Bass Fishing Tips

Lucky Strike Bait Works has been developing and manufacturing fishing lures for over 85 years. In that time, we’ve learned a lot about a variety of fish species, how they behave and how to catch them.

Here are some of our tips, direct from our in-house team.

Best Times for Bass Fishing

Season

The best time of year for Bass fishing is as soon as your local Bass season opens, when water temperatures are cooler and Bass move to more shallow waters. Trophy Bass are most commonly caught during this time.

Weather and Time of Day

Bass can be caught at any time of day. During cooler or more overcast conditions, bass will be more spread out, so the fish will be easier to find. Alternatively, during sunnier conditions and in clearer waters, bass will swim deeper or seek shelter and can be targeted more precisely near shaded areas and structures. The largest Bass tend to be active in low light periods such as dusk and dawn.

Bass are active right before or after low pressure weather systems. Watch for temperature drops and storm clouds accumulating in the sky to indicate incoming systems.

Choosing the Best Lures for Bass Fishing

Lure Type

Bass will respond to a variety of types of lures. Some of the most successful and commonly used are Hard Body Crank Baits, Spinner Baits and Weighted Spinners as well as a variety of soft plastic baits.

Bass are often attracted to buzzing sounds and vibrations as well as flashing colours produced by certain baits.

Lure Colour

Bass eat a wide variety of foods from crawfish to minnows. Brighter colours attract more aggressive fish, while more dull colours are effective for mimicking live baits. Try experimenting with a variety of colours, patterns and sizes.

Lure Size

Bass will bite lures that are generally between 25% to 50% of their size. That means that even a fairly large lure can catch a modest sized Bass. Don’t be caught fishing with a lure far too small or you may compromise your results. We recommend lures 2 inches or larger in length.

Lure Technique

Bass respond to both fast moving and slower retrieval speeds. Try reeling at different speeds every few casts and see if you get a different response. What worked yesterday or even an hour ago might not be what fish are looking for now.

Bass must often be enticed before they will strike. When Bass fishing with a Live Series® bait, one technique is to cast past the fish and reel it towards the area where the fish is waiting. Find a spot where the fish becomes interested an twitch the rod tip (with a slack line), so that the bait will bounce up and down while passing by the fish. There is no correct or incorrect speed to twitch the rod or reel it in, and differences in cadence can make a big difference, so keep experimenting until you find what works. Unfortunately, the next day, you may need to find a totally new sweet spot to suit the mood of the fish that day.

More Tips for Bass Fishing

Fishing Line

Check your line regularly just above the lure for fraying and weak points. Since Bass are often in shallow or sheltered areas, underwater obstacles can weaken your line and raise the chances of the line breaking when you finally get a Bass on your hook. Try using a Leader to add strength to this critical area. As a rule of thumb, think “heavy cover, heavy line”.

Bass Behaviour

In windy conditions, Bass and other fish are attracted to the shoreline that the wind is blowing towards. Look for points, manmade structures, etc. where nutrients are being kicked up in the water and the water is becoming murkier. This will attract bait fish and in turn, large Bass.

When fishing in waters with stronger currents such as rivers and creeks, look for Bass on inside turns of bends in the waterway. Bass wait here for food items that are swept in and accumulate.

Bass may look at a bait several times over dozens of casts before it decides to bite so take your time before moving on to a new location.