Say you just arrived at a lake. Do you rule any lures out by the water temp, clarity, or weather conditions? How can you tell what the bass want on a specific day? Also, people say, "The bass will tell you what they want" How long does it take for you to find out? What are the first things you do differently to ge a bite? Do you change color, retrieve, or even lure? I hear all these talks about well you gotta find that pattern and stick with it. Wouldn't it take forever to find the pattern? With so many different lures in ones tacklebox how do you know which ones will produce on a given day? Wow I just rambled for a long time.  :

DCE,

Check out the fishing articles section on the spring, summer, fall and winter sections. It will give you an idea of what to use in the different seasons. Speed and colors are what I usually change (for a given season) with water clarity and current weather conditions. Example, this time of year (prespawn) my go to bait is a spinnerbait. Usually, the water temps dictate how fast I'm going to work the bait. Water clarity is going to tell me what color "should" work the best. Hope this helps!

>Say you just arrived at a lake. Do you rule any lures out by the water temp, clarity, or weather conditions?

I don't rule out anything entirely, but topwaters take low priority in cold water or bright, sunny conditions.

>How can you tell what the bass want on a specific day?

You can't predict in advance, even though there might be some general guidelines. It's a trial and error thing.

>Also, people say, "The bass will tell you what they want" How long does it take for you to find out?

Sometimes, the whole day passes and you don't find out.

>What are the first things you do differently to ge a bite? Do you change color, retrieve, or even lure?

I might change the retrieve, but after that I'll generally change lures rather than just change color.

>I hear all these talks about well you gotta find that pattern and stick with it. Wouldn't it take forever to find the pattern?

It can.

>With so many different lures in ones tacklebox how do you know which ones will produce on a given day?

See above. You don't, you experiment to find out. Obviously, you need to fish a lure that is compatible with the cover and depth you're fishing. Then there are personal preferences and confidence lures. Under the same conditions, five different anglers might choose five different presentations. Just read as much as you can and put in your time to determine what works for YOU.

Say you just arrived at a lake.

Well, before launching try getting latest info from a local bait shop or marina. Marina often have a guide standing by that might give you a tip, especially if you will buy a bait, asking them which one is most popular. Before leaving for the lake try to find the latest fishing report on the internet.

Do you rule any lures out by the water temp, clarity, or weather conditions?

Below about 56 degrees I probably wouldn't tie on a topwater bait, but would be thinking about using deep runner crankbaits. if the watertemp is 90 I'd figure the bass are about as slow as in winter, so I'd be thinking dropshot with french fry worm. There are hundreds of variations by temp in between those extremes. As for clarity, the more clear the water the more natural looking the bait. Whatever you use ought to look perfect, flawless, like the real thing. A C-rig with watermelon or pumpkin green worm rigged with slightly smaller hook than you really want might fool a wary bass. Weather-wise we're talking post cold front with blue-bird sky and maybe a whacky rigged weightless Senko dropped down weedlines, or go to an unsalted slower falling lizard. Or how about cloudy weather and a gold bladed spinnerbait? A buzzbait in a light rain. There are hundreds of variables. The less light entering water the more noise and contrast the bat needs to be seen.

How can you tell what the bass want on a specific day?

When they bite your bait you begin to figure that out. When you change something up and they bite differently you know more. When changes to lighter or darker colors begin to improve success, you know a lot more. When sppeding up or slowing down improves catching, you learn even more what they want.

Also, people say, "The bass will tell you what they want" How long does it take for you to find out?

If you don't change bait types, speeds, depths, etc you might not fnd out at all. Experiment.

What are the first things you do differently to ge a bite?

I rig up 7 or more rods on deck as soon as I observe water conditions. The idea is to be instantly ready for any expected scenario. I'll usually tie on one or two topwaters like a Zara Spook and maybe a Pop-R on another if water is warm enough for topwater feeding. I always tie on some really slow falling followup baits like a whacky worm or a lightly weighted fluke. I will toss one of those out if a bass misses a faster moving spinnerbait tied on another rod. I always keep a heavy spoon tied on for jigging deep suspended fish or feeding schools. There's always a 8 to 10 inch plastic worm on a heavy EWG hook, and usually a C-rig tied on, with an assortment of jig&pig or jig&craw ready to take place of another bait if I run into some thick hydrilla.

Do you change color, retrieve, or even lure?

Once I find a bait bass seem to prefer I begin changing colors, maybe going lighter in clear water, darker in stained. I experiment with speeds, pauses, depths along with changing colors, often ending up with the initial color and presentation that got the first good bite. It pays to remember exactly what I was doing to get that bite. For me I have to speak it out so ears hear. "Slowing down to one reel turn every 30 seconds, pause, yank 2 feet up off bottom." If I just mindlessly toss and crank and get bit for the life of me I just can't often exactly repeat the magic sequence unless speaking it out while doing it.

I hear all these talks about well you gotta find that pattern and stick with it. Wouldn't it take forever to find the pattern?

A pattern develops when you note how and in what kind of cover or depth bass begin biting consistently. If you only catch bass with a spinnerbait out off the tips of a laydown in water at least 8 feet deep but no deeper than 12, look for another laydown with that kind of water. If that works again you probably have a pattern. But I won't pass up chances to find a second pattern trying the unthinkable at a deeper depth, or maybe floating a frog over one foot of water in deep vegetation. When you discover pattern #1 it might be dying out, to be replaced by the backup pattern you discover. Sample several depths and situations along the way. I believe multiple patterns can exist at the same time. Bass stratify in depths and places according to size, juvenile bass lurking at weedlines, mature bass maybe deeper over submerged humps with lots of stumps. I don't get locked into one pattern if I can help it. Patterns dissipate and leave you searching from scratch if you don't do some searching along the way. But bass are creatures of habit, and some patterns repeat each day under similar weather conditions. They make their rounds and will change up their feeding schedule hour by hour sometimes.

With so many different lures in ones tacklebox how do you know which ones will produce on a given day?

That goes back to a previous question & answer. You won't KNOW until a bass bites one of them. Decide on a general color first according to water clarity. Then lay out one of each type of bait in that color range. Find one crankbait that dives 2 feet, one for 5 feet, one for 12 feet. Alternate between fat body and thin body. Find a worm and T-rig it to try fishing bottom. Go through the tacklebox finding one representative of each kind of bait. Select one spinnerbait with a natural skirt and a natural trailer grub. Tie them all on then go through each one in the right depths, each getting no more than 5 minutes of casting. If you get a bite on one, then begin changing colors in that model, maybe try a larger one in that model, smaller one. Work all you can with what you have like that bait that got bit. You might end up going right back to it, the only one they want.

NOW see who rambled on!

Jim

Great answers guys

Knowing more pieces of the puzzle can help formulate a plan of attack.

What is the seasonal pattern.

Cloudy, partly cloudy, blu-bird skies.

Cover/structure available

Prevailing baitfish/forage in the lake

wind patterns from the last 3 days

expectant weather, fronts, high pressure

lake levels, falling or dropping, steady?

current due to water release? When do they release?

current water temps and the past few days, cooling, warming?

Water clarity? What is it normally, stained, clear, cloudy/muddy

A thread has been discussed on each and every one of these topics.

Each and every one of these topics can or will position fish accordingly.