Can someone teach me to bass fish!??

[VMAN-Fishing34]

I am 17 got my drivers license and gear and always wanted to bass fish but have never had any luck... Would really love some info on the subject please I live near troutdale. Thanks happy fishing!
-Vitaliy

 

[Tinker]

I am 17 got my drivers license and gear and always wanted to bass fish but have never had any luck... Would really love some info on the subject please I live near troutdale. Thanks happy fishing!
-Vitaliy

<SNIPPED>

Which type of bass? You fish for largemouth and spotted bass differently than you fish for smallmouth, and striped bass differently, still.

What type of gear do you have? Levelwind/baitcasting gear, or spinning gear or a fly rod?

It's my opinion that you start with the easiest method to catch the fish and as you learn about the fish - it's habits, what triggers it to strike, when and where to fish for it - you then take the next step to make it harder to catch them.

If you're fishing in an area that allow live bait, you can't beat a nightcrawler under a bobber for largemouth, or a small minnow under a bobber for both largemouth and smallmouth. They can work any time of the year.

If you are in lure-only water, there are two basic ways to get a bass to take your lure: trigger an aggressive strike or imitate a bait. There are ten thousand techniques but they are all refinements and variations on those two, most basic techniques.

Live bait or artificials, you have to figure out where the fish will be and there's another encyclopedia of information about where they're most likely to be on any given day, in different kinds of light, with different water temperature and water clarity, and with differing barimetric pressures and phases of the moon.

Bass are ambush predators. They want the most calories from their prey while using the fewest calories to capture it. They want to be protected from predators that want to capture them. Hiding places - some form of concealment - is where they'll be. Predators won't see them easily, and the bass can ambush their prey from their hiding place.

Fishing a lake? Look for objects you can see: the edges of weed beds, logs, boulders - anything that breaks-up the contour of the bottom of the lake. These are "objects on structure" and they offer hiding places for the bass, ambush points to attack their prey, and in spawning season, beds that they'll defend. Look for drop-offs and channels. These are the "structure" of the lake - the physical shape of the bottom. Bass like the dropoffs if the sun is bright and the air and water is warm because they can hang in deeper, cooler water and attack up into the shallows.

Either on structure or on objects, look for where shadows stop and concentrate right there, at that edge, because that's a hiding spot for the bass. Whenever you approach the water, look for the edges, the borders, and the boundaries that break up the light. Then look for the physical objects and the structure of the bottom. If you can find a spot where you have a break in the light and have objects in the water or a dropoff in the structure, that's the right place to get started.

In a river, you can't count on the bottom structure, but you can count on objects in the water and edges and boundaries between light and shadow. Look for slower moving water - fish don't like to hang in the current for very long using up their energy. In a river, a new "edge" to hunt for is a break in the current - the boundary between moving water and still (or slower-moving) water. Look in the inside of a bend of a river where the water is slower than it is at the outside of the bend. If you can find a rock, a log, or anything in that water that a bass can hide behind, fish there!

And fish each spot you think is likely several times. Over-and-over. What a bass might ignore the first time might aggravate it into striking the second time, or the third or fourth. Be persistent.

You're going to get a lot of answers here, but this is a starting point. Ask any questions you want and someone will chime in.

Ask about lures and someone will answer. Ask about line and you'll get answers. You're on a noble path young angler <SNIPPED>

 

[VMAN-Fishing34]

Dang that's about the best response I could have asked for thanks I really appreciate it. The thing is I fish for shad trout and any other fish I can hook lol. I'd like to think fishing is In my blood. I got bait casters spinning reals Fly rods. And so many lures. I think the reason I have so many questions about it is because I have so much different kind of gear lol. Another question is when is spawning season? thanks

 

[colbypearson]

You're on a noble path young angler - once you quit all this bass nonesense and start to fish for a noble species...

Carp?

A biologist with a warm-water focus told me last week that the "bass" family is among the top 3 freshwater species in terms of relative intellect. If I recall correctly various strains of carp were at the top of the list.

I don't remember what the exact ranking was #2, or #3. But Salmonid species weren't one of them.

