Early to late fall fishing can be fantastic, but if you're like me, you only have so much time on the water.  The catching during this period is easier, but the finding can be more difficult, especially when fishing alone.

Aside from my electronics, the one tool I use in my search is some sort of double presentation that can cover different parts of the water column.  Two of my favorites are a top water with a small jig tied to the rear hook hanger on a drop line and a football jig with a shallow running crank attached via swivel and some sort of keeper (like adding a trailer hook on a spinnerbait) with a two to three ft. length of heavy mono.  If the fish are in the upper water column, but reluctant to strike a topwater, the jig will pick them up.  If they're in the lower part, the crank will pick up fish holding off the bottom. 

Give one of these double rigs a try when looking for fish this season and you can do a little more catching and a little less searching.

Very interesting concepts here! I can see them working very well in so many different situations.