12 Bass Fishing Tips

Do you want to learn how to catch more bass? Do you know that bass is one of the popular fishes in the waters? In this article, we discuss bass fishing tips that you can implement on your fishing trips to catch more bass like the pros.

How To Catch Bass

1. Stillwater Fishing

Stillwater fishing is one fishing method that anglers use to catch bass. It is ideal for beginners as well as experienced anglers. When still fishing, drop your bait into the water and just wait for the fish to strike. When you get a strike, control the line and quickly reel in the fish.

2.  Casting

Casting can also be used to catch bass. You can cast from a boat or from the shore. When casting for fish, try casting at different areas and cast at a long distance to find the areas the fish is holding out.

3. Drift Fishing

You can fish for bass by drift fishing. When drift fishing, slowly move your boat over different habitats and let your bait move slowly in the water. Drift fishing covers a lot of areas and can be very effective as you can also catch a variety of fish.

4. Fly Fishing

Fly fishing is another fishing method that can be used to catch bass.  Catching bass using fly fishing will put your fly fishing skills to the utmost test but it will challenge you to work on your skills and it can prove to be rewarding.

Bass Fishing Tackle

A 7- foot medium action fishing rod with a medium soft tip will work for fishing for bass.

How To Catch Bass In A Lake

When you go fishing on a lake, spend a few minutes looking at the lake and studying it. Observe any signs of life. Listen for sounds from bullfrogs, and look out for shorebirds like herons or ducks. Watch for small fish like shad or bluegills working the surface. These activities will give you a good idea of where marine life is active in the lake.

Bass, like most species of fish, will be near structures to hide from predators and prey that they want to eat. When fishing for bass in a lake, look for any signs of structures. That will be the first area to target for bass.

Additionally, look for any areas of the lake that have shade. Overhanging tree branches that provide shade to any part of the lake will be a good area to target. Bass will go to those shady areas to escape the sun’s rays. Fallen trees, logs, broken piers, and docks are areas where bass may be located.

Look for pockets or corners of the lake that have some vegetation like lily pads, hydrilla, and hyacinth. Bass will move to those areas also to use it as cover when looking for baitfish. Visit the lake at different times of the day to observe the activities. Most fish are active early morning and late evening. Visit the lake during those times to observe the activities of fish and other marine life.

On overcast days and bad weather bass and other fish will be more comfortable coming out of their cover. if there are overcast days and cloudy conditions, make a trip to the lake to fish for bass.

If it’s early fall, you can fish at night for bass as they will be on the hunt for food to put on more weight before winter comes in. This will make them go for anything and you may be able to catch more bass.

A fish finder can also be used when fishing for bass on a lake. When there are not many visible structures, you can use a fish finder to help you quickly locate bass on a lake if you have a boat. Additionally, there are castable fish finders that you can launch from the shore if you don’t have a boat. You can also troll the lake to fish for bass.

Bass Fishing Rigs

1. Carolina Rig

The Carolina rig is one of the popular rigs anglers used when fishing for bass. It features a sinker or bullet weight on the line. What makes the Carolina rig very effective is that it mimics the movements of bass prey like worms or baitfish. When you pull the line with the weight or sinker, it produces movements that resemble the movements of baitfish that bass prey on. You will need a heavy sinker, about 3/4 egg sinker, a small swivel, and the lead. You will also need 2-3 large hooks.

2. Texas Rig

The Texas rig is also one of the widely used rigs when fishing for bass. It involves a 4-10 inch plastic worm, a worm hook, and a bullet weight. Hook the head of the worm while leaving the hook open to attach the body of the worm. Then roll up the worm and hide the hook with its head. Then attach the worm’s body to the hook horizontally and camouflage the entire setup.

3. Drop Shot Rig

The drop shot rig is a more complicated rig. It is a versatile rig that allows anglers to fish in shallow and deep waters. It requires a drop shot hook and weight, a low visibility line, and the bait.

