What Are The Abcs Of Bass Fishing? 2024
leowis1 reply :
Hi. I am totally green to fishing. I'm taking my twin 8yr old boys for a camping trip to the ADKS this summer. I plan to rent a motorboat for a few days and fish lower saranac lake. We're going in the last week in June. I want to everything right to try and make this a fun and exciting time for the kids.
I've been reading some of these threads and I don't understand some of the things people write? I read the words toppers and rapala sand they look the same to me. Could somebody provide me with some links to the different types of lures and explain to me when they should be used? What are tubers?
I also read that SMB move to deeper waters during the day. Should I go trolling during at time? Or should I use a hook and worm? What makes small mouth bass more attractive than large mouth bass?
I am so clueless. I am eager to learn for your wisdom. Thank you.
Kind regards.
coryn h. fishowl reply :
Welcome to BR, it can be a little confusing sometimes for a newbie. I ought to know, I had to teach myself as a kid. Here, this might help http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/60793-best-of-bassresourcecom/ and http://www.bassresource.com/how-to-fish/
Any questions you have, feel more than free to send me a personal message, I'd love to help any way I can. We've got plenty of knowledgeable people here who will probably be responding to this in, 5...4...3...2...
tbone1993 reply :
That lakes doesnt look like it has much in the way of docks and other structure that bass enjoy in the summer. Your best bet is to buy some minnows and some night crawlers and throw them on a bobber. It really is a a fool proof way to catch fish. If you want to use some artificial baits I would suggest a wacky rigging a senko. Ive caught hundreds of summer time bass on a wacky rigged senko and kids of all ages can use it because it doesnt require any skill. There is a bunch of info on how to fish senkos here > http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/12401-senko-faq-%C2%A0look-here-first/ but what you need to see is this > http://heartland.ehclients.com/images/Senko.jpg which is the wacky rig.
All you need to do is cast it out and wait for the line to swim away. You can buy cheap senkos here> http://www.overstockbait.com/Yamamoto-Senko-p/9-10.htm . I would wait for more colors to come in, green pumpkin or watermelon are the most common and successful.
Boat Control
Make sure you turn off your big motor (gas) before you enter the area you want to fish. Some rented boats dont come with anchors so I suggest making an anchor from a coffee can , concrete, rope, and some sort of a hook or u bend metal.
roadwarrior reply :
The forums are fun, but your time is better spent in our library. Read through the articles
and watch the videos. You can access everything through the green bar at the top of the
page.
Welcome aboard!
-Kent
tatertester reply :
Largemouth bass are best located by finding some sort of cover for them. Weedbeds,lily pads, downed trees , brushpiles , rocks, boulders and boat docks ,are examples of the type cover LM bass use. Use lures to fish in and around this cover such as plastic worms, senkos , floating minnow baits, spinnerbaits, or jigs to name a few.....Smallmouth bass are more of a roamer often being found around rocky areas,and intermittent weeds and wood, and smallies like to suspend in 10-15 feet of water over deeper water .Their depth many times relates to the depth of the first breakline depth ,just out and over deeper water.Lures to use are tubes,plastic worms,grubs on a jighead, spinnerbaits and various topwater lures...Hope this helps.
tatertester reply :
Roadwarrier, Your idea is likely the easiest way to get your feet wet....John
Brian6428 reply :
Not gonna lie, bass fishing can be difficult to get into. For your circumstances, I would suggest either getting a guide, or just some good old bluegill fishing. A guide would teach you a lot and get you on the fish, but at a price. For bluegill you could just buy a few cans of worms and have a pretty good day, likely with a fish fry if you want.
Now, if you do want to get into bass fishing, I will throw out some basic lures/terms.
Edit: it appears most of the links aren't working. I will try to redo them, but just google search the name of the lure to see what it is.