 

[colbypearson]

The thing is I fish for shad trout and any other fish I can hook lol.

That's probably the problem, welcome to fishing for a "noble" species.

Bass typically spawn in late spring to early summer in Oregon, Late March-July depending on water temperatures. Largemouth bass typically spawn at what is considered the magic number which is 63 degrees, smallmouth are commonly known to spawn around 58 degrees, although often times bass can be spawning up to 5 degrees cooler than those numbers. You will often see males move up first, and larger females moving up second, in pressured fisheries the female typically hovers a few yards off the "bed" until it is time to lay her eggs, where she will move up fairly quickly and push back down.

 

[Tinker]

Carp?

A biologist with a warm-water focus told me last week that the "bass" family is among the top 3 freshwater species in terms of relative intellect. If I recall correctly various strains of carp were at the top of the list.

I don't remember what the exact ranking was #2, or #3. But Salmonid species weren't one of them.

Well, I admit that every family has some potential for a genius, but not all of a family has that potential... Carp are a prized gamefish almost everywhere else in the word, but here they get no respect. They don't test Salmonids out of sympathy and concern for all other fishes.

 

[Tinker]

Dang that's about the best response I could have asked for thanks I really appreciate it. The thing is I fish for shad trout and any other fish I can hook lol. I'd like to think fishing is In my blood. I got bait casters spinning reals Fly rods. And so many lures. I think the reason I have so many questions about it is because I have so much different kind of gear lol. Another question is when is spawning season? thanks

You are definitely well-geared. Just a suggestion: choose your favorite rod/reel combination, just for this season, and find the fish. Stick with whatever rig you choose - that's another layer of complexity at the moment - hit the river and have fun. I'm always out there fishing, I'm sometimes out there catching, but I'm always out there having fun.

This was said about trout, but it applies to all species: the thing you have to admire most about fish is their impeccable taste in landscape. Enjoy it.

 

[colbypearson]

Well, I admit that every family has some potential for a genius, but not all of a family has that potential... Carp are a prized gamefish almost everywhere else in the word, but here they get no respect. They don't test Salmonids out of sympathy and concern for all other fishes.

:lol:

Well in that case I must tend to target genius bass, because I can say that the fish that stoke my fire aren't typically easy to catch. I have salmon and steelhead fished a few times, it just seemed pretty silly and unrewarding. To each their own though, definitely my .02.

 

[Tinker]

:lol:

Well in that case I must tend to target genius bass, because I can say that the fish that stoke my fire aren't typically easy to catch. I have salmon and steelhead fished a few times, it just seemed pretty silly and unrewarding. To each their own though, definitely my .02.

I find it odd and disconcerting that a forum moderator would hijack a thread for their own soapbox. Vitaliy wants to learn how to catch bass. Whether or not bass are intelligent or challenging to catch is - at best - ancillary to his question. When Vitaliy starts catching them, he can decide on his own whether or not they are smart fish or challenging opponents. For someone who's 17, he seems to be enthusiastic, level-headed and pretty darned smart, and I'm sure he'll decide if I'm full of $hipoopy without our help - and should he decide that I'm full of it, he'll still get all the support and advice that I can provide.

If you have tips and advice to offer on how to learn to catch bass, please share it and help this young man. But if all you want to do is praise how smart bass are, I'm starting to wonder if that has anything to do with the intelligence of the bass.

 

[tomriker]

you're the one who started it tinker..

 

[VMAN-Fishing34]

I find it odd and disconcerting that a forum moderator would hijack a thread for their own soapbox. Vitaliy wants to learn how to catch bass. Whether or not bass are intelligent or challenging to catch is - at best - ancillary to his question. When Vitaliy starts catching them, he can decide on his own whether or not they are smart fish or challenging opponents. For someone who's 17, he seems to be enthusiastic, level-headed and pretty darned smart, and I'm sure he'll decide if I'm full of $hipoopy without our help - and should he decide that I'm full of it, he'll still get all the support and advice that I can provide.

If you have tips and advice to offer on how to learn to catch bass, please share it and help this young man. But if all you want to do is praise how smart bass are, I'm starting to wonder if that has anything to do with the intelligence of the bass.

