WRB-2.0

Welcome to bass fishing! Before you go out and buy a lot of stuff that doesn't work where you fish, you need to invest your time learning where the bass prefer to locate and what they want to eat. So explore your ponds for what prey is there; crawdads, frogs, worms, chubs, bluegill, etc. The best way to do this is set some traps. 36" wide 1/4" mesh hardware wire rolled into a 8" diameter 36" tube. Bend the wire ends together along the seam and fold one end flat and bend a flap over so the critters can't get out. The opposite end push back into a inward funnel with a 3" opening, the tube will be about 30" long when completed. Make up about 3 of these. Next tie a 6 to 8 foot cord to the open end of the cylinder so you can retrieve your traps, tie the cord to a stake. Tie a rolled up slice of bacon to the inside (unfold the flat end to put the bait in then refold) about in the middle of the tube. Put the traps out over night, put them different spots with different depths and pick them up the next day. You should have crawdads and minnows in the trap. Use them for bait after studing the colors and size closely. You will learn alot about bass prey by catching them; where they hide and size, color etc. You should also turn over rocks and any wood in shallow water to see what is hiding under them; dragon fly nymphs (darner) frogs, salamanders, worms etc... same study; size and color. Try using some for bait. Now I want your to make a purchase; In Pursuit of Giant Bass by Bill Murphy and read this book cover to cover. Keep the book as a reference forever, it's the best bass behavior reference you can find. Before I can help you with lure selection, you need to tell me what type of tackle you have; rod, reel and line..model number would help. Tom

Your water temps are surface water, if the core water temps dropped 10 degrees over night the bass would go into shock and possibly die. Bass are used to the local environment and have learned to adjust to weather changes, one reason the adult size bass have moved to deeper water. The fry however can't go much deeper than 5 feet, so the young of the year are hidding in the weeds and juvenile bass are patrolling the shallow breaks. Post spawn should be over for the bass if the surface and shallow spawning bays are in the 80's, bluegill and shad (if the lake has shad) could be finishing up their spawn however. If it's been raining, then a front is passing through and wind should follow; post frontal conditions. Wind will mix the upper foot of warm water with the lower few feet and this push the young of the bass fingerlings, bluegill and shad spawn deeper into protected areas sheltered from the wind. The adult size bass that have moved into deeper water are your best choice; they should be active and fully recovered from post spawn. The bass near the bank could be still hunting shallow prey from the low light period looking for an easy meal. I would target these bass at this seasonal period with a buzz bait and work the weed break line. If I get a few short strikes I might follow up with a soft jerk bait, if there is a ripple on thwe water. As soon as the sun is up, I would crank the same weed breaks, then move to outside and meter deeper structure areas and spend the next several hours working metered bass on structure, after I have determined what depth the bass are feeding in. Structure lures of choice are jigs, drop shot worms, structure spoons, swimbaits and big worms. Late afternoon, depending on what I have learned form being on the water, I may go and crank the morning breaks or work the weed mats with a frog or or soft plastic creature. We would more than likely not cross paths. Tom

The pump house, if it's a floating pump house, is where the big bass hold when not feeding. The aeration system is there to break up the thermocline so the lake doesn't stratisfy and leave the deeper water without disolved oxygen. Debris sinks to the lake bottom, the aeration creates a man made turnaover, allowing the decaying matter to break up. The shad feed on the organic phytoplanton, the bass feed on the active surface shad. The bigger bass let the small bass do all the work chasing the shad; they stay under the school and pick off the wounded shad. Flutter spoons or shad swimbaits should work. Tom

Small reservior dams are bass magnets for lots of reasons. When the dam was constructed the left over materials are usually pilded up near the dam bottom by the corners away from the center or spillway area. The original channel is the deepest area at the dam and that maybe where the out take gates are located, if the dam has a cylindar type out take tube. If the dam is an earthen type with a rock face as most small lakes are, the rip rap rock face holds crawdads, etc...year around. So you have structure in deep water and a food souce. What more does a bass need! Tom

So just curious; how does this answer DeBassin619's ? He wants to know where to find big bass, not the young adults or juvenile size bass that tend to seek cover, in ponds and lakes. Only green weeds produce oxygen during the sun light periods through photosynthesis, so look for green weeds near deeper water would be a good suggestion. The #2 rule is know what the big bass are feeding on. #1 rule; know where they are located. Lets add that deep structured lakes often have very few docks and sparse weeds. Most ponds have no docks. The vast majority of big bass will not be shore orientated during the day light hours, for that reason most anglers that fish shore targets catch smaller bass. Tom PS: if the pond or lake has very little fishing pressure, then those obviuos spots could hold big bass and a few are can be up tight in cover.

