the fish are going to be in the shallows spawning. “If you fish a lake several times in a short period of time, you can literally see the progression of more and more fish staging on those points and then all the sudden they will be gone and that usually means they have moved up to the bank to spawn,” added Card.
Another key use for electronics during the spring is to monitor two key factors for bass activity around the spawn: water temperature and depth. Card relies heavily on his Lowrance units to find key staging areas by monitoring water temperature in different areas of the body of water and also finding key depth transitions. “Depth is very important for finding staging fish,” he stated. “You have to be able to find those 10- to 20-ft areas with close access to shallow water spawning flats. Paying attention to your electronics and maps helps you find them much more quickly.”
FISHSENS CAMERA
The use of underwater cameras can help an angler to decide exactly what they are seeing on their electronics. “Most species of fish are spawning in the spring and just because you see fish staging on points with your electronics, it doesn’t mean they are bass. Crappie is one species with the almost exact same spawning cycle and it could be any of several other species too. More than anything, it keeps you from wasting time fishing for a school of something besides bass,” shares Card.
He will lower his camera connected to his Lowrance HDS unit’s video port to quickly see if what he is looking at are bass. Card feels the FishSens SondeCam is a time-saver when he is fishing in the spring and looking to cover water.
MAPPING
Finding spawning areas with maps is a time- honored tradition. Many articles and bass anglers talk about looking for the right spawning areas as they appear on the map.
SPRING 2016
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