I really appreciate it. I was beginning to worry if the whole point of this thread was getting through. Thanks agian for all the Info I will deffinently try some of them out next time I go out I've hooked one 8" bass in my life an after that day it has been my dream to reel in a big 24" bass

 

[colbypearson]

I find it odd and disconcerting that a forum moderator would hijack a thread for their own soapbox. Vitaliy wants to learn how to catch bass. Whether or not bass are intelligent or challenging to catch is - at best - ancillary to his question. When Vitaliy starts catching them, he can decide on his own whether or not they are smart fish or challenging opponents. For someone who's 17, he seems to be enthusiastic, level-headed and pretty darned smart, and I'm sure he'll decide if I'm full of $hipoopy without our help - and should he decide that I'm full of it, he'll still get all the support and advice that I can provide.

If you have tips and advice to offer on how to learn to catch bass, please share it and help this young man. But if all you want to do is praise how smart bass are, I'm starting to wonder if that has anything to do with the intelligence of the bass.

Just like Tomriker said, you started it, he wanted to learn about bass and you encouraged him to target a more noble species?

And being as I just talked to a very noteworthy warm-water biologist studying fish since the 1940's, who clearly layed out the research findings for me, I was wondering if you were speaking about carp?


I am not praising the idea that a bass may be smart, I am not even the type of person to accredit a fish with any sort of measurable mental capacity in the first place, its not the fishes brain that creates significant challenges for the angler.... It never is.


When people want to start discussing bass in comparison to other fish species I always play.

Anyways you covered bass grade level 1 just fine, I see you decided to "thread jack" another thread to narrate your experiences in this one? :lol:

Now back on topic.

 

[colbypearson]

Like Tinker said, there are 3 main strains of Black bass, Large mouth, Small mouth, and Spotted bass...

Black Bass (Micropterus) are actually in the Sun-fish family, the sub-grouping is composed of 3 main species, with different strains, as well as 5 other recognized bass species but we will focus on the 3 main species and their strain/strain mixes.

The Large-mouth bass attains the largest size out of all the Black-bass, the world record stands at 22lbs 4.9oz from Japans, Lake Biwa. IGFA world records state that the new world record must break the previous world record by 2 ounces, so the current world record also has a tie that was caught in 1932 by George Perry from Georgia. The Large-mouth tends to favor shallower water than the Spotted, and Small-mouth bass, and can often be found in the top 15' of the water column, although do go deeper depending on the fishery, seasons, etc.... I would consider anything deeper than 40' extreme for Large-mouth but they could essentially be in the 50-70' depth as well although not common.

The Small-mouth bass is a more mid-ranged size bass, the world record is just over 11lbs, from Dale Hollow Reservoir Tennessee. Small-mouth was originally native to the rivers of the Eastern United states, thus the broad tail and immense fighting capabilities. They are often dubbed the strongest fish in freshwater. Although their origins spring from rivers, smallmouth tend to feel at home in slightly deeper average waters than Large-mouth and can be found in water as deep as 90'-100', depending on the fishery, seasons, etc...

The Spotted bass is similar in size to the Small-mouth, and the world record is 10.16lbs from California's Pine Flat Reservoir. Spotted bass are plentiful in the reservoirs of Northern California and can be found in Shasta, Oroville, and most of the other reservoir style lakes in California. Spotted bass have also been certified in Lost Creek Lake in Southern Oregon, as well as Cottage Grove Reservoir. Spotted bass are an odd-ball of the Black bass species and are fairly common to catch in 50'-100' and likely even go deeper. Not to say they don't live shallow because they certainly do. A spotted basses domain is anywhere from 1'-100'+, they really are an interesting fish.

There is also various cross strains between these fish, there is Northern Strain, and Florida strain in largemouth bass. Florida strain typically attain greater sizes especially in length, but Northern strain fish typically don't attain nearly the immense size but make up for it with a longer life span. Florida strain bass are adapted to live in the warmer more stable climates with year round growing potential, they turn off much easier in cold temperatures and often aren't as aggressive as Northern Strains. There is also Northern/Florida hybrids that possess characteristics of each strain, both great size and a heightened longevity.........