Ponds are tiny lakes; some man made with dams others natural or have beaver dams. To support a bass population the water needs to be within a survialble temperature, DO levels and food. The reason DO levels are higher near a thermocline is the cooler water then the upper water above can hold higher levels of DO. The reason water temperatures above 85 degrees are near the limit a bass can survive is the hot water no longer contains DO level above 3 mg/L....the hot water isn't the problem, the bass can't breath! If the water doesn't layer and is within 40 to 85 degrees with good DO levels, the bass could be at any depth where they feel comfortable. In deep structure lakes bass are often 50' of deeper or up in 3' of water, depends on where they feel safe and food is plentiful. If the water layers into a strong thermocline, the bass rarely go below that level. Power generation lakes can have mulitple thermoclines with bass at mulitple depths. Tom

Water is 2 parts oxygen 1 part hydrogen H2O. What you want to know is the dissolved oxygen levels DO. Bass can serve between 3 to 12 mg/L and prefer 6 to 9 mg/L in 70 degree water, if they can find it. The thermocline is a layer of water between warmer and colder water where the temperatures change rapidly with a few feet. The highest DO levels are just above the thermocline, if one exist. Ponds are usually shallower and smaller than lakes, therefor subjected to both warmer water in summer and colder water in winter and subject to water being mixed by wind. DO is mixed into water by weeds producing oxygen during day light, from wind wave action and in flowing water like a river, stream or creek. During the warm water period bass seek a combination of cool water and good DO levels. Look for bait fish and the bass should be nearby. Tom

Take a look at Dobyn's rods and call Gary to ask his advice for all around bass fishing choices. My advice would be a 7', fast action 3 power and 4 power casting rods, 7' fast action 2 power and 3 power spinning rods. Tom

No, LMB tend to engulf their prey in 1 bite, several quick taps are either bluegill, perch, rock bass or sometimes smallmouth. It's best to move if you are into a perch school. Tom

set the hook reagrdless if the bites are several quick ticks; reel set by cranking the reel and sweeping the rod back. If the worm is pulled back from the jig head, then give it another second befroe cranking. Smallies and perch bite sometimes the same way. Tom

Add a 6' long 6# FC leader and use a double uni-knot to attached the leader to the FC. If you want catch these bass try live large night crawler tail kooked with a #4 drop shot hook, weightless. If the crawler isn't your thing then try a split shot rig; round split shot about 18" above the same #4 drop shot hook and node hook a 5" curl tail Roboworm in oxblood w/red flake. Sneak up on the trees and make a 45 degree angle cast past the tree and work the rig back towards it. Go as early or late as possible. Tom

This is a tiny lake or a large pond however you want to look at it. Where the larger bass are holding isn't the issue, they are not active in a sancturary area. Big bass tend to own the best feeding sites and that is what you want to learn; where they feed and what they are feeding on. When they feed will vary and only time on the water can determine that factor. Lets say that the 8' to 10' break line* is the depth the big bass prefer; that is where you should focus your efforts. * just an educated guess, you need to determine the depth. Sonar unit will help you meter some marks and determine the break lines, but this lake is so small you can just go fish it and learn what you need to know in a few trips. Tom

The key to finding the big bass is to determine what the are feeding before you can start thinking about what lure to use. The pond should have a population of crawdads, frogs and bluegill. The night fishing should be good from post spawn to the next pre spawn...most of the year! Low light a buzzer should work, dark a 10" to 12" plastic worm in black w/blue flakes or dark purple/neon blue blood line during the day. You can add a bluegill swimbait and a fat Ika (297); stay with those 4 presentations until you can determine where the bass located. The s/w corner dam area. the dam face, the center point area are the prime locations for active bass, the basin is where they go to rest. The small bays are spawning areas and night feeding as the bass roam around this pond. Tom