Worm- pretty straightforward. Rubber worm, put on a hook, normally fished with a weight (T-rig). Ex.
http://www.basspro.com/Bass-Pro-Shops-Reco-Worm/product/12080404462511/
T-rig-(Texas rig)- Most common worm rigging. (google search texas rig)
Senko- great for beginners. Fished weightless on EWG hook. http://www.basspro.com/Bass-Pro-Shops-StikO-Worm-6/product/36703/
Tube- (Aka gizit). Fished on EWG hook with a bullet weight or jighead.
http://www.basspro.com/Bass-Pro-Shops-DoubleDipped-Tubes/product/90802/
Crankbait. 2 types: lipless crankbait (rat l trap) and regular crank bait. Regular http://www.basspro.com/Gary-Yamamoto-Chikara-Crankbait/product/1307110706125/
lipless
http://www.basspro.com/Cotton-Cordell-Super-Spot-Lipless-Crankbaits/product/44610/
Rapala- very common and expensive crankbait brand. I would not suggest for a beginner.
Jig- normally Jig-n-pig. Jighead, pre tied skirt with rubber or pork rind trailer. Jig http://www.basspro.com/Strike-King-KVD-Swim-Jig/product/73171/ trailer http://www.basspro.com/LuckEStrike-Rick-Clunn-Jig-Trailers/product/15761/
Spinnerbait- normally saftey-pin type. Very effective, easy to use. http://www.basspro.com/Bass-Pro-Shops-XPS-Enticer-Spinnerbait/product/44622/
Popper- topwater lure, cupped mouth to make pop on surface. Good on summer mornings and nights.http://www.basspro.com/Gary-Yamamoto-Shibuki-Popper/product/1307110706126/
EWG hook- used to fish worms, senkos, sometimes tubes. Weedless when properly rigged. http://www.basspro.com/Lazer-TroKar-EWG-NonOffset-Worm-Hooks-with-Z-Bend/product/10205306/
Hook size. The larger number the smaller the hook is (#32 is tiny), all the way to zero. Greater than zero begin the "aughts" 1/0 (one aught) is bigger than #2 but smaller than 2/0. 5/0 is normally biggest. For bass I like 3/0 to 5/0.
Structure- permanent changes in bottom composition/depth in a lake. Examples are ledges (like a stair), points, humps (underwater hill) sunken bridges, roadbeds, riverbeds etc. I doubt you will fish much of this since you wont have a depth finder.
Cover- Non-permanent changes in a lake. Ex- fallen trees, sunken weedbed, visible weed line, etc. You will most likely fish this as you can see it w/o depth finder.
Where to find fish. Bass fishing is all about location. Depending on the time of year bass will be in different places. Look under the seasonal articles on this site for seasonal info. In general though bass relate to structure and cover. Rarely if ever will you catch a bass when they have nothing to relate to. Think of the lake as a desert- the bass will naturally attract to trees or an oasis rather than wandering aimlessly.
Rods and reels: I would suggest a spinning rod and reel combo to start, like this. http://www.basspro.com/Pflueger-Trion-Spinning-Rod-and-Reel-Combos/product/1306060741407/
Line- Start with monofilament. http://www.basspro.com/Bass-Pro-Shops-Tourney-Tough-Monofilament-Fishing-Line/product/16526/
How to fish- Most common approach is to fish from shore. Cast in fan pattern (parallel left to straight out to parallel right). From boat most troll near shore casting towards shore. Land lure as close to shore as possible. Bottom bouncing lures: (t-rig, jig, tube) cast out. Let hit bottom. Lift lure off the bottom and reel in slack. Repeat until lure returns to shore/boat. Fish slow and always be ready for a bite. Spinnerbait/crankbait- cast, let sink (spinnerbait) and begin reeling (spinnerbait and Crankbait). These lures provide action inherently. Popper- Fish on surface with short jerks of rod with long pauses.
Watch Glenn's videos on youtube (search bassresource)
Read articles in the beginners section.
**Do not automatically buy the things I linked to here. I'm in a rush (procrastinating Homework lol), I just searched the name and clicked the first one I saw. Look for similar lures that are cheaper**
If you need any help, shoot me a PM (personal message). I learned to bass fish on the internet a few years back and remember how hard it was (and still is!).
