Night Bassing ~ A-Jay's Version

[eyedabassman]

Good wright up A-Jay, I guided  for over 15 years and the one thing I would add about the full moon is that I may disagree a bit. On a full moon I fish bright colors. And I love frogs with a white belly in OPEN water. Big cranks, chatter baits, swim-baits  all in bright colors. It works on full  moon 3 or 3 days after the full moon. You just have to find the wright bait to throw. And-it could be a big worm  or a jig also.

[Harold Scoggins]

Good writing A-Jay.  Night fishing is about the only way to beat the heat down here in the summer. "I own the night!"

 

[A-Jay]

Thanks ~

And you DO own the night with that sweet set up !

A-Jay 

[Zcoker]

I night fish from the bank in the Everglades on FOOT, which brings a whole different level to this night fishing deal. Talk about having eyes in the back of your head--gotta have eyes all over, literally! Of course, safety is the number one goal, and senses have to be as keen as ever. There seems to be an almost primal instinct that "awakens" during the wee hours of night out in the Everglades. One thing I've learned that is a HUGE help: mind those alligators! Yeah, right, one might yelp. But the alligators are actually very, very easy to see at night, yes, indeed. Easier to see at night than in the daytime. You see, an alligator's eyes glow bright red at night; almost fire red and stick out like soar thumbs when any light is shone their way. Most all gators at night are in float mode. So a quick scan of light over any body of water will tell you EXACTLY where they are stationed. It's actually a good practice to do this in order not to loose those high dollar lures. If blind casting without knowing the gators whereabouts, the gators WILL ****** those lures. When their whereabouts are known, those areas that don't have glowing red eyes, the lures come right back and, often times, with giant bass attached! 

[Deephaven]

I will add that I am not a fan of cap lights or things you wear on your head...in particular if you are fishing with someone else.  Instead I opt for boat illumination, but with dim indirect red light.  Having the boat illuminated and your eyes adjusted to red seems to also help with the white stern light, although avoid looking at it as it will still stunt what you see for a while.  Here is my lighting setup, where you stand it is all indirect and if you need to retie you can get closer to it.  

 

[PressuredFishing]

wow very very helpfull, I have heard of alot of people doing it, and with medical conditions that dont bode well with heat, this could be a good way to have fun in the dog days of summer, thankyou for sharing your wisdom

[Lancelikestofish]

On 6/10/2016 at 7:55 PM, Goose52 said:

Sigh - I wish I could fish at night...my wife won't let me...she thinks I'll drown or the boogeyman will get me...  Maybe one of these days I'll get a "permission slip" to give it a try !

Great post Andy !    

Bahahahah permission slip, see if you can get two of those… I’ll pay you for it ??

[geedavid]

Excellent post. Thank you!

[Benjamin Bunting]

Great post, I would like to add that Black lights are the ticket for night fishing in a boat. They also light up your fishing line like the line is glowing.

[T-Billy]

On 6/14/2016 at 7:18 AM, Catt said:

Something no one has mentioned & is one of the things I love about night fishing is the sights, sounds, & smells of night fishing.

I've seen meteor showers, a small meteor hit Toledo Bend, owls hunting, Bats by the dozens.

Sounds that'll make ya start the outboard & leave an area!

When ya dead tired & the smell of coffee & bacon fills the air ya get a second wind.

I couldn't agree more. Nothing like a Heron taking off out of a tree above you, screeching at the top of it's lungs, to cover you in goosbumps. A territorial feeling beaver slapping his tail sounds like a bowling ball being thrown into the water. When one does it 2' from the side of your boat it might make you pee a little. ? 

 

The night sky is amazing if you can get on a lake far enough away from human lighting. When your vision is limited, your other senses are hightened for sure.

 

Here's how I approach it.

 

I mostly target either weeds or structure at night. Chatterbaits are my #1 choice. 3/8 for fishing over and along weeds say 8' or less. 1/2 for doing the same in deeper weeds and bottom crawling down to 10' or so, and 5/8 for bottom crawling deeper than that. Z-Man Goat has become my #1 trailer. Fast start up is extremely important for fishing chatter baits on bottom, as is a blade that thumps a slow speed. I either crawl it along just fast enough to get the blade working, or use a stop and start, giving the reel a few turns and letting it pendulum back to the bottom. The fish will let ya know in short order which retrieve they want. I make my own using the turbo blades from Barlow's. These start instantly with a slow turn of the reel handle. No need to rip or burn it to get it shaking. 

When fishing weeds where I need to keep it moving, I just roll it along, and several times during the retrieve I'll give the handle one really quick turn. This triggers lots of bites from following fish and keeps my rod in position to set the hook.

 

Top waters are big players too. For me it's a buzzbait if there's a little wind, and a toad if it's slick. This brings me to another thing I've found. As productive and versatile as the chatterbait is, when it's slick calm and quiet, sometimes it's just too much racket, and they won't eat it. Those nights I'll fish the same spots, the same way, with a more subtle presentation. Football jigs or a big worm on structure, a swim jig or swimbait around weeds, and a toad on top. I keep it simple. I've fished lots of different stuff at night. This is what consistantly works for me.

 

 

[calikid]

Another thing about night fishing...you don't always have to change to "night lures" to catch bass at night.  Sometimes the best lures are the same lures you caught them on during the day.  Best to not get too hung up on lures that must be dark or only lures that put off a lot of vibration.  