Smallmouth and Spotted bass occasionally create a hybrid because they favor very similar spawning depths and temperatures, these are called "mean-mouth's".

Largemouth bass spawn around 63 degree water temps, while spotted bass and smallmouth typically start a few degrees earlier.

Depending on the river system Black bass especially smallmouth will and do relate to fairly heavy current. When I fish rivers for bass I purposely seek areas with moderate to high current, often times it's where the biggest fish live. You need to learn to read water to successfully do this, the bass will be among heavy current, but not "in" it.

The optimal ways to target Black-bass often depend on what sort of fishery you are dealing with. Most anglers wont ever be able to realize the full potential of bass because they are targeting them the wrong way. In bass fishing there is a lot of regurgitated information that for the most part just side-tracks anglers.

This is just some generic information/fact about these species I have collected through personal observation and years of research. If you really want to get serious about targeting bass try supplying names of lakes/rivers you want to fish, specific species you want to target...I'll gladly help.

And I won't spell out the regurgitated situational dependent information of bass fishing that anyone can read in a 3$ bass fishing magazine from wal-mart.

 

[VMAN-Fishing34]

Thanks for all the info man making this thread was totally worth it. We'll I live in troutdale which is near the Columbia I have a car and a license so going places isent to hard for me. My Main subject is probably small mouth and largemouth although there are more small mouth then large around my area. I got the gear I need rods lures hooks ect...

 

[colbypearson]

Thanks for all the info man making this thread was totally worth it. We'll I live in troutdale which is near the Columbia I have a car and a license so going places isent to hard for me. My Main subject is probably small mouth and largemouth although there are more small mouth then large around my area. I got the gear I need rods lures hooks ect...

Awesome, will given your location I would assume that most lower elevation smaller bodies of water up there are currently in all phases of the spawn for largemouth and likely smallies in the Columbia, you will be able to find fish shallow on and around beds, deeper if they are post spawn, and in immediate staging areas if they are still pre-spawn (staging area is a stopping point between transition zones.)

If fishing a river system you will likely better off to target areas that have slower moving bays, or slough's with shallow water access and preferably a gravel substrate for the bedding fish. If you don't find success doing that you can search cover elements with a texas rig or jig for pre/post spawn largemouth. As for the smallies they will spawn at the mouths of those bays and sloughs or even slower river shorelines, smallies love to spawn alongside stumps, so do largemouth.

To be honest if you can find successful spawning areas and efficiently be able to determine pre/post spawn haunts all in one area you will find yourself locating exceptional bass areas year after year because the culmination of these three elements typically creates a residential fish situation.

 

[VMAN-Fishing34]

so fishing fairly shallow, semi flat, slow moving water beds? and can you clarify what a staging area is? okay to look for a good looking spot for a fish to lay its eggs right? not to open and not to quick of water.

 

[colbypearson]

so fishing fairly shallow, semi flat, slow moving water beds? and can you clarify what a staging area is? okay to look for a good looking spot for a fish to lay its eggs right? not to open and not to quick of water.

Yea, a staging area is some form of stopping point between deeper water/cover etc...... and a spawning area, typically a flat with proper substrate, small rock, pebbles, heavy grain sand, occasionally dense mud/clay.

It could come in many forms, a dropoff near a flat, a point, etc....

This is a completely random topo map i pulled off the computer, it has a semi-flat bay with a few key structural elements, the point on the top being the most major. Staging areas are marked in the red box (literally a stopping or setup point between point A- deeper wintering areas, and point B- spawning areas), and typical spawning areas are surrounded in white. It's a really generic representation of a broad idea, which is ok because its fairly simple.

 

[VMAN-Fishing34]

Wow that actually helps a lot thanks. With the picture I can already think of a couple places to hit. So if I'm hitting the more open resting area I want to use like a top water plug correct? Or more of a grub that gets near the bottom.

 

[Tinker]

you're the one who started it tinker..