Tight lines.
Brian
hoosierbass07 reply :
Nothing beats live bait, live worms, to catch fish. So if you are taking kids and really want them to catch fish, use live bait. If you don't want to use live bait then use soft plastics - worms and lizards. Worms are the best all around bass catching lure. Of course it would probably be a good idea when you rent the boat to ask what kind of bait and lures work best for the lake you will be on. But if they don't give you any good advice, stick with what works - plastic worms. Five to seven and a half inches long.
Catt reply :
A: learn structure
B: learn bait fish
C: learn techniques
AK-Jax86 reply :
A - learn
B - apply
C - have fun
OkeechobeeAngler reply :
Patience.
coryn h. fishowl reply :
On 2/3/2014 at 6:42 AM, Catt said:A: learn structure
B: learn bait fish
C: learn techniques
On 2/3/2014 at 6:04 AM, Brian6428 said:Not gonna lie, bass fishing can be difficult to get into. For your circumstances, I would suggest either getting a guide, or just some good old bluegill fishing. A guide would teach you a lot and get you on the fish, but at a price. For bluegill you could just buy a few cans of worms and have a pretty good day, likely with a fish fry if you want.
Now, if you do want to get into bass fishing, I will throw out some basic lures/terms.
Edit: it appears most of the links aren't working. I will try to redo them, but just google search the name of the lure to see what it is.
Worm- pretty straightforward. Rubber worm, put on a hook, normally fished with a weight (T-rig). Ex.
http://www.basspro.com/Bass-Pro-Shops-Reco-Worm/product/12080404462511/
T-rig-(Texas rig)- Most common worm rigging. (google search texas rig)
Senko- great for beginners. Fished weightless on EWG hook. http://www.basspro.com/Bass-Pro-Shops-StikO-Worm-6/product/36703/
Tube- (Aka gizit). Fished on EWG hook with a bullet weight or jighead.
http://www.basspro.com/Bass-Pro-Shops-DoubleDipped-Tubes/product/90802/
Crankbait. 2 types: lipless crankbait (rat l trap) and regular crank bait. Regular http://www.basspro.com/Gary-Yamamoto-Chikara-Crankbait/product/1307110706125/
lipless
http://www.basspro.com/Cotton-Cordell-Super-Spot-Lipless-Crankbaits/product/44610/
Rapala- very common and expensive crankbait brand. I would not suggest for a beginner.
Jig- normally Jig-n-pig. Jighead, pre tied skirt with rubber or pork rind trailer. Jig http://www.basspro.com/Strike-King-KVD-Swim-Jig/product/73171/ trailer http://www.basspro.com/LuckEStrike-Rick-Clunn-Jig-Trailers/product/15761/
Spinnerbait- normally saftey-pin type. Very effective, easy to use. http://www.basspro.com/Bass-Pro-Shops-XPS-Enticer-Spinnerbait/product/44622/
Popper- topwater lure, cupped mouth to make pop on surface. Good on summer mornings and nights.http://www.basspro.com/Gary-Yamamoto-Shibuki-Popper/product/1307110706126/
EWG hook- used to fish worms, senkos, sometimes tubes. Weedless when properly rigged. http://www.basspro.com/Lazer-TroKar-EWG-NonOffset-Worm-Hooks-with-Z-Bend/product/10205306/
Hook size. The larger number the smaller the hook is (#32 is tiny), all the way to zero. Greater than zero begin the "aughts" 1/0 (one aught) is bigger than #2 but smaller than 2/0. 5/0 is normally biggest. For bass I like 3/0 to 5/0.
Structure- permanent changes in bottom composition/depth in a lake. Examples are ledges (like a stair), points, humps (underwater hill) sunken bridges, roadbeds, riverbeds etc. I doubt you will fish much of this since you wont have a depth finder.