To set up the drop shot, start with a regular Palomar knot to the drop shot hook. Then trim the excess line to be the length you need. If you will fish in deeper waters, then you should leave a tagline of about 4 inches on the end of the knot.

4. Alabama Rig

The Alabama rig is similar to the umbrella rig. It was introduced by an Alabam angler called Andy Poss. The Alabama rig is slightly different from the umbrella rig by the reduced number of the umbrella rig to 5 flexible wires that make it look like a shad head.

To set up the Alabama rig, after rigging the swimbaits on the jigheads, attach the jigheads to a clip on the wires’ end holding the rig together. Slightly open the wires to give the swimbaits space to swim independently of one another.

5. Ned Rig

The Ned rig is ideal when fishing for smallmouth bass or spotted bass. It involves a light fishing line, a spinning rod, and a reel. With the line and jig, the threading begins with the jighead and securely fix it and hold on to the plastic and tie the rig to the leader line.

You can use a 10-pound main line and a 6-pound leader line. A spinning rod with medium-light power and super-fast action will work. The spinning reel has to be robust as it carries the light braid and leader.

How To Catch Bass From Shore

When fishing from the shore, walk lightly and minimize the noise you make. Fish can pick up the noise and the vibrations of heavy footsteps. This will make their escape to their cover.

When fishing from the shore, also spend some time studying the water. look for areas with shade and vegetation that may serve as cover for bass. Look for pockets of the water where they may be hanging out waiting for baitfish. If you locate these areas, fish there for bass.

Additionally, look for any signs of structures. Fallen trees and logs, broken piers, and docks are all areas where bass will hang around. If you find these or other structures, fish around those areas as the structure may be bigger under the water than what meets the eye on the surface.

Also, pay attention to signs of marine life. Baitfish may be active in some areas of the water and that may indicate that bass are in that area preying on baitfish. If you see birds circling overhead, then it is a sign that baitfish are in that area. Anglers use topwater frogs early in the morning and late in the evening when bass will come out to feed on baitfish.

How To Catch Bass With Lures

When fishing for bass, you can use baits and lures. Anglers use lures such as skirted jigs, plastic worms, soft plastics, topwater frogs, and lipless crankbaits to fish for bass. Most of the time, anglers will use lures like soft plastics, crankbaits, plastic worms, and topwater frogs when casting for bass.

When there is a lot of activity close to the surface, like in the early morning or late evening, they will use topwater frogs to fish for bass. If bass is found deeper in the water column, jigs, such as skirted jigs, will be used. There are many different lures that work well in different situations when fishing for bass.

How To Catch Bass In A Pond

Fishing for bass in a pond a similar to fishing for bass in a lake. When you go to the pond, spend some time studying it for possible signs of life, pockets with shade, overhanging trees, vegetation, and structures that bass can use as cover for protection and to ambush baitfish.

Additionally, look for signs of life from baitfish at the surface to find out where fish and other marine life may be located in the pond. Walk lightly and with no noise if you come to the banks of the pond as fish can pick up the noise and vibrations. This will make them move further into the water and structure for protection.

Fallen trees, logs, broken-down piers, and docks are structures that will attract bass. If you see any poles or timber pointing out of the water, there could be more of it in the water. Target those areas and fish for bass.

How To Catch Bass In Summer

When fishing for bass in the summer, look for structures like points, drop-offs, ledges, and brush piles. Study the water and look for structures that the bass may be hanging near. They will be close to structures to conceal themselves from baitfish as well as protect themselves from predators.

Additionally, look for areas with shade from overhanging trees. These are prime areas that will attract bass as they seek cover from the sun. Boat docks, boathouses, and piers can also provide shade that will attract bass.

How To Catch Bass In Fall

During the fall, bass will be found in areas where creeks and other bodies of water dump into a lake. They will be in those areas preying on baitfish that are funneled. Ditches, offshore humps, bluff mounds, trenches, and rock edges are areas to target when fishing for bass in the fall. Most anglers use soft plastics when fishing for bass in the fall.

