So I am scouting out good spots to fish on the lake I will be going to this summer. I won't have a ton of time there so I would like to figure out a good strategy before getting to the lake( Also I may be entering a fishing Derby on it in early June) . The lake/river is a Tanic kind of tea colour and has lots of shallow patches of vegetation usually about 3-8 feet. It is decently thick but not matted or anything like that. I figure a MH fast action rod for pitching will do the job. But what I need help with is good spots to start at, lure color/ choice and technique selection would be much appreciated. Any insight into how to fish this body of water will be helpful.

 

Swim jigs through the thickest stuff you can get them through. Topwater. Soft plastics/jigs in the super thick stuff.http://webapp.navionics.com/?lang=en#@47.991671,11.839022,3zIf you want to see a topo of the lake.

At this point, way more questions than answers.

 

Q: What kind of boat are you going up there with?

 

The size/speed of the boat you have is going to determine how much of the river portion you are going to be able to cover.

 

 

Q: Predominate species of bass LM or SM?

 

Q: How many northern pike in that lake?

 

These two questions can both play into where and how you attack those waters.  LM should be somewhere around those weed beds, whether on the inside or outside edges, or buried right in the middle of them.  SM may relate to cabbage but could also be found up the river if current is available.  If the lake has a good sized population of pike, they could very well have an influence where bass setup shop.

 

My experience on lakes of that coloration shows that "gold" can be a hot color.  Also, firetiger colored crankbaits, and soft plastics with some chartreuse doesn't hurt either.

At this point, way more questions than answers.

 

Q: What kind of boat are you going up there with?

 

The size/speed of the boat you have is going to determine how much of the river portion you are going to be able to cover.

 

 

Q: Predominate species of bass LM or SM?

 

Q: How many northern pike in that lake?

 

These two questions can both play into where and how you attack those waters.  LM should be somewhere around those weed beds, whether on the inside or outside edges, or buried right in the middle of them.  SM may relate to cabbage but could also be found up the river if current is available.  If the lake has a good sized population of pike, they could very well have an influence where bass setup shop.

 

My experience on lakes of that coloration shows that "gold" can be a hot color.  Also, firetiger colored crankbaits, and soft plastics with some chartreuse doesn't hurt either.

I'm unsure of the boat I will have but it will most likely have  a decent sized engine. This body of water is not huge and is probably only about 3-4 miles in length. In the river system it is so shallow in the channel and there are submerged logs so regardless of your boat's speed you will be going relatively slow so you don't hit anything in the water. That is up until it opens up to the lake portion where it gets up to 60-70 feet deep at points. 

 

There is more largemouth than smallmouth in this lake( I don't even know if there is smallmouth) and a large amount of pike. I have heard from locals that pike can be caught in the eastern part of the river system if that's what species you are targeting and I have caught pike in the middle portion of the river so they are there in good numbers.

 

I have used soft plastic grubs with a pumpkin body and a chartreuse tail and only caught pike so I think chartreuse would be a good colour.

 

Swim jigs through the thickest stuff you can get them through. Topwater. Soft plastics/jigs in the super thick stuff.http://webapp.navionics.com/?lang=en#@47.991671,11.839022,3zIf you want to see a topo of the lake.

Unfortunately the body of water is too small and when I zoom in the lake disappears on the website because they don't have a topo for it.

Soft Plastic's - June bug, purple, pumpkin pepper green, pumpkin chartreuse and brown/orange , Jigs - Brown/Orange , Brown , Brown/Purple , You Might Want To Add Rattles.

 

Storm - Makes Some Little Swim Baits , I Think There The 2 - 2 1/2 in - Blue Gill , Crappie & Sunfish , I'd Toss Them As Well.

 

Just Don't Over Think What Your Trying To Do.

 

My 2 Cents

 

Mike

River2sea Spittin' Wa in poison (the black and blue color) and, a peanut butter and jelly colored jig tipped with a gambler ugly otter.  Can't go wrong. 

Eccs, way too many baits and presentations to give you the magic bullet.

 

Everything the guys have penned above is true. However, it is up to you to find the pattern of the day which can change every hour or every day.

 

Search the Forum for information on water temperature, weather, cloud cover and wind. All four will have an impact on where you fish and what you throw each day.

 

Also understand what we mean by "search baits."  Crankbaits, spinnerbaits, lipless crankbaits, Chatterbaits and swim jigs can be used as search baits to locate the fish.

 

If there is wood or grass along the bank then flipping and pitching your favorite plastics can be productive.  Shaky heads and drop shots plus a Carolina rig can work.

 

And how about topwaters early in the AM and late in the PM?  Not only poppers and spooks, but try an unweighted pink or white trick worm and work it like a snake in the water.

 

Jigs can work. The old standby, blue/black or peanut butter and jelly depending on water clarity. Always add a "pig" plus rattles to your jigs.

 

It would be nice if we could give you more information but since you have not told us the geographical location of the lake our hands are tied.

 

All the best for a wonderful trip and hopefully you will catch your personal best. Post pics of what you catch.

I'm unsure of the boat I will have but it will most likely have  a decent sized engine. This body of water is not huge and is probably only about 3-4 miles in length. In the river system it is so shallow in the channel and there are submerged logs so regardless of your boat's speed you will be going relatively slow so you don't hit anything in the water. That is up until it opens up to the lake portion where it gets up to 60-70 feet deep at points. 

 

There is more largemouth than smallmouth in this lake( I don't even know if there is smallmouth) and a large amount of pike. I have heard from locals that pike can be caught in the eastern part of the river system if that's what species you are targeting and I have caught pike in the middle portion of the river so they are there in good numbers.

 

I have used soft plastic grubs with a pumpkin body and a chartreuse tail and only caught pike so I think chartreuse would be a good colour.

 

Unfortunately the body of water is too small and when I zoom in the lake disappears on the website because they don't have a topo for it.

 

Lots of pike!  In all of the trips I've made to your home country, it always seems that the lake is going to hold large numbers of toothy critters.  Not too bad if those are what you're looking for, but they can and do have an adverse effect on where bass will locate.  And location is going to be the key.

 

As I stated before, I've fished some of these tea stained waters.  Some of the more productive baits I've used include several spinnerbaits.  The first one is the old style Hank Parker's "Manns Classic" spinnerbait.  The increased thump from those Indiana shaped blades seems to draw them better than most tandem or double willow baits.  I've also had good luck using a heavier willow leaf bait call a Stanley's Wedge.  Both of those had a gold colored blades.  Another great search bait (a style Sam alluded to) is a firetiger colored lipless crankbait.  My favorite in this color is the Rapala.

 

Unfortunately, all of these baits will also attract lots of attention from those pike!  The key is to move to greener pastures if you start catching them instead of the bass.  My experience is that the two species just don't mix very well.  I would think shallower, but only on the water is going to tell you.

Swim jigs through the thickest stuff you can get them through. Topwater. Soft plastics/jigs in the super thick stuff.http://webapp.navionics.com/?lang=en#@47.991671,11.839022,3zIf you want to see a topo of the lake.

Thanks for this! Topos for every lake (that has one) that I fish!