Patterns. I used to think bass were randomly positioned in the lake with not really any reason. Once I realized patterns were real and consistent it changed everything 

3 hours ago, GReb said:

Patterns. I used to think bass were randomly positioned in the lake with not really any reason. Once I realized patterns were real and consistent it changed everything 

 

Isn't that crazy?  I used to assume this too without really realizing it.  Or that they roam around aimlessly, so you can keep casting to same spot for an hour, and maybe one will happen by....

Another angle...Shore fish man made city park ponds/lakes..You have no sonar, you can't see that far from shore because the water is usually stained. But if you know a bass's behavior you stand a much better chance of catching fish on a consistent basis..

 

Bass have what I call highways they use to travel, most lakes and ponds have them, find those and you can catch fish on a regular basis. Only gobs of time fishing them will reward you. In that regard I'll go out on a limb and say, this type of bass fishing is probably the most difficult for many. Also, technique plays a big part in it.   

21 hours ago, WRB said:

Back in '74 I came to the conclusion that bass behavior was tied to water temperature, see The Cosmic Clock and Bass Behavior. This discovery change how I fished for bass.

The spawn cycle was obvious and well known, but not well understood....bass spawned in the Spring. When I figured out bass had 6 seasonal periods; winter, post spawn, spawn, post spawn, summer and fall, it changed everything by allowing me to know where to fish year around.

Tom 

Tom, can you give a sentence or two about where to find fish in these  6 seasonal period?

32 minutes ago, pauldconyers said:

Tom, can you give a sentence or two about where to find fish in these  6 seasonal period?

I have that info identified in the calendar. Suggest go online and look under each seasonal period.

Tom

So many possible answers, but combining the basic principles of Buck Perry’s Spoonplugging guideline with the concept of always looking at a body of water as though it were empty (Clunn) would rank right up there near the top for me.

On 3/22/2020 at 5:29 PM, MassYak85 said:

Sometimes (to be honest, a lot of times) I go out and I feel like I'm just missing something if that makes any sense. I might have a decent day still but rarely have those days where I feel "locked in" to what the fish are doing. 

Not super experienced, but.

 

I spent the entire winter fishing my local canal, we had a lot of rain so the farmers were not ordering water. At some point my dumb *ss figured out that I could now see (due to the low water level) a lot of their hiding spots. And I am pleased to say that this has paid of in spades, as I move from a location to locations that I saved on my phone I'm getting them.

 

It's been really eye opening seeing how much structure there really is in this canal and its a huge confidence boost coming back to these spots knowing where they will be, what bait will be best here and having that knowledge produce results. Now when I hit a spot, its wham bam, throw a few baits that make sense and move on.

 

Before I was simply throwing baits all over the place catching the occasional "lucky fish",  now I know where they are and all I have to do is present a bait they want and if not move on.  

 

So I did what so many here have said, learn the water you fish and fish where the fish are. Mind blown, y'all where right!

 

I don't want to say I'm locked in, but I feel I've upped my game. People see me catching and ask what bait? I tell them and grin (with a little guilt) at their backs as they leave to fish water that I have eliminated.

 

Ready for the next, what the heck moment.

 

 

 

1 hour ago, Hewhospeaksmuchbull said:

Not super experienced, but.

 

I spent the entire winter fishing my local canal, we had a lot of rain so the farmers were not ordering water. At some point my dumb *ss figured out that I could now see (due to the low water level) a lot of their hiding spots. And I am pleased to say that this has paid of in spades, as I move from a location to locations that I saved on my phone I'm getting them.

 

It's been really eye opening seeing how much structure there really is in this canal and its a huge confidence boost coming back to these spots knowing where they will be, what bait will be best here and having that knowledge produce results. Now when I hit a spot, its wham bam, throw a few baits that make sense and move on.

 

Before I was simply throwing baits all over the place catching the occasional "lucky fish",  now I know where they are and all I have to do is present a bait they want and if not move on.  

 

So I did what so many here have said, learn the water you fish and fish where the fish are. Mind blown, y'all where right!

 

I don't want to say I'm locked in, but I feel I've upped my game. People see me catching and ask what bait? I tell them and grin (with a little guilt) at their backs as they leave to fish water that I have eliminated.

 

Ready for the next, what the heck moment.

 

 

 

On this topic I would love to for there to be a service that allows you to pay to take their boat out with Live Scope or something on it and familiarize yourself with your most frequent bodies of water. I'd be a regular customer!

Fishing is a journey that you keep adding pieces of the puzzle to.

The problem is that puzzle changes on a daily basis and we need to rearrange the pieces accordingly

The more time you spend collecting pieces, the better chances you have to complete the puzzle

Having some sort of plan is the key to putting the pieces together with the best chance for efficiency

Like starting with all the flat sided border pieces, or starting with like colors- having a plan is better than randomly hoping 2 pieces go together

 

Fishing is a game that keeps going - enjoy your time playing and try to teach someone else about it's joys

 

P.S. Just dont tell them about the bait monkey- gotta learn the hard way with that beast

 

Knowing what lures to attack cover with is essential . A person can catch plenty of bass staying shallow  fishing visible cover, junk fishing . Inexperienced anglers ask what lures are the bass hitting , experienced anglers ask what lures will effectively fish the cover encountered .

   Off-shore structure fishing can come later .

I've fished for bass almost 40yrs now, and I'm still learning. If you want to take your fishing to the next level, apply yourself and keep learning.