 

 

[AlabamaSpothunter]

Great thread, odd it hasn't been bumped over the summer.    

 

I fish 50-75 nights during the summer months here in Alabama, 99% of the time on the same large private lake.    Many of the posts have mentioned the myriad of reasons why night fishing is to some vastly better than day fishing.    It's an absolute treat to be the only person on a lake and be able to hear a pin drop for hundreds of yards in every direction.  Your senses are more alive, the excitement seems enhanced, and 90% of the trophy Bass I catch are at night.    To me the night, and big bass are synonymous.   My PB in avatar was caught at night.

 

I caught a 7lb 14oz hog last week, and 4 nights ago I broke off a significantly bigger fish in open water.   Biggest fish I've ever broken off, and in my mind at least it was going to be a PB.   I could see the size of the fish coming up like you can when saltwater fishing.  Then as she was just breaking the surface you get that gut punch "pop....slack" that literally stays with you forever.   I'll never forget or forgive myself for breaking that fish off unless I get lucky enough and catch her again and find my 5/0 gama EWG hook in her mouth.   

 

Lastly, I've fished many/most of the great lures/baits mentioned in this thread, but at least in my area, nothing will ever consistently outfish a Zoom 8" Magnum lizard in the darker colors, Black Grape is dynamite, so is Junebug.    I throw them on super light tungsten T-rigged 4/0-5/0 EWG hooks.   The hook is important for not just hookups, but for the presentation of the baits.   

 

The slower I can make myself fish at night with jigs, T-rigs, etc., the higher number of fish I catch.  In my book, you can't fish a Zoom Mag lizard too slow.   

 

[A-Jay]

Nicely Done @AlabamaSpothunter

Bummer losing that giant.

Nothing is as final or feels as bad, as breaking one off. 

Hope you get another shot.

A-Jay

[AlabamaSpothunter]

3 minutes ago, A-Jay said:

Nicely Done @AlabamaSpothunter

Bummer losing that giant.

Nothing is as final or feels as bad, as breaking one off. 

Hope you get another shot.

A-Jay

Thanks friend, and I sure hope so.   Loved brushing up on all your good info and others in this thread.     

 

Hope you're stilling killing it at nighttime brother

[ATA]

Ive watch this topic from the time I can remember and I used information always coz I consider myself night fisherman. But this summer couldn't find regular crew to get out and I got to deeps fishing party boats. good idea to bump it time to time and ill try to do so. By the way it isn't late this year since we are here in SoCal dealing with 110 plus always and it going to be till December.Just took this picture for my father to show him how hot it is. 

[Catt]

I don't night fish because I think the water temperatures are cooler or the bass feed better at night.

 

I night fish because it's to stinking hot during the day!

[TnRiver46]

1 hour ago, Catt said:

I don't night fish because I think the water temperatures are cooler or the bass feed better at night.

 

I night fish because it's to stinking hot during the day!

Heard that , Bass feed whenever they want 

[Swamp Girl]

I don't fish at night because I'm too scaredey-cat. I'm not afraid on the water, but because I fish little, isolated lakes, I'd be scared coming off the water. 

[softwateronly]

Thanks @A-Jay!!  This thread has opened my fish catching world, really great stuff.  Looking back on this year, my water produced it's biggest fish by month May-September at night.  I'm just looking for opinions/experiences on night time ops in the late fall/winter/early spring.  After all, there's a lot more night.  I haven't had as much time yet to try it out myself.  My instincts say the bass have a metabolic advantage in the cold water and a sensory advantage at night meaning it should be an opportune time.

 

scott

[A-Jay]

12 minutes ago, softwateronly said:

Thanks @A-Jay!!  This thread has opened my fish catching world, really great stuff.  Looking back on this year, my water produced it's biggest fish by month May-September at night.  I'm just looking for opinions/experiences on night time ops in the late fall/winter/early spring.  After all, there's a lot more night.  I haven't had as much time yet to try it out myself.  My instincts say the bass have a metabolic advantage in the cold water and a sensory advantage at night meaning it should be an opportune time.

 

scott

 

If I can catch them during the day – I can catch them at night.  It just depends on if I want to be out there.  Very early & very late in the season are clearly less comfortable but I’ve had some very successful nights in both April & October.  These results will vary depending on one’s local & legal fishing season. Cooler water may mean the bass eat less often so that might come into play when working an area for bites.

A-Jay

[roadwarrior]

Nightime is for drinkin'.

[softwateronly]

On 12/18/2022 at 6:34 PM, roadwarrior said:

Nightime is for drinkin'.

I would like to introduce you to day drinking, it's a blast at my age to eat dinner with a buzz and go to sleep.

 

scott

[T-Billy]

On 12/18/2022 at 7:34 PM, roadwarrior said:

Nightime is for drinkin'.

Drinkin is for people who can't catch fish in the dark. ?

 

[Catt]

On 12/18/2022 at 5:38 PM, softwateronly said:

I'm just looking for opinions/experiences on night time ops in the late fall/winter/early spring. 

 

I start night fishing in April & go until October. Depending on weather I have night fished in March & November. Got a couple buddies who night fish year round.

[kevinmyfsu]

As a dedicated bank angler, I will say that some of my best fish came before sunrise and after sunset. I also think it's way more fun and exciting because you really aren't going to know what you've caught until you pull it out of the water. Makes everything more interesting imo.