I don't like using nets or bouncing fish and try to hand land them by the mouth except; at night and as mentioned with multiple tebles. One slip is all it takes and you have a flopping bass hanging by the treble hook in your hand and it's very painful. I lip landed a 14.2 with a Norman DD22, the bass made a hard twist out of my grip and the rear treble found the back of my hand. Now I use knotless nets with crankbaits; better safe than sorry. Tom

Not with multiple trebles, otherwise agree. Tom

Both methods discribed can and will cause you problems when netting a bass with multiple treble hook lure. Taking a stab or swipe with the net isn't going to work out well most of the time. Leaving the net in the water with the net bag loose can cause problems trying to manuever the net under water, the fish can turn quickly and snag the net bag. I like to hold the bottom of the net bag agianst the net handle, gently slide the net hoop below the water surface and as soon as the fish head is about the enter the net hoop, release the net bag and line pressure, the fish dives into the net for you and you are in control. Tom

Your tackle should match where you fish; shoreline cover like weed beds fishing with frogs requires at least med/hvy rod and 15 to 20 lb premium mono line to get the heavy wire frog hook into the basses mouth and to control the bass after it's hooked. 50 braid on the bait caster is good, however braid can be difficult to cast because it stays dry, mono line stays wet, floats and is far easier to cast; 20 lb big game should be good. The spinning tackle with 10 lb mono is good for lures about 1/4 oz and hooks with light to medium wire; no larger than a 3/0. Bass often strike a surface lure and do not get a good hold on it, it is better to let them turn away from you before hook setting; pause about a second or so; timing changes with feeding activity levels. Tom PS; practice your knot tying; braid use a double Palomar; same as the standard except double the overhand loop, 2 turn instead of 1 turn.

Do you have a trolling motor and is the boat set up to bass fish from the front seat? Spend this year learning how to control your boat. Your boat isn't fast enough to cover a lot of water, so break down the lake into sections you can fish effectively; within 5 to 10 miles from where you launch to start with. Go to the local tackle shop; take your map with you and ask some questions about where to bass fish, mark those areas. Main lake areas are harder to learn boat control due to wind and boat traffic, so pick the largest creek arm near your launch area, this should be the area to start and learn everyting you can about that area. Where bass spawn, where pre spawn bass go after the spawn and where those bass are located during the summer, the creek arm is your home lake for awhile, so pick an arm with a lots of depth changes/ break lines, secondary points. The main lake major points at the mouth of the creek arm, 1 point is usually longer and drops into the main river the channel, that should hold some bass. The creek arm channel that leads to the spawning areas should intersect those secondary points inside the creek arm, they also hold bass. Coves, cover, boat docks, trees are all easy to find and some bass should be near cover from time to time and out on structure like the deeper breaks and points. After learning what the bass are doing and where they locate in that creek arm, the rest of the lake should be similar. Tom PS: don't overlook the marina area they always have bass nearby; find the bait, the bass will be close....the depth where the bass are active is the secret to consistanly catching bass.

Any bass agressive enough to eat the jig and move off with it should be easy to hook, they will have the jig way back in the back of the mouth. I have been jig fishing for over 5 decades and the vast majority of jig strikes are very light and hard to detect, most bass anglers miss those strikes. I would say over 90% of the time if you wait to feel the bass, you already missed any chance at hook setting. Swings are free; if the jig goes light and you can't feel anything...swing, if the line moves at all....swing. How you hook set depends on the angle the bass is away from you and the size/diameter/sharpness of the hook, plus the line strength & rod strength. Flipping/pitching with heavy tackle and heavy wire jig with a weed guard, you can make a quick hard rod set. Casting a jig with light wire hook, med/hvy rod and 10 to 20 line; reel quckly to take up more line faster than rod movement , then make a hard firm rod sweep. There no reason to make additional insurance hook sets, all you do is increase the chance of loosing the bass. Keep the rod loaded and the fish under control and you will land over 90% of the bass you hook with a jig. Tom

Just a quick peek at lake Oliver it looks like a power generation lake with a larger lake above it that looks better to me. This is a riverine lake and current will be a dominate factor, no current than the bass should hold tight to cover. Current than the bass should be more active on current breaks where bait fish tend to passby. The dam end around the golf coarse area with lots of coves and cover looks good during off power generation periods. The points and any benches that intersect the main river bends would be better during the power generation periods. Night; look for any beach area's or rip rap with wood nearby. Good luck! Tom

