Just pay attention to me. If you fish everywhere I haven't and won't, you'll run into big bass.

Something I’m kinda still mulling over is that I graph what looks like larger bass on the local lake I’ve fished recently around 19-20ft, but I cannot get those buggers to bite most of the time. I fish a lot in the 5-10ft zone.
 

I have a couple thoughts in mind about this. The first is that I think it’s possible those fish are just inactive most of the time. They are off the drop. The second thought I have is that I just haven’t found the right presentation for them. 
 

But big bass as a whole… man sometimes it surprises me how shallow they will get. That intermediate depth zone

of like 6-15ft is where I focus a lot of my attention. I’ll find big ones shallow in the winter when you can find numbers of smaller fish deep.

@J Francho has said this very thing on here many times. I don’t remember much but I do remember that…turn around!

Now I just need to remember it when I’m on the boat! ?

It's like making love…deeper, slower, feel it. Jig fish in' 101. 

3 hours ago, LrgmouthShad said:

Something I’m kinda still mulling over is that I graph what looks like larger bass on the local lake I’ve fished recently around 19-20ft, but I cannot get those buggers to bite most of the time.

I don't know if there is any proof of this, but I find that if I'm marking big fish a few feet off the bottom, I experience exactly this.  However if by chance I'm able to see fish on or very close to the bottom, I've been able to catch them. Sometimes, they don't even show up on my electronics, but the spot 'tells' me that they should be there, just maybe not at the moment.

1 hour ago, 12poundbass said:

Now I just need to remember it when I’m on the boat! ?

This is my biggest obstacle to being successful, I forget 90% of everything I've learned and experienced as soon as I launch, but I'll remember most of it 30min. after I'm off the water.

42 minutes ago, J Francho said:

It's like making love…deeper, slower, feel it. Jig fish in' 101. 

Similar to making love, I'd be done fishing in 30 seconds. We like it fast around here. Pound 'em!

13 hours ago, papajoe222 said:

I don't know if there is any proof of this, but I find that if I'm marking big fish a few feet off the bottom, I experience exactly this.  However if by chance I'm able to see fish on or very close to the bottom, I've been able to catch them. Sometimes, they don't even show up on my electronics, but the spot 'tells' me that they should be there, just maybe not at the moment.

This is my biggest obstacle to being successful, I forget 90% of everything I've learned and experienced as soon as I launch, but I'll remember most of it 30min. after I'm off the water.

Wow, is this ever true!!   I make plans to fish this way and that way, this place and that, tie up 20 rods, then…………………….proceed to grind out what I am comfortable with and fish too much history!!   I know better and read it millions of times.  I am getting a little better, but man, I have a long ways to go.  

For the last month of so I've been catching Largemouth, both decent, and dinks 6 feet deep or less.   On offshore structure I've been catching Spots (both decent and dinks) as well as getting catfished occasionally.   

On 7/11/2023 at 6:22 PM, LrgmouthShad said:

Something I’m kinda still mulling over is that I graph what looks like larger bass on the local lake I’ve fished recently around 19-20ft, but I cannot get those buggers to bite most of the time. I fish a lot in the 5-10ft zone.
 

I have a couple thoughts in mind about this. The first is that I think it’s possible those fish are just inactive most of the time. They are off the drop. The second thought I have is that I just haven’t found the right presentation for them. 
 

But big bass as a whole… man sometimes it surprises me how shallow they will get. That intermediate depth zone

of like 6-15ft is where I focus a lot of my attention. I’ll find big ones shallow in the winter when you can find numbers of smaller fish deep.

Thinking out loud, I’ve found them sometimes picky in that setup. Feeding down or up usually not bad, but feeding horizontal can be a mess. Bubba/drop shot in their face or a blade bait or silent lipless fished in a lift and drop have worked for me. Or a crank that isn’t quite deep enough to touch bottom. 

Or you can cuss at it and call it a catfish or a carp which it might also be. I know all the ones that won’t bite my lure must be one of those
 

Today on things I didn’t expect to see on BassResource 

41 minutes ago, slonezp said:

 

.

Nevermind 

One of my favorite local lakes is very shallow...it is even down this year by about 3-4 feet!

 

Middle of the lake is maybe 4-5 feet deep right now. No structure...just a bowl shape.

 

The big-uns live next to the bank on rip-rap, or under docks.

 

I boated a nice 4-1/2 pound largemouth on a drop shot in 1.5' of water, under a dock. 

 

@ 11:00 AM.

On 7/12/2023 at 7:56 PM, txchaser said:

Or you can cuss at it and call it a catfish or a carp which it might also be. I know all the ones that won’t bite my lure must be one of those

Catfish will hit bass lures.  Zoom in on the DT6 deep in this ones mouth.