Bass Post Spawn Observations

Summer is here!

This past three weeks has been incredible for catching bass! And big ones at that! A lot depending on where I fished as many of our lakes were blown out by the recent heavy rains and storms. There were a few that surprisingly still had fairly clear water but many were the color of chocolate milk. The fish here are not accustomed to this and it’s really tough to get a bite. There are ways to find them though!

Here are a few observations made from the recent fishing in the area. Whether you are going for panfish, bass, or catfish there are a multitude of ways to find and catch them. The vegetation along the shorelines is getting thicker with algae. The curly leaf pond weed vines are dying off which is giving way to more fishable areas on some of the lakes. Running a chatterbait through this stuff can produce some bass. With the vegetation predominant along the shoreline the topwater bite is insane! You can throw a frog, buzzbait, walking bait, popper, or another cool way to get the bass to commit. I like to use a Yum lizard or power worm Texas rigged on a Trokar EWG 3/0 hook. No weight, just freelining it across the top and letting it drop in holes. It reallly seems to trigger the bass into biting. My favorite colors for this technique are green pumpking/purple for the lizard and tequila sunrise for the worm. On the worm, I will tear off about an inch of the body to shorten it for better hook ups. If you see dragon flies in the area and bass going after them the Yum Power Worm is deadly!

There are a few things to look for from my observations during this post spawn. I first look for bluegill beds as this is where the bigger bass will congregate. They will usually be nearby so I start fishing just outside the beds in a little deeper water or any structure nearby.

If the water is deeper the bass will sometimes hide in the craters and ambush prey as it swims overhead. You can actually see this on your side scan. The bass will look like little pieces of rice in the crater. The Neko rig has been working really well in these areas. The power worm, lizard, or any other finesse bait can produce success as well.

On your side scan look for those little pieces of rice in the craters. This is usually a bass set to ambush anything that comes over the top of them. I’ve had great success fishing the Neko Rig in these beds that are 2-4 feet below the surface.

And don’t rule out those areas a little deeper from shore where patches of vegetation are located. The bass will sometimes be stacked up here. You can easily find them, especially if there is a breeze. The surface will be like glass on these spots. I’ve been catching quite a few just throwing a Neko rig around the edges. Cast and let it fall and you will usually get bit before it lays to rest. Once the bait has stopped I usually just wait a few seconds before twitching it lightly. The bait usually gets bit by doing this routine.

Look for that glassy area when there is a slight breeze which is a sign for a patch of vegetation. Bass will hold up here to ambush prey as it swims by. The Neko Rig works great here as well!

Another area that has produced some good bites is those secondary points that have deeper water nearby. A lot of them have had vegetation on them which makes it even better. The chatterbait has been very successful here. The Neko rig and jig as well.

Now, for those muddy lakes. These have taken quite a bit of patience and using a finesse approach. Most of these lakes and ponds have vegetation clumps along the edges. The bluegill are still there spawning and the bass seem to be locked in those clumps. I’ve been going along “cane polling” those clumps with a Neko Rig or wacky worm. I look for holes or just along the outside edge for the most part. If the shoreline has any depth at all you can flip your bait right up the shoreline and get bit as well. Especially if there what I call, “gutters” where there is just a bit of open water between the shoreline and the line of vegetation. Many times the bass will give away their location by ambushing gills or bugs above the surface. Just cast right where you saw them bust and you can usually get a bite.

Look for the holes in the vegetation along the shoreline. Bass will stage under these clumps and by dropping your bait into them you can get a good bite.

The bass are feeding really well right now and the water is warming up fast. In some areas I’ve found the water to be over 80 degrees already during the peak heat of the day. If you are out on an overcast day the bass seem to be out roaming more but a sunny day has produced the best bites for me lately.

The crappie have pretty much withdrawn from the shoreline and you can most likely find them grouped up in a little deeper water or near brush. The catfish are getting ready to spawn and will usually take over the riprap areas. Once they get in there they tend to chase off the bass and anything else that swims. If you like catching them the Neko rig will work there too! You can also run a crankbait for them. But the best method I’ve found is using a stick bobber with CJ’s Punch Bait. It’s a blast too!

The presentation for panfish that has worked the best is using a ZMan Baby BallerZ with a ShadZ jig head. The 1/16 oz. has worked very well. No bobber, just cast and let it drop from the kayak. If from shore a bobber might be necessary to keep from getting vegetation on it. You can also use the ZMan Micro Goat with the Micro ShroomZ Ned Jighead in 1/15th oz.

As mentioned earlier, these are my personal observations from fishing just about every day I get a chance to do so. I’m not an expert and always looking to learn from my experiences and the experiences of others. If you are looking for personal instruction on how I use the presentations used above we would be glad to host you. You can book several types of fishing adventures including bass, panfish, catfish. We also run a “Tournament 101” trip where you can learn about the ins and outs of competitive kayak fishing.