Cover- Non-permanent changes in a lake. Ex- fallen trees, sunken weedbed, visible weed line, etc. You will most likely fish this as you can see it w/o depth finder.
Where to find fish. Bass fishing is all about location. Depending on the time of year bass will be in different places. Look under the seasonal articles on this site for seasonal info. In general though bass relate to structure and cover. Rarely if ever will you catch a bass when they have nothing to relate to. Think of the lake as a desert- the bass will naturally attract to trees or an oasis rather than wandering aimlessly.
Rods and reels: I would suggest a spinning rod and reel combo to start, like this. http://www.basspro.com/Pflueger-Trion-Spinning-Rod-and-Reel-Combos/product/1306060741407/
Line- Start with monofilament. http://www.basspro.com/Bass-Pro-Shops-Tourney-Tough-Monofilament-Fishing-Line/product/16526/
How to fish- Most common approach is to fish from shore. Cast in fan pattern (parallel left to straight out to parallel right). From boat most troll near shore casting towards shore. Land lure as close to shore as possible. Bottom bouncing lures: (t-rig, jig, tube) cast out. Let hit bottom. Lift lure off the bottom and reel in slack. Repeat until lure returns to shore/boat. Fish slow and always be ready for a bite. Spinnerbait/crankbait- cast, let sink (spinnerbait) and begin reeling (spinnerbait and Crankbait). These lures provide action inherently. Popper- Fish on surface with short jerks of rod with long pauses.
Watch Glenn's videos on youtube (search bassresource)
Read articles in the beginners section.
**Do not automatically buy the things I linked to here. I'm in a rush (procrastinating Homework lol), I just searched the name and clicked the first one I saw. Look for similar lures that are cheaper**
If you need any help, shoot me a PM (personal message). I learned to bass fish on the internet a few years back and remember how hard it was (and still is!).
Tight lines.
Brian
On 2/3/2014 at 9:12 AM, AK-Jax86 said:A - learn
B - apply
C - have fun
Tadaa!
Learn how to find fish.
Learn when presentations you can use in said setting, and learn what the conditions favor.
Also...you can bug people here with PM's haha
Yumf2 reply :
I would strongly recomend searching "bassresource" on YouTube and watching their videos. I used to strictly fish for walleye and I essentially learned how to bass fish exclusively from watching their videos, they are very helpful.
Missourifishin reply :
Everyone has given you good advice. And I encourage you to watch videos, read articles and read the forums too. But with kids that age, I would always recommend having live worms and bobbers with you. That's probably the best bet to make sure the kids have some action and at least catch some blue gill. There's no reason not to also try out some more advanced bass fishing techniques while you're out there though.
Most importantly, be safe and have a fun trip.
Catt reply :
I don't care how many techniques you learn, you can't catch what you can't find!
Hack my 7 yr old grandson can catch em on a worm if I put him on em!
Sam reply :
Hunting and fishing parallel each other.
The problem is that with fishing you adversary is out of sight. It can be like finding a needle in a hay pile.
What Catt said highlights the bass fishing challenges.
If you study your opponent you will have a little advantage over them, but not much.
This is why guys get all excited about five keepers. Five keepers in 7, 8 or 9 hours of hunting down those little green monsters.
Makes sense to me.
Crestliner2008 reply :
Some great suggestions here already. Read the articles above for sure. Also, get yourself a copy of "Spoonplugging" by Elwood "Buck" Perry. Perry is considered to be the father of modern fishing; and his facts relating to just what structure is and how to approach it, will enlighten you totally. This book should be "must read" for anyone picking up a rod & reel. 
B@ssCrzy reply :
All the above suggestions are great. Read lots of articles, learn about the fish, if you can afford it hire a guide the first day out to help you locate the fish. He can also help show you what baits to use, then the next day you can go out and try and duplicate your previous success. One last thing that has not been mentioned. Learn to tie a good knot!! This is a crucial piece of knowledge that will save a lot of heart ache. If you have a smart phone download the app Knot Wars, or just learn to tie an improved clinch knot or palomar knot.
coryn h. fishowl reply :
Pick up this book. It is one of the most comprehensive bass fishing guides I've come across. It is definitely the best way to improve your fishing skill for under $12
http://www.amazon.com/Largemouth-Bass-In-Fisherman-handbook-Strategies/dp/0929384113
Some lure references are a bit dated, but the advice, information, and strategies comprehensive and accurate. Besides, there is no shortage of new lure information on here, haha!