How To Catch Bass In Winter

When fishing for bass in the winter, anglers will downsize and use soft plastic worms, hair jigs, jerkbaits, curly tail grubs, and other lures and bait to fish for bass. If the water is clear water, you may want to use lures with colors.

How To Catch Bass In Spring

Bass spawns in the spring and will be in shallow waters usually over hard-bottomed bays. Look for these areas to target them. They will be more aggressive as they will be protecting their eggs from lizards, bluegills, and other predators.

Bass Fishing Tips

1. Find Where Bass Resides

Bass likes to reside in cover. This is the area with old and broken down structures like boat docks, wooden structures, big rocks, fallen trees, lily pads, thick vegetation, tree stumps, access points, creek channels, drop-offs, holes, drain pipes, etc. Bass uses them to protect themselves as well as to ambush their prey.

2. Use Google Earth

Take advantage of the technology that is available today. Use Google Earth to find bodies of water with a healthy concentration of fish. Chances are bass will be in the water. Look for creeks, ledges, and old structures on the satellite image as possible covers for bass. After identifying these structures on Google Earth, you can find them on your GPS. This research can help you be more productive when you go bass fishing.

3.  Match Their Prey

When you go bass fishing watch and see what is in the lake that is prey for bass. Bass eat almost anything as their diet is broad. Are there frogs in the lake? Do you see shads and bluegills? Talk with other anglers and find out what the bass are preying on in that body of water. With that information, you can match that and serve it as your bait. This little bit of investigative work can prove very rewarding.

4.  Watch The Weather

The behavior of bass can be affected by weather conditions. Observing how bass reacts under different weather conditions can help you be successful with bass fishing.  When it is a sunny day, bass will seek the comfort of cover or under structures or shaded areas. Armed with this knowledge, you can use a slower bait like a Texas rig soft plastic or you might want to flip and pitch your bait to the cover and hold on tight for the bass to come to get it.

5. Monitor The Water Temperature

The water temperature can vary depending on the time of the year and location. The feeding patterns and activity level of bass are directly affected by the water temperature. The general consensus is to use slower baits in cooler water temperatures and faster and more aggressive lures in warm water. However, knowing the trend in temperature change is more vital than knowing what is the actual temperature.

6. Feeding Time

Bass feed early in the mornings and late evenings when visibility is low and shallower forage is accessible. At this time of the day, bass will be more active and predictable. You can take advantage of their position in shallow areas.

7. Embrace The Wind

Even though it may pose a greater challenge to bass fish during windy days, especially when the wind is blowing over 15 miles per hour, fishing in windy conditions can be very rewarding.  Bass will be more receptive on windy days and the bite will pick up. Use faster-moving baits when the wind is blowing as the bass will go for your spinnerbaits and crankbaits.

8.   Colorful Lures

Bass likes color. Colorful lures have always been a hit with bass. There are different theories for this attraction to color. Red is the best color for bass. One theory is that bass thinks the lure is injured and the red color is blood. This seems to be a trick to get them to bite.

9.  Wounded Prey

Keep your shredded plastic worms. Bass like to pounce on wounded prey and the beat-up and shredded plastic worms look like wounded prey to bass. They will go for it.

10. Make Noise

Make noise on the water by stopping your cast halfway and letting the lure hit the water and skipping a few times. This will make a lot of noise and will get the attention of the bass. This will usually result in a bite.

11. Well-Rounded Angler

Try to be a well-rounded angler. Challenge yourself by fishing at new locations and learning and practicing new techniques. Whatever the fishing norms, equipment, techniques, etc. that you use regularly, don’t use them. Try other completely new tools, techniques, and lakes to improve as an angler.

12.  Knot Tying

Learn to tie the knot and practice it until it becomes second nature. Learning to tie a knot will save you fishing time and help you take home more fish. If you are interested in knot tying tools, we reviewed the best knot tying tools that you can read.

Types of Bass

There are a number of different types of bass. It will be to your advantage to learn to identify them as each one requires a slightly different approach. Bass can be distinguished by a few features such as jaw length, size of stripes, number, number of spines, and the geographical region they are located in. There are many more types of bass but these are the ones you will most likely encounter.

