Tough Weeds

I fish a small lake with a maximum depth of 30 feet that has gradually sloping banks.  The bottom is sandy and silty with no real structure except for an occasional rock here and there.  The water is ultra clear and about 82 degrees.  What this lake does have are a lot of weeds (hydrilla and milfoil) and some very large bass (lake record is 18.1 lbs).  The weeds are dense and tall.  For example, at a water depth of 10 feet, the weeds come up to within 2 or three feet from the surface.  From my graph, it looks like the weeds gradually get shorter and the edge of the weedline is at about 15 to 17 feet deep.  With the warm water temps, I figure that the bass are hanging out in the deeper water inside these weeds.  I have also seen them cruising in schools in open water at depths of 15 to 20 feet.  Their main forage is cuttbow trout, which the lake is loaded with.  How do I get the bass to go after my bait when they are buried in the weeds like that?  I know dropshotting is an option, but the weeds are so thick and tall, I wonder if the bass will find my bait.  Keep in mind that baits in trout patterns seem to produce best here.  Thanks for any tips you guys may have.