Fish the Best Destinations
There are some really good bass fishing destinations if you’re looking for good numbers of them. Many of these destinations will not be the best for targeting a trophy bass, but if you want to catch 30 to 50 bass in a day, there are plenty of places like that all over the country.
Best Largemouth Bass Destinations
Use the Right Bait
Use Smaller Lures If You’re Looking for Action
The easiest way to a lot of largemouth bass is to downsize your lures similar to how most anglers would fish for smallmouth bass. Use baits in the 3 to 4 inch range and you’ll have a much better chance to catch a lot of bass.
Live Baits are Tough to Beat
Using live bait is one of the most effective ways to catch largemouth bass. Nightcrawlers, leeches & minnows will all work to catch a lot of bass.
Target Key Locations
Smaller Bass Will Seek Out Smaller Minnows
You will often find smaller bass chasing smaller minnows around weeds, shoreline cover and even out in open water too. Find these schooling bass and you can catch a lot of bass in a hurry.
Fish at the Right Time
Pre-Spawn
Spring marks the spawning period for largemouth bass. Very large bass move into the shallows when water temperatures reach 60°F to 70°F. While most anglers will be searching for these bigger bass in the spring, you can often find good numbers of smaller bass that are just cruising around the shallows in search of warmer water and food. Find these bass and you can catch a bunch of them in a hurry and they usually bite throughout the day, so it’s not only an early a.m. or late p.m. bite.
Post-Spawn
Once the spawn is over, the bite can be extremely difficult for larger bass. On the flip side, anglers usually do quite well for several weeks following the spawn with smaller bass as they hang around the spawning areas and feed aggressively to regain energy.
Fall Schooling Bass
On many lakes and reservoirs in the south, anglers find large schools of bass chasing bait fish such as shad and minnows in open water. You will find some of this schooling up north as well, but every body of water is different. On the lakes with large schools of minnows and shad, anglers can catch a lot of bass if they can find these schools of bass during one of their feeding frenzies.
Use Lighter Gear
Light action spinning rod and reels are perfect for lighter line, which allows anglers to cast the smaller baits that work great for smaller bass.
