Spring 2020
®
If you don’t get bit in an area, note the water temp, bluegill presence and time of day. If you are fishing this area in the morning, check back later in the day as after the sun has had a chance to warm up the water, you may just be in for a surprise.
My preferred presentation: War Eagle Spinnerbait (Tandem Colorado/Indiana) or a Booyah Covert Single Colorado in White/Chartreuse fished on a 7’2” Witch Doctor Tackle Surman50G MH rod, with a Wright & McGill High Low Speed Reel with Seaguar InvizX Fluorocarbon 17-lb.
TARGET FLIPPING
As bass move up on to the bank, whether that is a riprap bank that has warmer water on it from the rocks absorbing the sun’s warmth and in turn increase the water temperature, or a stump/laydown lined bank that bass are setting up to spawn on, these make great visual targets to flip to.
Looking at a riprap bank may seem like a daunting task to break apart and flip to, but by deciphering the key nuances of it, will allow you to identify the key sections to fish.
Larger boulders that are in the water will provide a current break and nice slack water area behind it for a bass to sit to grab an easy meal, or if it is a secondary channel area, a calm spot for a smallmouth to spawn behind.
Lifetime Memories!
Vacations, Weddings, Graduations, Pets, etc. A canvas print makes
a great gift!
Transfer your photo to canvas
and turn any moment into a
beautiful memory as if it were
hanging in a gallery.
page
64 www.visionsoncanvas.com
The reason bass like to set up on stumps or laydowns is that they offer a good current break and ambush point for a bass to get an easy meal.
Laydowns that extend from the bank out into the slough, can hold bass the whole time throughout the spring spawning stages. A bass can stage to spawn out on the tip of the laydown out over deeper water and then when ready to spawn, they can slide up to the base of the laydown near shore.
Many times, a flat that has stumps on it, is a prime spawning flat in the back of backwater lake or slack water slough. These stumps are key to bass as the base of that stump make a great protected spot for a bass to spawn on.
By being aware of how that stump relates to the natural flow and progression for bass in that area will help you identify when and how bass could use those stumps to set up on.
Once I do find a key section of bank to flip, or an isolated target that may be holding multiple bass, I’ll deploy my dual Minn Kota Talon’s so I can focus on making the right cast each time and not worrying about my boat moving out of position.
My preferred presentation: All-Terrain Tackle AT Jig (Black/Blue) with a Zoom Super Chunk fished on a Witch Doctor Tackle Voodoo II 7’2” Heavy rod, with a Wright & McGill High Speed Reel with Seaguar AbrazX Fluorocarbon 20-lb.
As you gear up and prepare for that spring fishing trip on your favorite river system, be sure to keep these three patterns in mind as they’ll likely come into play at some time. •
https://www.visionsoncanvas.com