Hey everyone,

 

Just wondering how yall approach a pond or lake? What is your go to bait to see if their biting and how do you decide on what to switch too? 

 

I usually start with a crankbait to search then move to something slower if they aren't biting.

 

Best of luck and tight lines. 

I usually walk around a good portion of the body of water before I start fishing and try to make observations regarding it's ecology that the fish might key in on. 

 

This includes checking for primary cover whether its wood, vegetation, rock, or submersed man made objects. Then I will take the water temperature to try and help me decide what stage the fish are in.

 

And if possible I try to see if I can find any dead carcasses of baitfish or crawdads to help determine the colors that would work and what kinds of forage the bass have access to.

 

My starting bait is usually a finesse presentation like a drop shot, shakey head, or wacky rigged worm. But this is just a preference of mine based on comfort and confidence and may not be the most efficient way to find fish on a new body of water.

 

Two contrasting methods may be used to locate fish: the 'shotgun approach' (which relies on the electric motor)

and the 'rifle approach' (which relies on the electric anchor), I prefer the latter.

 

1)  Long before wetting the boat, I'll always perform 'Bottom Contour Analysis'

     using my Chartplotter, AC/DC converter & desktop computer to preselect all my Trial Sites

       (It goes without saying, you must first know how to interpret and apply bottom contour)

2) On the water, I'll anchor-down at every pre-selected trial site and evaluate the "cover" at each site,

     and confirm the accuracy of the hydrographic chart (chart accuracy frequently leaves much to be desired)

3) Lure Selection and lure delivery hinges on a host of variables beginning with the seasonal period

      and lake type, then branching out to cover type, water clarity, weather conditions and so on.

 

It's better to fish the wrong lure in the right place, then fish the right lure in the wrong place.

 

Roger

 

1 hour ago, BigSkyBasser said:

I usually walk around a good portion of the body of water before I start fishing and try to make observations regarding it's ecology that the fish might key in on. 

 

This includes checking for primary cover whether its wood, vegetation, rock, or submersed man made objects. Then I will take the water temperature to try and help me decide what stage the fish are in.

 

And if possible I try to see if I can find any dead carcasses of baitfish or crawdads to help determine the colors that would work and what kinds of forage the bass have access to.

 

My starting bait is usually a finesse presentation like a drop shot, shakey head, or wacky rigged worm. But this is just a preference of mine based on comfort and confidence and may not be the most efficient way to find fish on a new body of water.

 

 

Thanks for the response! 

 

I need to get a way to get water temp, thinking about giving the deeper fish finder a go. I usually try and match the hatch but sometimes I feel like even if the body of water doesn't contain craws they will still eat em.

42 minutes ago, RoLo said:

 

Two contrasting methods may be used to locate fish: the 'shotgun approach' (which relies on the electric motor)

and the 'rifle approach' (which relies on the electric anchor), I prefer the rifle approach.

 

1)  Long before wetting the boat, I'll always conduct 'Bottom Contour Analysis'

     using my Chartplotter, AC/DC converter & desktop computer, then preselect all my Trial Sites

       (It goes without saying, you must first know how to interpret and apply bottom contour)

2) On the water, I'll stop at every pre-selected trial site and evaluate the "cover" at each site,

     and confirm the accuracy of the hydrographic chart (chart accuracy frequently leaves much to be desired)

3) Lure Selection and delivery hinges on a host of variables beginning with the seasonal pattern

      and lake type, then branching out to cover type, water clarity, weather conditions and so on.

 

It's better to fish the wrong lure in the right place, then fish the right lure in the wrong place.

 

Roger

 

 

 

Thank you for the response!

 

Love the quote at the end and I totally agree with it!

Unfortunately, I am still stuck on the bank until I get a boat this summer but when I do I will try out that technique.  

If it's the morning I pretty much always start out with some kind of topwater unless it's really cold. If that fails I'll move to some type of "search bait" like a swimjig, spinnerbiat, chatterbait and really work it around cover. Then from there I might slow down with a jig, wacky worm, drop shot.

7 hours ago, Jcost2131 said:

 

Thanks for the response! 

 

I need to get a way to get water temp, thinking about giving the deeper fish finder a go. I usually try and match the hatch but sometimes I feel like even if the body of water doesn't contain craws they will still eat em.

 

Thank you for the response!

 

I also am looking at a portable fish finder like the deeper or ibobber but I did purchase an Orvis Stream Thermometer on amazon for $12 and it works great. I just have it attached to some coil and throw it out with ease.

 

And you're absolutely right, bass often will eat baits that have no resemblance to their local diet depending on the conditions. I think starting a new body of water with your confidence bait will make for a more enjoyable day anytime.

 

Where I live crankbaits have a very short season and would not be reliable for finding fish like in other areas. 

When I'm fishing new water from the bank or a boat, rather than searching for bass, I'm usually looking for signs of life, bait, and most importantly, Spots.  Spots with access to deeper water (relative term on any body of water) as well as suitable structure & or cover to offer the bass something to hold on to And something that can hide me from the bass sufficiently so I can present a bait undetected; especially when I'm on the bank.   Drop offs, over hangs, under cut banks, trees, weedlines, pads, reeds, rocks, docks, logs, boats, even pollen on the water can fit the bill.

 

If I am familiar with the body of water and have had some success there in the past, my mission is always the same, I'm looking for the biggest bass I can catch, from the bank of from a boat.  My approach will change with the situation, but the mission rarely does.   