Catt reply :
On 2/3/2014 at 9:39 PM, coryn h. fishowl said:Pick up this book. It is one of the most comprehensive bass fishing guides I've come across. It is definitely the best way to improve your fishing skill for under $12
http://www.amazon.com/Largemouth-Bass-In-Fisherman-handbook-Strategies/dp/0929384113
Some lure references are a bit dated, but the advice, information, and strategies comprehensive and accurate. Besides, there is no shortage of new lure information on here, haha!
What a way to start the new year!
I gotta agree with coryn! Great book! 
JeziHogg reply :
1.Patience
2.Patience
3.Patience
Dwight Hottle reply :
Location
Location
Location
CDMeyer reply :
I would use this site for every thing, they have great articles on every bassin' technique you could imagine..... as far as a specific question goes, just ask and we will all be willing to help
Caylub reply :
I would be using live bait, if I have kids with me and we are all green. We all know how easily kids can lose interest when the fish aren't biting.
Lasher reply :
Don't measure fishing by the amount or size of fish you catch, measure fishing by fun, excitement, relaxation, fresh air, attitude, freedom, connection with nature and ancestors and the basic primal instincts that most males and some females naturally possess and give in and commit to it and go do it
Darren. reply :
Welcome to the forums!
I will echo the sentiment(s) encouraging you to hit the "library" on the forum.
So much can be learned there, and in articles, books, etc.
I'm not discouraging you from asking, though! That's what a forum is for!
Ratherbfishing reply :
First, fishing is (or can be) a lifetime pursuit. About the time you "master" a technique, you'll probably move on and find something else to try. HOWEVER, you can make it as simple or as complicated as you wish it to be.
I agree with those who say location is the most important thing. Where fish can be found is impacted by time of year (which includes instinctive behaviors such as spawning, etc), weather conditions, food availability, etc. Bass, in particular, seem to always relate to structure and cover in some fashion. Weed edges, points, shelves, submerged creek beds, tree lines, drop offs etc. are always good places to look. But, again, bass will move according to factors like food availability, temperature, oxygen, etc. Some bass move a lot while others in the right locations may move very little. You can seldom go wrong by fishing in or near vegitation.
In my mind, there are two different kinds of baits: Search baits and probing baits. Search baits are helpful for covering a lot of water and finding the actively feeding fish (those willing to "chase" their prey). Crankbaits, spinnerbaits, trolling spoons, inline spinners, swim baits, etc. are good examples of lures in this category. Probe baits, like plastic worms, and creature baits, jigs, jigging spoons, etc are for methodically picking an area apart. You can get hung up on brands (and generally it's true that brand names tend to work better than cheapo immitations) but if you are unwilling to fish a high dollar bait where it might hang up for fear you might lose it, you're better off going with a cheaper brand or model.
New fishermen,especially those with boats, often take the approach that the grass is greener on the other side of the lake and then roar off to the other side-just to find everything about the same, and then begin casting randomly. It's better to use a map (in conjuction with a fish finder) to choose where you are going to fish however the geological features above the water (gentle sloping banks as opposed to steep cliffs, for example) will often give you a good idea as to what is going on below the water. At least near the shore.
Although some "purists" tend to disdain trolling, this method will cover a lot of water, find more active feeding fish, and keep youngsters entertained. There are nuances to even this method, however, so like everything else, there is a learning curve.
Oh, bass tend to be more active during periods of stable weather than after it has been stormy or after a cold front has moved through. Fish more quickly in the former and slow down after cold fronts.
There! Everything you'll ever need to know!
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