Spring is not officially here yet,
but for the practical intents and purposes of largemouth bass fishing, it is
with open water. The advantage of smaller, shallower waters is that they warm
faster than area lakes. They cool off more at night also, but plan to fish late
in the afternoon and possibly into dusk on a mild day and you may even enjoy
topwater plug action. At the least, to get out and fish now will help set your
life in motion for the rest of the year. We all remember how we anticipated
spring’s arrival as kids. We felt that events got under way because we were
oriented to activities outdoors like various sports and hang outs. That’s still
in us as adults, and to step aside from the fast track even for an afternoon
can make a difference.
Topwater plugs, spinnerbaits, in-line
spinners, and floater/diver plugs are especially effective bass catchers, and
since I’ve mentioned surface action, I’ll first discuss a method that works on
calm ponds with water as cold as 47 degrees F. The Rebel Minnow is not a
topwater plug per se; it’s a floater/diver plug made of plastic that floats.
The way it floats is what gives it a special quality.
Unlike balsa wood plugs like Rapalas
or other floater/divers with types of plastic and/or amount of it that float
the plug evenly on the water, the 2 ½ inch Rebel Minnow will float at an angle.
The rear is submerged. The plug sits almost at a 45 degree angle to the
surface. Use no more than six pound test line on a light spinning outfit.
Twitch the plug on the surface very slightly. The nose is pulled forward and
the rear lifts then drops back.
This is subtle lure action and what
the cold water calls for. It won’t work if the temperature is 47 degrees and
falling. It works late in the afternoon or evening after sun’s been on the
water, warming it on a mild day. Bass will take the plug as if they aim at the
rear as it drops. You may only see a dimple on the surface as silent as a trout
sipping a dry fly.
If water temperatures are moving
through the 50’s, a whole range of small topwater plugs will likely be
effective on a calm surface at dusk. You can experiment with retrieves, but
slower blooping and popping and such is likely all that will work. If the pond
has a northeast corner that has some shallows adjacent to deep water, that’s
where you should try your best. With the sun in the southeast, that northeast
corner warms most.
Topwater plugs require the most patience.
Spinnerbaits and in-line spinners allow you to cover a pond’s entire range of
shallows by fan casting. These lures may be especially effective with sunlight
present, which they reflect. But they will work when the sun goes down also.
Typically, wind calms at this time. If it doesn’t, don’t bother with surface plug
fishing, use a spinner or possibly a floater/diver retrieved, which I’ll
discuss in a moment. If water temperatures are moving through the 50’s or
higher, a spinnerbait buzzed near the surface, retrieved so that it leaves a
wake, may attract bass especially when air is calm.
Success is not guaranteed. But over
years of finding peace of mind by casting lures, I’ve noticed what tends to
work and what doesn’t.
Floater/divers can be retrieved with
truly frantic action. I loved these plugs as a teenager. Rebel Minnows work
better when water temperature is in the lower 50’s than the more quickly
responding balsa plugs that float high. You can impart crazy action to the
Minnow by constantly jerking the rod tip. The plug stays a little deeper at
slower retrieve than Rapalas and darts side to side, straight, and somewhat up
and down. Bass seem to find this irritating and strike even without hunger,
perhaps. On a warm afternoon when water temperatures have shot up suddenly,
they seem to like to vent some of the excitement of spring fever they have by
chasing down a darting plug.
These are basics enough to follow and
have some success on the pond off Route 206 at Bedminster, Heddon Park in
Dover, Sunrise Lake in Washington Township, Mount Hope Pond in Rockaway
Township, or any other. But never forget to open your perceptions as wide as
possible to take in the natural world. The more aware of it you are, the better
the game.
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