Fall is Coming
The obvious is on its way, that being some August signs that fall is coming. It is not hard to see some leaf’s dropping from the dry weather, some cool north breezes early in the day and August quickly coming to an end. When this occurs fish shallow as there are many obstacles to overcome in the deep and when every bite counts like in a tournament you cannot afford any mistakes. Missing fish is unfortunately part of bass fishing but when every fish counts when bites are hard to come by like the fall time frame then there are some things you can do to protect against some of those misses.
First of all you must be rigged correctly for the shallow bite so matching your bait to the proper rod and line strength is a must. I want to be able to get a strong hook set, not worry about the line breaking and get as sensitive a rod as I can find. I also generally rig with at least a ¼ oz weight and sometimes even a 3/8 oz. because a bullet weight that is a little heavier than the one you would use in the spring helps you detect every bite regardless of whether the bass hits it hard or just lightly picks it up!
It’s also important in the fall that you can locate the grass edges, and as the grass dies off and hangs underneath the water it is not always easy to see. So, I use a good pair of polarized sunglasses. That are equipped with extremely clear polarized lenses that can see the grass lines even though they are under water. This allows you to work you’re bait directly on the grass edge; the fall is a time of year where we get a several blue bird days and being able to see the grass edge in imperative. The closer you work the bait to the grass line the more chance you have of getting bites as that is where the oxygen is located.
Fish shallow, work grass, rig correctly, look for bait balls, be persistent in the fall and you will be successful during one of the toughest times of the year!
Fish Lake Guntersville Guide Service
www.fishlakeguntersvilleguideservice.com
Email: bassguide@comcast.net
Call: 256 759 2270
Captain Mike Gerry