Oxblood with light red flake MM III; purple/black grape/blue neon/brown with black & red flakes. Shad; smoke/pearl with micro silver, gold and black flake blue crawler; cinnamon with blue neon blood line night, midnight; black with blue neon, blue flake. Tom

Several years ago BASS was electronically tagging a few bass before each tournament, then replacing the tagged bass back where it was caught. During the tournament BASS monitored the tagged bass to see if a tournament angler would catch it. The interesting factor with these tagged bass was not 2 bass acted the same, some would hold tight to the spot and not be caught agian, others would be caught at the same spot, most moved around during the event. I remember 1 bass that moved a few miles each day! The majority only moved a few hundred yards and returned briefly to specific spots each day. The point being bass usually do not move as a school, they move independantly as individuals. Tom

Select the type, style and weight of jig for the cover or structure you plan to fish. Lets break this down into 3 basic types of jigs; 1. flipping & pitching jig; heavy cover. 2. casting jig; light cover and structure. 3. swimming jig; mid water column. Within each of those categories there are several jig styles to choose from, depending on your tackle preference, depth you plan fish and type of cover. 90% of the jig articles and bass anglers think of a jig for #1; fishing heavy cover. The type of jig for flipping & pitching should be a compact Arkie style jig with a weed guard. Your tackle needs to be able to control a hooked bass in heavy cover; heavy action 7 1/2' rod, 65 lb braided line or 25 lb mono/FC line. The weight of the jig needs to be heavy enough to penetrate the cover; 3/8, 1/2 or 3/4 oz with living rubber or silicone skirt, premium 3/0 to 5/0 heavy wire jig hook. Trailers for heavy cover are anything from beaver type creatures, single or double tail grubs and pork or plastic frogs. Casting jigs; most bass anglers go to a plastic worm when they plan to cast and retrieve a bottom bumping lure around light cover, trees, brush and rocky structure. However a jig is very effective year around for this type of presentation; casting anywhere from 30 to 90 feet or fishing a few feet deep to over 40 feet down. You can fish a casting jig using standard bass tackle used for soft plastic worm fishing. The shaky head is used often with a plastic worm and works OK when casting. The football head jig is a good choice for casting; 1/4, 3/8, 1/2, 5/8 and 3/4 oz all work depending on the depth, size of trailer, wind or current conditions where you fish. Agian the hook should be a premium sharp medium wire hook; 3/0 for the 1/4 & 3/8 oz, 4/0 for the 1/2 oz and 5/0 for the 5/8 & 3/4 oz jigs. You may need a weed guard depending on the type of cover you fish. Yamamoto makes a good football jig with a wire weed guard and both Owner & Gamakatsu hooks. I recommend these along with Yamamoto's Hula grub skirts in both single and double tails for casting jigs. Tackle for casting jigs range from med/hvy to heavy fast action 6 1/2 to 7'3" rod, 10 to 20 lb FC line, depending on depth and cover. Swimming jigs; these are lighter weight jigs like dart heads in 3/32, 1/8 and 3/16 oz used with finesse worm as trailers. Spinning tackle works good and bait casters with 6 to 10 lb FC line. The heaver bullet head style swimming jig is similar to the casting jig, except retreived at variuos depth from just under the surface to several feet down with a single tail grub or a hyper paddletail worm. Books can be written on each category, the above is a short primer. Please ask questions about the type of jig fishing you are interested in, it's easier to answer more specific questions. Tom

The Secchi disk; a half black and half white plate lowered down until it does out of sight should give you the general depth of light depth as noted above. A biright colored spinnerbait lowered striaght down until it goes out of your sight will give you a good idea how deep the depth of light is under the conditions at that time. Bass see colors a lot differently than the human eye does, so while you may be able to determine depth of light by our sight, it may mean very little to how a bass reacts to lure color at variuos depths. The Color C Lector was a popular tool to determine prefered colors at variuos depths and water clarity. The problem is bass can't read and don't always do what we think they should be doing. Tom

Thinkering with lures is a big part of bass fishing. Tom