1. Largemouth Bass

The upper jaw of a largemouth bass extends out past the eye and they feature spiny dorsal fins sandwiched by a deep notch.

2. Smallmouth Bass

The smallmouth bass’s upper jaw doesn’t extend past the eye.  They feature spiny dorsal fins and three dark lines on their cheek. They also have nine to ten spines on the dorsal fin.

3. Florida Bass

The Florida bass is regarded as a subspecies of the largemouth bass. The upper jaw extends past the eye like the largemouth bass and it has nine spines on the dorsal fin.

4. Redeye Bass

The Redeye bass features small dark spots below the lateral line and a second dorsal that seems to be red. The upper jaw doesn’t extend past the eye.

5.  Guadalupe Bass

The Guadalupe bass features 10 to 12 dark lateral stripes and its upper jaw does not extend past the eye.

6. Alabama Bass

The Alabama bass features lateral blotches and spiny, soft dorsal fins that are connected by a shallow notch.

7.  Shoal Bass

The Shoal bass features dark blotches that fade as it ages. Its upper jaw does not extend beyond the eye. The Shoal bass looks like the Redeye bass without the reddish color.

Best Bass Lures

1. Spinnerbait

Spinnerbaits are similar to crankbaits and can work in almost any condition. They are very effective and cover a large amount of water.

2. Crankbait

Crankbait is a good bass lure. You can quickly cover a lot of areas using crankbaits. They can be found in a wide range of sizes and colors.

3. Soft Plastic Worms

Soft plastic worms are added to hooks and they mimic prey animals. They work to get the bass to hold on to a hook.

4. Swimbait

Swimbaits mimic the swimming motion of small fish thanks to their jointed and hollow bodies. You can find swimbaits in hard and soft versions.

5. Dropshot

The dropshot is similar to the Carolina rig and is popular with professional bass anglers.

6. Carolina Rig

The Carolina rig is one of the most popular rigs used by anglers when bass fishing.  Place a sinker on the mainline attached to the pole. Then put a glass or plastic bead that and the swivel.

7. Wacky Rig

The wacky rig is good for fishing on open water with soft plastics.

8. Topwater Frog

If you are trying to lure bass from under cover, a topwater frog can be used to accomplish your goal.

9. Texas Rig

The Texas rig is also another popular rig used by many anglers.  it allows you to hide the hook end while ensuring that the bass can take a good bite.

10. Jigs

Jigs work well with a number of reel and rod movements. They are versatile and are a favorite for many anglers.

Best Live Bait For Bass

There are many different live baits that you can use for bass fishing. Live bait comes with the problem of storage. Some of the live bait are:

1. Minnows

Schools of minnows are one of the best baits that anglers use to catch bass. Nothing attracts bass more than a school of minnows. Minnows are also used when fishing for a variety of fish.

2. Crawfish

Crawfish is also a good bait for attracting and catching bass. Like, many fish, like crawfish and are lured by anglers using crawfish.

3. Salamanders

Salamanders is a great bait that attracts bass and anglers use it when bass fishing.

4. Worms

Worms are loved by fish and bass is no exception. it is often used by anglers when targeting bass and most species of fish.

5. Leeches

Leeches is a great bait to catch bass and it works well when anglers use it when fishing.

6. Frogs

Frogs work well as bait and anglers often use parts of the frog as bait when bass fishing.

7. Creek Chubs

Creek chubs are also good bait that anglers use for fishing for bass and other fish.

The Bottom Line

Bass is one of the most common freshwater fishes in the world. It is also a popular fish for anglers. In this article, we discussed bass fishing tips to help you catch more bass.

It is our hope that after reading this article, you will learn how to catch more bass and become a better bass angler. How to fish a pond is explained in this article which you can read from this link. You can also read black drum fishing tips, weakfish fishing tips, bluefish fishing tips, and pike fishing tips.