Summertime is the season right after the springtime spawning of bass. As such, bass are no longer solely dwelling in the deep waters during summer. Instead, they are already grouping up and marauding offshore searching for quiet spots to forage for food.
One of the best ways to improve your chance of catching your targeted fish is by having detailed information about the fish you would like to catch, the locations, the behavior of the fish during a given season, and the underwater movements and structures. Without such knowledge, you will only rely on guesswork when fishing for that fish. Besides, if you don’t do the research on these things, you can never raise your fishing skills a notch higher.
If you intend to catch bass, for example, in the summer, it will help to gather all the necessary information about bass, including the place where they would frequent when the water is warm, how they would behave, the topography of the underwater, and the most effective bait for bass during summer. Having gathered all those information and knowledge, you will not go home frustrated and empty-handed.
With the water temperature rising, bass metabolism gets that extra oomph, prodding them to feed throughout the day actively. Besides, bass looks for an effective covering to escape the sun’s heat. Such behavior of the bass offers a lot of opportunities for impatient anglers to catch bass.
The Best Bass Lures in Summer
One factor you need to consider when fishing for bass during summer is the effective selection of bass lures. Remember that your lure choices will play well on your success in catching bass during summer. As such, it will be best to consider the following most recommended bass lures or baits for bass during summer:
Plastic Worms
As mentioned above, the summer heat might drive bass toward the cooler areas of the lake or water body. So, it will be best to check the shady spots near the water bottom. You can use soft plastic worms that get rigged Carolina or Texas-style. These baits are winners during summer.
Of course, the Texas rig is better once you are fishing in the lake’s shallow areas with vegetation or heavy cover. Yet, if you fish at the deeper spots, you might as well use the Carolina rig.
Skirted Jigs
When fishing for bass during summer, you can use your medium to heavy fishing rod complemented by a skirted jig. Skirted jigs, of course, are excellent and versatile lures. They are also perfect for use during summer. With the skirted jig, you can only flip it onto vegetation and heavy covers. You can cast it likewise near structure or drop-offs. Besides, you can drag this jig along the bottom of the water. Its more extensive profile is a sure draw for the active bass to take a bite.
Spinnerbaits
Another excellent bait for bass is the spinner bait. You can use it when fishing for bass along murky or muddy waters due to the vibration and flash they usually elicit. You can use the spinnerbaits when casting near drop-offs and along grass edges.
Complement them with a slow-rolling retrieval to draw it back to the boat. Bass will indeed seek the shade, and these lures are perfect for casting around structures on sunny days.
Lipless Crankbaits
Another excellent alternative bait is the lipless crankbait. This bait is a great lure for the early summer. Moreover, you will find schooling bass at different depths during the early summer months. So, it will be best to use the lipless crankbaits because you can use them for fishing in deep water as well as shallow water.
You can do this by simply switching up the retrieval’s speed. Look for the crankbaits that resemble the natural baitfish of the bass in that area.
Deep-diving Crankbait
During summer, one favorite and effective fishing tactic is cranking. Crankbaits, of course, cover water quickly because you can retrieve them quickly and still catch fish. Its high speed always triggers strikes. Bass might slurp any plastic worm bait, but it will surely strike with alacrity at a crankbait.
Many anglers would say that basses are a bit lethargic during summer. Yet, basses don’t often allow intruders onto their territory without biting. Hence, the use of crankbaits works well with this natural bass behavior.
Of course, you may say that the deep-diving crankbaits had their heyday in the 80s, and now, there are better baits that come with weight transfer systems, allowing modern anglers to cast their line farther. But the crankbait will still work well if you use a longer plug.
Topwater Walking Bait
Bass cannot surely resist a lure that exhibits an enticing back-and-forth movement. However, these back-and-forth actions are wrought by the skilled maneuvering of the angler. The alluring sashaying of the lure from left to right hypnotizes the bass and engenders them to make the strike.
Largemouth bass would lurch with alacrity at these lures, and smallmouth will go nuts when they see one.
