is good no less than 7 feet. The reason I say you need a medium fast action rod is because when a fish blows up on a frog you react right away, and more often than not you pull the frog away. Next you need the right line. Use nothing less than braid. I use 65lb braid. Braid cuts through the vegetation, but it has no stretch which is the downside, but you need braid. best fishes

First of all let me explain what a thermocline is. A thermocline is a layer of water between the epilimnion (top layer) and the hypolimnion (bottom). The hypolimnion is relatively cold and is low or void of any oxygen. The epilimnion is relatively warm and has alot of oxygen. The thermocline is rich in plankton and other microscopic organisms which attract baitfish which in turn attracts bass. The Thermocline has an abrupt change in teperature, about 1 degree per foot. You can see the thermocline on your depth finder by turning the sensitivity high and you can see a dark band around the middle. That dark band is not always fish, it could just be an abundance of algae or plankton. The best way to approach a piece of structure like a point is to first find a good looking point. Then look for the structure on structure like a small finger on a point, but that stucture on stucture must intersect with the thermocline. Just find the best structure you can that intersects with the thermocline.

Clear water is sometimes very hard to fish, but I love to do it. First of all, they probably do see you too. You can try wearing dull clothing so you blend in with the background. Any weather or condition that lowers visibility for you and the bass is good. Rainy days are great. Especially this time of year. THe rain breaks up the surface and it make the visibility low. Use faster lures like spinnerbaits and shallow cranks like the strike kind model 1 on these days. Also wind is good too. Throw the same things, until you are sure they will not produce. For those days that are dead calm find shady areas like overhanging trees, docks or vegetation and fish small plastics. Small tubes are my favorite. Use very light line on clear days when the cover permits.

Well, since I cant look at the lake I may not be able to give you very accurate advice, but Ill try. Im only going to give you tips on summer fishing on that lake because this will be long enough, and when you find those fish you might be able to track them through their seasons.First pattern: Docks. I love docks, and I think some of the biggest and best limits can be caught from docks. Look for docks that are close to the water and do not tower over the water. You want a dock that can make a good shadow. Also wood is better than metal. Wood grows algae and algae attracts baitfish. Look for docks that are in deep water!!!! It is very important to find docks that are in the deepest water or near deep water. This patter really works best on sunny summer days. Use a spinning outfit with light line on it and skip a small gitzit underneath it. Early in the morning pitch jigs and small spinnerbaits to them. Small baits are great up north in the summer. Think about it, all the baby fish that just hatched are 1-2" long, try to match the hatch. Pattern 2: sunny days: One really sunny days with low wind look for the deepest water possible. Try to fish the outside edges of weeds. That cabbage is perfect! Fish it with a drop-shot rig with a worm that's color matches the color of the bottom of the lake, which is probably green-pumpkin, or just the best color for the lake. You should also try bouncing some worms along that edge. Try a ribbontail worm, then switch to a straight if there are no takers. You can also try throwing a stick bait of some kind, like a senko. Like the dock pattern this pattern is a deep water pattern so look for the deepest water relative to the rest of the lake. Pattern 3: Feeding flats: Find flats near deep water. Fish flats in low light conditions like dusk and dawn and rainy days. It is very very important to find flats that are close to where the bass stay on sunny days. Bass will move up onto these flats and feed when the light is low. Try spinnerbaits in vegetation. Stickbaits. Also, my favorite: A salt and pepper gitzit tube on a 1/16 oz internal jig head. fan cast on the flat. Like I said these are just a few pointers. My time is limited but I hope I helped. Write and tell me how you did. Also, though chris gave some good advice I do not fully agree with his take on how to fish a crankbait. People dont bang crankbaits into stuff so bass can find it better, it is to make the bait jump and create and erratic motion that simulates an injured or fleeing baitfish. It creats a reaction strike with bass. It is most important when fishing clear water most of the time. So grinding cranks on the bottom is a good thing and should not be discarded as a low visibility technique.

You should definently bring rattle traps or other lipless crankbaits, but this is the last time to use smaller ones. The bait is the biggest it will be all year, even the shad are going to start spawning soon, so the big ones are on the prowl. Throw other crankbaits that bounce the bottom and throw jigs and stickbaits.

First of all you need to find the right patch of lily pads, which is the hard part. If you find those you will have an easy time finding the correct bait. You need to find pads that are close to deep water, preferibly adjecent to a creek channel or other big dropoff. It would be great if you could find a small patch of lilly pads all by themself in 4-6 ft of water with deeper water around them. You also need to ask yourself what season the bass are in. If its spring and their spawning, try to find pads that are barely reaching the surface and are very sparse so there is enough room for bass to build a nest and have enough sun come through to incubate the eggs. In this case you can use a trick worm and target brush in the lillypad fields. You can use a buzzbait, or you can use a slower approach and pitch and flip something like a tube or a creature bait. When water gets warmer and the fish start to hide from the sun in the lilly pads it is key to find the biggest pads there is near deep water. Like I said find isolated patches. Pads with wood are great. In the morning the fish will be on the outside weed edge so concentrate your casts there. Fish parallel to the weed edge with a shallow crank, large spinnerbait with double willows, pop-rs, spooks, and buzzbaits. Then as the sun gets higher the fish will dig deeper into the weeds. Concentrait on any irregularities like a hole in the pads or a log, then pitch a jig or some kind of soft plastic bait with a pegged half ounce weight. You could also throw a frog over the mats and pull it over. Use 65 pound braid for frogs.