Question No. 1 in many anglers’ minds is whether it is even worth going bass fishing through the hottest part of summer. We contend, yes, and believe these answers to FAQ can make your summer bass fishing outings extra productive.
Mid- to late summer offers undeniable challenges for bass anglers. However, that does not mean good fishing action cannot be found. If you begin with an understanding of how summer conditions affect bass behavior, you can adapt accordingly with locations, fishing times and strategies.
Where are bass located in mid- to late summer?
Water temperature, dissolved oxygen levels and forage availability all impact bass locations. Many fish hold offshore and deeper than during spring or fall, commonly suspending or using structure that is at or just above the thermocline in any lake that lake stratifies. If any current moves through a waterway, the fish favor vertical structure breaks that run perpendicular to the current because such structure creates underwater eddies and ambush positions. Available cover, including stumps, boulders and brush piles, offer hiding places and make good locations excellent.
Other important mid-summer zones include waters up a lake’s creek and river arms, where current and shade keep the water a bit cooler, and areas of all-day shade beneath docks and lily pads and matted vegetation.
What are the best lures for mid-summer bass?
The best lures for mid-summer bass fishing include topwater lures, finesse-style soft plastic lures, versatile plastic worms, medium- to deep-diving crankbaits and jigging spoons.
Early and late in the day, bass tend to look up for misplaced terrestrial insects and critters and baitfish pushed to the surface and will readily grab a well-presented topwater lure. Finesse plastics, meanwhile, can be fished shallow or deep and rigged various ways, and they appeal to fish that have gotten finicky during the summer. A basic plastic worm is tough to top for working brushpiles and other cover at night and can also be Carolina rigged to work offshore structure. Crankbaits and jigging spoons allow you to work offshore structure very efficiently.
What is the best time of day to fish?
From daybreak until mid-morning is the best time to fish for summer bass, with that window sometimes extended on dark, overcast days. The next best period encompasses the final couple of hours before dark. Night-fishing can also be extremely productive for anglers who don’t mind the extra challenges that come from fishing in the dark.
How deep are bass in July?
The most common depth range for bass through mid-summer would be best described as middle depths. They often move deeper for thermal refuge, but in any lake that stratifies, water below the thermocline lacks sufficient dissolved oxygen. Many fish reside along channel edges in major creek arms of reservoirs or atop humps or long points in the lake’s main body.
It would be impossible to assign accurate numbers to the primary depth range because that varies substantially based on topography, water color, forage make-up, water flow and more. The deepest hole in a lowland lake might be considered shallow in a steep-sided upland lake. In addition, fish move shallower at night and around inflows and other cooling influences, and some bass stay shallow throughout the summer, mostly hiding in the shade through the day.
How do you catch bass during a heat wave?
A mid-summer heat wave accentuates the need to hit the water early and to concentrate on shady areas and cooling influences like inflows. Better yet, it’s a great time to try night fishing or to abandon the lake altogether and to go wade a creek or a small river, where the moving water and shade keep water temperatures lower. Beyond offering better fish-catching prospects, fishing at night or wading a creek is far more comfortable that being out in the full sun during a heat wave!
Is topwater fishing still effective?
Topwater bass fishing remains effective all summer and is in fact one of the best techniques for catching summer bass. It’s especially effective early in the morning and in the evening, but fish will ambush prey on the surface all day in cooler river water, along shady banks and in or near pads and grass mats. Hollow-bodied frogs like a BOOYAH Pad Crasher or Poppin’ Pad Crasher call up great topwater action around heavy vegetation throughout the summer.
Are bass feeding at night?
Bass do feed readily at night during the summer, and that is only a part of the reason they can be more difficult to catch during mid-summer days. At night, the fish move shallower – onto flats, atop shallow humps and points and into shallow cover – to the same places where many anglers are used to finding bass. Anglers who fail to adjust when fish drop down off the shallow spots during the day find fewer fish, and even when anglers search deeper, it’s simply more challenging to locate fish and make effective presentations when you the structure is deeper or the fish are suspended farther down in the water column.
5 Essential Mid-Summer Bass Lures
Spin’N Image – Spin’N Image Jr – Easy to fish and great for covering water, both sizes gurgle the surface irresistibly. During low-light periods, especially, cast close to cover, let the bait rest a moment and snap your wrist just enough to engage the blade. Do that a couple of times, with pauses in between, staying ready for an explosion, before switching to a steady retrieve.
YUM Ribbontail – This classic 7 1/2-inch worm, with a long wavering tail, is ideal for dragging through brush at night or hopping down bluff ledges and other structure on a Texas rig, and for working points and humps with a Carolina rig. A light Texas rig with a Ribbontail also makes a fabulous follow-up bait when a fish blows up on a Pop-R but misses.
Great Lakes Finesse Micro Sneaky Underspin/Micro Drop Minnow – This pint-sized combo amps up the finesse when mid-summer conditions make the bass extra finicky and provides great versatility because you can fish it in a range of depths and at different speeds. Also, the most effective approach is elementary: cast, reel, catch. In addition, the Drop Minnow was originally designed for drop shotting, which opens even more finesse applications.
War Eagle Jigging Spoon – Defined ambush positions in moderated temperatures and baitfish availability commonly cause bass to congregate on deeper structure through mid-summer, and little is more efficient for targeting these fish than a jigging spoon. In addition, a jigging spoon allows for long casts and quick, flashy presentations when schools pop up and is highly effective for trigging bites from suspended bass.
Norman Deep Little N – The Deep Little N runs to a nice depth range for many summer bass and has a medium wobble that suits a broad range of situations, and despite “Little” in the name, it is a medium-sized crankbait that matches shad and herring effectively. It is a great tool for working specific structures and for working systematically along edges to find active bass.