And I tried to end it, too, didn't I? In context of the answer I posted, is there any way that you can infer that I don't know about bass fishing because I lack personal experience fishing for bass? Is there anything in this or any other post I've made on the forum that suggests that I don't fish fo bass or that I fish only for salmonids? Anywhere?

Is there any point in my original, unedited answer to Vitaliy that remotely suggests that I don't consider myself a member of the "bass rabble"? Point it out, please?

colbypearson took a giant leap to start baiting the salmon anglers without knowing anything about me, my fishing habits, or my background. Raincatcher followed him by telling me to change my direction. You seem to be ready to make the same leap into thin air.

I even have an interesting post in this thread claiming a scientific study ranks fish intelligence. I've spent four hours I'm never going to get back seaching for any study discussing relative intelligence of fish species and if it's there, it's mighty well hidden.

I grew up in the im Midwest, fished bass down South, throughout the Midwest, the East and in Canada. I had a chance to study with Buck Perry - and if you don't know who Buck is, you don't know your bass from a hole in the ground. There isn't a thing known about bass fishing today that doesn't but slightly build on Buck Perry's original study of structure, objects and how bass relate to structure and objects.

And I still don't think bass are smart or clever or a challenge to catch. I do think they're a challenge to find, but once found, are not terribly hard to hook.

I have said that I've been trying for a year to catch a steelhead and haven't caught one, yet. As Vitaliy is with bass, I am with steelhead: we want to catch a fish but we're asking questions about how it's done. Further, I don't think you or colbypearson or Raincatcher can show me any post in which I suggest that bass are any less intelligent, less clever or less challenging to catch than any other species.

Are all Oregon bass anglers so insecure? I might have to stop fishing for bass in Oregon...

 

[Tinker]

Wow that actually helps a lot thanks. With the picture I can already think of a couple places to hit. So if I'm hitting the more open resting area I want to use like a top water plug correct? Or more of a grub that gets near the bottom.

You want to use both. What you want to do is find what they are doing at any given time, and that can change throughout the day. You may find them actively feeding, and topwater lures can work well in those situations. You might find them sunning themselves - resting but not feeding - and then you have to aggravate them into taking your lure.

Bass have a territorial hierarchy and will aggressively defend their space. If they aren't feeding, you can't get them to take an attractor plug, but can get them to hit an aggravator. Most topwater plugs and grubs are designed to imitate a prey fish and induce a predatory strike, and most imitators (like Rapalas), spinners or spinnerbaits are designed to enduce an aggressive territorial strike.

If you're convinced you're on a spot that holds fish, you should try both types of lures to thoroughly fish the area.

If you're fishing a bedding area, in general, spawning fish are rarely feeding fish but will usually be extraordinarily territorial. Post-spawn fish are voracious feeders and a lot less territorial. In warm water they're more active and will chase the lure. In colder water, they may be lethargic and you'll need to put the lure on their noses. An ideal situation is to find the bass warming themselves in shallower water when they are not spawning because that's when they are preparing to feed.

Depth in the water column has more to do with barometric pressure and water clarity than anything else. If they are not actively defending the spawning bed, they'll move into water in which they are safe from predators; but if there's a sudden drop in the barometric pressure (a storm is approaching), it can unbalance their swim bladder enough that they'll be more shallow than you'd normally expect for several hours.

I'll bow to colbypearson's experience with the Columbia basin, but in other parts of the country, bass don't seek gravel or sand for spawning, but seek weed beds and reeds where the hatchlings will shelter and mature. They'll dig through the silt that the weeds grow in to reach gravel for the nest, but they seek the weeds and reeds as shelter for the hatch.

If I were to fish a spawning ground when they are actively spawning, I'd start with a shallow diving lure - 1 to 3 feet - and follow that with a deeper diving lure that will bounce along the bottom. A nesting bass will often flash at a shallow lure without taking the lure - just chasing it away - and when that happens, you might want to change to a deeper lure and keep casting it to the nest until she hits it to protect the nest.

If you search a few videos online, you'll find some that show fish caught from their spawning beds and they're almost always caught by putting an imitator lure on the bottom very close to the nest and trying to get the female to attack the lure to protect the nest.