Topwater walking baits are perfect for use in clear water, primarily if you aim to catch bass in the deep. Bass, of course, will dart toward this surface lures at breakneck speed. You can use these lures along riprap shorelines, lake points, and deep docks after the dawn.
Topwater Frogs
If you are fishing for bass in a spot where there are many lily pads, it might be best to use topwater frogs as baits. These topwater frogs are perfect for luring basses that take their cover around lily pads.
Bass would likely linger underneath those lily pads to take advantage of the shades the lily pads provide. Let the topwater frog leap from one leaf to another to entice the bass to take a bite.
Fishing Spots Where You Should Cast Baits for Bass in Summer
Fishing for bass during summer necessitates knowing where they frequently linger during summer. Study the bass behavior; you will intuitively know where to cast your line. Below are the best spots to look for bass during summer:
Current and Moving Water
The thing about moving water is that it carries oxygen and food, providing fish, like bass, enough reason to linger longer in moving waters. Hence, you will find some bass along the current and moving water.
So, if you want to catch bass during summer, you only need to locate those spots with current or moving water. The moving water spot is an excellent spot to cast your line.
Drop-offs and Ledges
Another excellent spot to cast your line is along water drop-offs and ledges. Locate the areas where the shallow water and deeper water meet. These drop-offs are relatively common in many reservoirs. Begin your search for bass in the shallower parts of the water on the ledge’s top. Then cast your line onto the deeper spots.
You can slouch over the ledge while casting your parrel onto the ledge. You can likewise tarry in the deep while casting onto the shallow area. It is reasonable to surmise that the more prominent bass usually stays close to the ledge.
Floating Dense Vegetation
You will find largemouth bass underneath this floating vegetation. Hence, it will be best to check the floating and dense vegetation if you want to catch some bass. Anglers, of course, might not want to fish along lush vegetation because it entails the use of heavy lines and stout rods.
Besides, vegetation usually gets snagged on the lures, making fishing over vegetation a challenge. Bass love vegetation because it affords them extra shelter for hiding and staging ambush on their prey. The vegetation cover usually extends onto the water.
You can utilize weedless muck baits like frogs and rats, dragging these baits over the top. Be prepared, however, for a forceful strike from the big bass. Moreover, crawfish and sunfish usually live near floating vegetation. As such, it will be best to use small craws as your bait to match the natural food of the bass.
Should You Use Small or Big Lures?
If you ask expert anglers about lures, they would tell you to choose something that would match the natural food eaten by bass in that area. Nevertheless, regarding the lure’s size, the experts say that bigger baits catch bigger bass.
Using larger baits is just appropriate because, during mid-summer to late summer, the natural food of basses like shad brim and other baitfish have larger sizes. Yet, it will help if you refrain from using big jigs, swimbait, and spoons, for you will only get fewer bites when you use them.
So, it will help if you use smaller bait considering the fewer bites you will get during the hot summer days. Besides, it will be good to note that the largest bass catch ever recorded was made using small baits.
Basses, of course, are a bit unpredictable. Additionally, their preference usually shifts from day to day. So, if you think something isn’t working for you, it will be best to alter your strategy and try to experiment.
Is it True that Summer Bass Are Smaller?
Based on my experience, I would say that most bass caught during summer are smaller in size. Nevertheless, it doesn’t mean that you can’t catch larger basses. You will catch smaller bass during summer because smaller basses are abundant during summer. Moreover, they can better withstand summer heat than larger bass. Thus, the smaller basses hang out more in warmer areas than the big bass.
Of course, you may also catch bigger basses along floating vegetation, for the vegetation provides better shades for bigger bass. Yet, sans vegetation, bigger basses will likely be found in deeper water, and if you want to catch bigger bass, it will be best to cast your line along drop-offs or deeper areas.
Conclusion
Knowledge, they say, is power, and the more you know about something, the better your chance of succeeding in that something. Similarly, if you want to catch bass during summer, you must learn more about their summer habits and behavior.
Besides, you should use the latest technology like fish finder to take away the element of guesswork when you fish for bass. With such knowledge, you will never go home empty-handed whenever you set out to catch bass during summer.