I have been told, yet never had the time to try, that the best time to fish for bass is early (5am-8am) in the morning and late afternoon to night (6pm-8pm or 9pm).  

Is this true?

Also, I've been told to always fish towards shallow water and banks, fallen trees, etc. but have yet to catch one this way.  

My question would be then, where are they?  Are they deep when it is cold or hot?  Are they deep during mid-day and in the shallows at night or vice-versa?  Things along this line would be very helpful to me.

Thanks in advance guys.

Low light conditions, as presented by early morning and late evening darkness brings bass out of cover to search for prey.   Making it easier to target on a variety of presentations.

I would say yes, these are prime times for bassing in late spring till cold weather set in.

According to my logs almost all of my big bass have come betwee 11:00am and 2:00pm, who knew.

This has come up a few times before and the overwhelming asnwer was that in any 24 hour period, the best time to catch bass is whichever of those 24 hours are available to you.

I like Russell's answer!

These questions comes up periodically. We'll see how it goes this time, but when we are talking "big bass", several members report either side of noon. My very best bass fishing is between 10:00 AM and 3:00 PM.

Lots of bass, including some big bass, are caught in shallow water, on and around cover. Part of the reason is because this is where most guys fish. I prefer to fish structure, in deeper water, away from shore.

p.s. Spend some time in the BassResource.com Library. It's fun, entertaining and very informative.

There are MANY articles, lots of opinions and plenty of advice on these topics.

I've had the most success between dawn and 10am and 7pm and dusk. But I have caught many big fish in between too, just not as many strikes in my experiance.

Russ, the Wise One, nailed it. Over the last couple of months alone, my PB came at 11:30 am under partly cloudy skies, and I've caught 4-pounders (big for New England) at 5 a.m. and 8:30 p.m. Get out every moment you can, no matter what time of day it is. Even if you don't catch a big bass, you might see something you've never seen before--an otter, an owl, an eagle, a boatload of naked--oh, never mind.

nope, not true...See LBH's explanation.

Moral of the story.  FISH WHEN YOU CAN FISH, AND FISH AS MUCH AS YOU CAN FISH!  Don't worry about what hour it is, or what phase the moon is in, or how the dogs wagging its tail on this day or that one....

You're never gonna learn to become a complete fisherman until you can catch fish anytime, anywhere.  Waiting for the "best time" and "the best place" will leave you dry on the dock.  The only way to truly KNOW when the best time to catch a fish is...get out there and fish all the time.  You'll be surprised at whats learned.  

I've sat in the middle of 90 degree midday sun and caught bass on almost every cast..with a bluebird sky and no wind nonetheless..and fished "perfect conditions" and not gotten so much as a bite from a bug.

Like all facets of fishing, there's more than one factor at work.

When the sun is high in the sky the shadows are short,

and this tends to position bass predictably "tight to cover".

During twilight hours however the long wedge of shade

allows bass to scatter more freely.

Roger

my dad always says...

I aint never caught a fish that was wearin a watch

I think I remember another thread where someone said (paraphrase) "bass dont play by the rules."

Late evening just has not produced for me.  Early morning Topwater action has,  but my best production has come during the heat of the day.  I think one reason for this is that during the heat of the day traditionally anglers fish tighter to cover and structure during these times(I know I do) and the general concensus is that especially the more mature fish spend most of their time in those places all day long anyway.

Agree with everyone on fish when you can!!  Dont play by the rules either!  Mix it up and find new patterns.

B

Here is an awesome article on so many levels. Mentions stats on time of day for big bass being caught through the bassmaster 10lb club. They also mention which states lead the way Uh humm Florida being number one followed by Texas then California. Anyway, they even break down which lures has produced the best. Pretty cool Check it out: http://www.floridaconservation.org/Fishing/updates/ha41-lunk.html

So, if you are fishing artificials, big bass prefer soft plastics for brunch or lunch? Very interesting article.

Considering the source is from BASS magazine contributors only, it is partially correct if at all.     Good stats, but, just how many people suscribe to BASS?

Compare number of subscription to number of  bass fishermen in the World.

Very small sampling percentage.      

Matt

Depending on the time of year,fishing early and late is very good.I'm not going to get into an argument about which time is best because there's always somebody around here to take you on.I can say from extensive personal experience that fishing early and late is great in warmer weather.

Another note, I would say the south is represented well due to popularity of that magazine.     I would venture to say Bass West is more popular on the West Coast than BASS.    Just a guess.

Wonder what they would say about that.

Matt

I agree with LBH. Fish when you can.

Interesting article. I bet more big bass would be caught after 8pm if more people fished after 8pm.  

Who cares where you fish, be it Texas, California, or Shweeputnik, Montoming. What matters is that you fish, and that you realize that fish do not live by rules. They eat when they want, sleep when they want, and play when they want. When they want can take place in any part of a 24 hour day, and even when they don't want, they can still be caught.

There are areas in this huge country where they will play best in early AM and early PM, but if that is the only time you fish then you won't know if the time in between is when they decided to change up the rules for that area and be in a slam dunk mood in the early afternoon.

Yes, fishing early and late tend to be more productive for me at certain times of the year, especially summer.

Mid- day has proven to be the #1 TIME  for me to connect with big bass in the month of March. I always schedule a week vacation during the full moon of March and make it a point to fish all day long. I started this routine after reading Bill Murphy's book several years ago, and found it to be true.

It is simply too hot and therefore not enjoyable to fish during the mid-day period during the dog days of summer. I can think of better things to do.

Yes, bass generally go deep in summer and winter, but will move up for short periods of time, usually early AM or late PM, and after dark in the summer. They will go deep, if deep water is available.

I prefer early AM in general because the water and fish have had all night to calm down and return to normal, especially during the high pressure periods of the season.

#1 One Rule: Fish when you can! Make time for those "special " times that seem to produce the best for you, be it full moon , no moon, whatever gives you confidence to fish and concentrate the hardest, usually produces the best results.

Z

I have been told, yet never had the time to try, that the best time to fish for bass is early (5am-8am) in the morning and late afternoon to night (6pm-8pm or 9pm).

Is this true?

Also, I've been told to always fish towards shallow water and banks, fallen trees, etc. but have yet to catch one this way.

My question would be then, where are they? Are they deep when it is cold or hot? Are they deep during mid-day and in the shallows at night or vice-versa? Things along this line would be very helpful to me.

Thanks in advance guys.

Never mind what your herd any time is a good time to fish. The more you fish the more you lurn and the better you get. My Grandfather would always say when you pass a feild with cows in it look and see how meny where standing if all of them wher standing it was a good day to fish if half where standing it would be a ok day and if all where laying down go home.

   

Yep, I know all about that Old Wife's Tale.

Some of my very best days have been when all of the cattle are laying down.

Yep, I know all about that Old Wife's Tale.

Some of my very best days have been when all of the cattle are laying down.

LOL! I havent heard that one in a while.......since my great-grandfather passed away.The cows interpreted weather forecasts,fishing,grass growing,etc....to him.