 I usually have an idea of what I want to fish,  how I want to fish it and when I want to fish it before I arrive but again that is a totally fluid situation and one that can & often does change once I arrive or afterward if the conditions change.    

  From the bank, it's all about timing for me.   Except for the spawn, there is often a fairly short window where "That Bass" is available & vulnerable to my presentation.  Whenever that time is, I want to ensure that I am there well in advance, with the right bait and presentation. 

Now this could be anytime of the day, but most often is low light, early and or late in the day or even at night.  Whenever it is, I want to be there with a big fish bait.  And for me, from shore that's almost always something with a decent profile, a sharp stout hook(s) and is reasonably weedless.

    A Texas rigged plastic, a jig, a swimjig, a spinnerbait, a chatterbait, & a frog or some other weedless topwater are what I most often think of as my go-to baits for this.   Just as important is the right, balance tackle, with a properly set drag, and a reel spooled up with line I trust that's tied with a knot(s) I have supreme confidence in.   I'm usually only going to get ONE CHANCE to do this right and I am willing to put in whatever effort it takes to put as many odds as I can in my favor.  

    Despite all that, there are times when there are only a few bites, or no bites or on those special & most memorable days there could be size & numbers caught.  Either way, I can feel and I fish confidently knowing that if & when it happens, I'm reasonably ready, but I still might poop my pants.

So as far as 'searching" - that's what I'm searching for.

A-Jay

I usually spend about 5 min looking around for cover and points. Then tie on my z man chatter bait and start searching. Then I progress from there trying different things seeing what the bass want. 

4 hours ago, BigSkyBasser said:

 

I also am looking at a portable fish finder like the deeper or ibobber but I did purchase an Orvis Stream Thermometer on amazon for $12 and it works great. I just have it attached to some coil and throw it out with ease.

 

And you're absolutely right, bass often will east baits that have no resemblance to their local diet depending on the conditions. I think starting a new body of water with your confidence bait will make for a more enjoyable day anytime.

 

Where I live crankbaits have a very short season and would not be reliable for finding fish like in other areas. 

 

 

The Deeper is a bit more pricey but I love the different attachments they offer (boat, ice fishing) you can get for it. I have read good things about it all over so I will have to pick one up! 

 

Definitely agree with the confidence bait, still new to fishing so still searching for my favorite but I definitely am more confident with some baits over others.

4 hours ago, A-Jay said:

When I'm fishing new water from the bank or a boat, rather than searching for bass, I'm usually looking for signs of life, bait, and most importantly, Spots.  Spots with access to deeper water (relative term on any body of water) as well as suitable structure & or cover to offer the bass something to hold on to And something that can hide me from the bass sufficiently so I can present a bait undetected; especially when I'm on the bank.   Drop offs, over hangs, under cut banks, trees, weedlines, pads, reeds, rocks, docks, logs, boats, even pollen on the water can fit the bill.

 

If I am familiar with the body of water and have had some success there in the past, my mission is always the same, I'm looking for the biggest bass I can catch, from the bank of from a boat.  My approach will change with the situation, but the mission rarely does.   

 I usually have an idea of what I want to fish,  how I want to fish it and when I want to fish it before I arrive but again that is a totally fluid situation and one that can & often does change once I arrive or afterward if the conditions change.    

  From the bank, it's all about timing for me.   Except for the spawn, there is often a fairly short window where "That Bass" is available & vulnerable to my presentation.  Whenever that time is, I want to ensure that I am there well in advance, with the right bait and presentation. 

Now this could be anytime of the day, but most often is low light, early and or late in the day or even at night.  Whenever it is, I want to be there with a big fish bait.  And for me, from shore that's almost always something with a decent profile, a sharp stout hook(s) and is reasonably weedless.

    A Texas rigged plastic, a jig, a swimjig, a spinnerbait, a chatterbait, & a frog or some other weedless topwater are what I most often think of as my go-to baits for this.   Just as important is the right, balance tackle, with a properly set drag, and a reel spooled up with line I trust that's tied with a knot(s) I have supreme confidence in.   I'm usually only going to get ONE CHANCE to do this right and I am willing to put in whatever effort it takes to put as many odds as I can in my favor.  

    Despite all that, there are times when there are only a few bites, or no bites or on those special & most memorable days there could be size & numbers caught.  Either way, I can feel and I fish confidently knowing that if & when it happens, I'm reasonably ready, but I still might poop my pants.

So as far as 'searching" - that's what I'm searching for.

A-Jay

 

 

Wow, thank you for the detailed response!

 

I definitely agree with having a consistent game plan and mission at familiar places. My few first weeks fishing I would go to new spots with no idea what to throw and end up spending half my time tying on different baits.

 

Speaking of pooping pants, one of my first days fishing ( Started this year), I was throwing a little grub on a tiny jig head to catch some panfish. All the sudden my line starts running and I caught a 3 pounder on a UL rod. You should have seen my face when I started pulling that thing in! 

 

Jake

 

 

 

 

4 hours ago, iiTzChunky said:

I usually spend about 5 min looking around for cover and points. Then tie on my z man chatter bait and start searching. Then I progress from there trying different things seeing what the bass want. 

 

 

I have heard awesome things about Z Man's. Definitely have to pick two or three up for this season. Probably will get darker color like black and blue then a lighter white and chartreuse for different water clarity.

 

Jake