Hey, guys. Gerald Swindle. Welcome back to Bassresources, and right now we're going to be talking about the summer pattern. That's right, the fearless summer pattern, the one that everybody thinks is nothing but these big plugs and big worms, and there is a lot of that out there. But summer patterns all over the country are not the same.
You could be as far out as fishing...let's just say you're fishing Potomac River in June, July. Their summer pattern is not what I see. Theirs is going to be flipping vegetation in current because of its location. So you don't always assume that summer fishing is going to be 35 or 30 foot deep and big plugs and all that.
Summer fishing strictly is when the fish is moving, he's done for the spawn, the post-spawn is over, and he's out. He's moving out to his summer location, which means is where the water is what he's required. So it's the coolest water, the best thermocline, and usually going to be influenced by some type of current. Whether it's wind, natural, man-made, whatever, current is going to be the key.
Why do fish summer like that? It's where they're comfortable. It's where a lot of the bait in the lake goes to. Everything requires to go back out, get a little deeper, a little cooler, sit through the hot part of the summer.
But on a vegetation lake, like I said, that could be the Potomac River, that's going to be right opposite. They don't go that deep. They just go for cover, shade. Why? Because it's the most comfortable.
So when you think summer pattern, when you get to the lake, evaluate what's there. If it's shallow and it's full of vegetation, the most comfortable environment you can think that you would want to be in is under a shade tree. Under a shade tree, so that's what he wants to be. He wants to be under the grass. He wants to be hidden away where the sun can't get to him, he's comfortable, and where the most bait fish are at.
All patterns are dictated and driven by where the bait fish are going. So that's what you have to think about in the summertime. That's where the most bait fish is at, where your fish are going to be. And there are some places in the summer, if you're on a river and it has no grass, no deep ledges, it could just be 6, 7 foot deep in a blowdown, a simple tree off a bank, but that's the deepest, best access, cool water he has.
So when you think summer pattern on Bassresources, don't think just go throw a big plug deep. Think about where you would be the most comfortable at in that environment, where the water would be the most fitting for the water temperature and the bait fish. As long as you keep that in mind, you're going to always get close to where they're at.
So summer fishing can be tricky, but remember, if you're comfortable, they're comfortable, and when you're comfortable, you're going to catch more fish.
