When you see a fish "blow up" - what do you do ? 

Do you cast in that direction ?

If it is further away than a cast length do you troll in that direction quickly ?

Do you catch a lot of fish quickly in these situations ?

Or is it generally a false alarm and no fish are caught ?

I am just curious as I see "blow ups" but am not sure if it is worth pursing them or not.

 

  I'll throw a 105 Shower Blows to busting fish. If they've just stopped I'll reel a Cotton Cordell 3/8 or 1/2 oz spoon around. Sometimes I'll catch some and have caught over 30 quickly. Sometimes they elude me. If it looks like 20 or more fish, I'll throw the trolling motor in high gear a pay them a visit.

I rarely catch big schoolers but they're fun.

I will cast a few feet behind it with a fluke or a topwater.
 

During the shad spawn and early fall, I keep a spinning rod with a 1/16oz darter head and a 4” green weenie worm on the deck, then give my trolling motor a workout chasing boils. 
 

 

I throw whatever I have handy there. Occasionally I do get a fish from that spot. I normally try to hit the spot.

I usually have something tied on a rod or two. Maybe a jerkbait (X-Nanahan +2 maybe) on one and a topwater (Sammy/Zara Spook/popper/plopper, etc.) on another. I don't necessarily have to wait for a bass to bust the surface. Sometimes throwing the topwater bait to area you think should have fish seems to trigger them to get the party started.

I assume it’s a carp like the last 100 times and I ignore it. 

I don't chase busting fish, unless they're busting on my lure. I've not found it to be a high percentage thing, at all. 

You're also in the northern part of the country and I'm guessing it's somewhat similar for you. That "bust" out behind the boat in deeper water is most likely a carp or something else. I just ignore them.

unless I see a frenzy I dont go out of my way. If its castable I'll throw whatever its way if I can get it there quick. If not I continue on my business. 

Success rate is low and I've never pulled something out of that I'd even bother taking a picture of. 

In Tonka - 95% of the surface busting is done by carp....so I don't even bother.

I cast as hard as I can in the direction of the blow up, then spend the next 15 min. picking out a backlash.

9 hours ago, Jar11591 said:

I assume it’s a carp like the last 100 times and I ignore it. 

 

I've been taken by this so many times in the past I can't even keep track.  I'll hear a fish surface, then another, and then another.  I think to myself that bass are popping frogs or bugs, and I intently watch for the next one.

 

That next one turns out to be a big ol' nasty carp boiling on the surface and my blood pressure drops back to normal.

 

99 times out of 100 its a carp

 

Agree with most that a lot of times its not bass. But I have found single blow ups in shallow water (like around cypress trees) is very much worth casting too. A lot of time bass are fired up to feed and have something trapped. I'll usually toss a frog up there and get bit enough to make it worth it.

 

I don't think I've ever caught bass when I had to run to them with the trolling motor. Now saltwater species like striped bass, bluefish, and even tuna are a different story. 

I can’t help it, I’ve got to check . Some of the most fun days have been sparked by seeing or hearing a commotion and casting a spoon in that direction. 

12 hours ago, WaskaCrank12 said:

When you see a fish "blow up" - what do you do ? 

Do you cast in that direction ?

If it is further away than a cast length do you troll in that direction quickly ?

Do you catch a lot of fish quickly in these situations ?

Or is it generally a false alarm and no fish are caught ?

I am just curious as I see "blow ups" but am not sure if it is worth pursing them or not.

 

 

I have found if you can drop anything right exactly where it happened within 2-3 seconds it’s +\- a guaranteed fish.

If it's in casting distance I'll throw a topwater something, sometimes I'll go sit on where they're boiling and, it seems, every 20 minutes the bait gets together and the bass will attack.  A 3/4oz spoon throws a long way and can work if I can reach them.  I'm not talking about one fish, which is usually a carp or gar.

If you pay close attention you can hear the difference between feeding fish and others like carp, gar and other undesirables.  I can’t always do it but lots of times I can and don’t bother to turn around.

I say myself “I was just there throwing xxx” ill

change to something else and throw that instead” that leads to about 15 mins of goofing around and adhd forgetting where the blowup was…

I have had success casting to blow ups with a weightless plastic such as a fluke or a worm.  I get the bait right in the middle of where the chaos is/was and just let it flutter down like something got wounded in the process.  I usually have success doing this guessing 30% of the time.

 Last time I saw busting bass I could not get them to bite , even throwing in the middle of the frenzy. But I picked up a worm , hopped it on the bottom and nailed a few.

I chuck a popper and/or a wacky rig at it a few times. 
 

Last weekend I saw a bass come a foot out of the water chasing bait, the entire fish was airborne. Threw a popper over there, worked it aggressively and got him.
 

He was obviously actively feeding in good conditions but I also throw the wacky in tighter corridors. 
 

It’s worth the 5-10 casts to find out. 

1 hour ago, Smirak said:

I say myself “I was just there throwing xxx” ill

change to something else and throw that instead” that leads to about 15 mins of goofing around and adhd forgetting where the blowup was…

 

If I had a long lost brother I think it might be you.   LOL

 

I regret not casting in that place right before the blowup.

15 minutes ago, HawkeyeSmallie said:

 

If I had a long lost brother I think it might be you.   LOL

 

Oh gosh, I’d feel sorry for you then!!

39 minutes ago, Smirak said:

Oh gosh, I’d feel sorry for you then!!

 

LOL.

 

More like sorry for our wives!

22 hours ago, Jig Man said:

If you pay close attention you can hear the difference between feeding fish and others like carp, gar and other undesirables.  I can’t always do it but lots of times I can and don’t bother to turn around.

 

@Jig Man early in the season this year I heard some big blow ups and thought "I'm going to catch that massive bass !" - but what I have come to find is those big/loud splashes (sounds like a dog has jumped off a dock and in to the water) are most often giant carp (or Large Mouth Buffalo)