How to Find Big Bass Ponds Without Spending a Lifetime Searching for Them
If you want to find that 3, 4, 5 or even 6 or 7 pound bass without ever getting into the boat, then it’s time to find the best bass pond in your area. When I go searching for big bass in new ponds, I use one bait and I fish hard for about 2 hours. You may think that 2 hours is not enough and why would I limit myself to just one bait.
I’m telling you that all you need is a bucket of creek chubs or redtail chubs and a couple of hours and you can decide whether or not you ever go back to that pond again. Sorry tournament anglers, I’m not throwing a big jig, plastic worm, spinnerbait or crankbait. All I need is a chub.
Where to Get the Bait?
Find a bait shop that sells chubs and go pick up 12 to 18 chubs between 4 and 7 inches long. Big baits catch big bass and I don’t want to waste my time with 12 to 14 inchers when I’m searching for a big bass pond, so I like to use chubs in the 5 to 6 inch range, but I’ve used chubs as big as 8 inches and I’ve caught bass in the 3 to 7 pound range on the biggest chubs.
If your local bait shop doesn’t sell chubs, you can probably find them in one of the local creeks or streams near your house. Chubs can easily be caught on corn, small worms or small pieces of cut bait. Just make sure to use a small hook and a small weight if needed. You also need to check your state’s fishing regulations to see if it is legal to transport chubs out of one water to use it as bait in another water.
Many fishermen think that the big chubs are too big and that you don’t need them that big. I strongly disagree. I like to know that when I get a bite, it’s a big bass. I don’t have to catch a big bass to know that there are big bass in that pond. I just need to get bit, although, I do want to catch that big bucketmouth once it eats my chub.
Once I have my live bait, I decide to head out to the ponds. Yes….I try to fish multiple ponds when I’m trying to find a new big bass pond. I’d like to hit 2 or 3 ponds in a day.
What types of ponds am I going to fish?
I’m looking for bigger ponds that have some depth. If they have some form of aeration, that’s good. If the shorelines have some depth, that’s another good sign. If I can cover the entire pond in 2 hours, I may skip this pond and look for a bigger pond. I don’t want to find a pond that has one 3 pound bass. I want to be able to catch 3 pound bass on a regular basis, which means that the pond must be big enough to hold a healthy population of big bass. Real small ponds just won’t have the numbers of big bass that I’m looking to find.
What Type of Fishing Tackle?
I have a medium-heavy rod rigged with a big 4/O hook. No weight. No bobber. Just a big hook and a chub.
Technique Used…..
Just because it’s live bait doesn’t mean that you cast it out on a bobber and let it sit there. I like to cover water, so I work the chub like I’m working a plastic worm.
Once I am ready to fish, I’ll grab a chub and hook it through the bottom lip and run it through one of the chub’s nostrils. (Barbless hooks don’t work, so don’t waste your time. The chub will find a way to wiggle off the hook.)
I like to fish shallow water in ponds and I typically don’t fish ponds that have super shallow shorelines. So, I’m fishing within 10 to 25 feet from the shoreline in 1 to 5 feet of water. Most bass will come shallow to feed in ponds as they target bluegill or other types of sunfish.
I’ll cast my chub out and work it back along the shoreline with a lift and fall retrieve. During my first 8 to 10 casts with a new, lively chub, I don’t do too much. I just kind of wind the chub in a few feet then let it sit there for a few seconds. A lively chub will do the work for you, but I still want to cover water because I’m looking for a bass big enough to eat my big chub.
Very Important…..After 8 to 10 casts, it’s time to start working the chub. Once you get to this point, the chub will not be as lively. It’s ok. Start working the chub with a twitch and pause retrieve. The twitch should be hard enough to make the chub lift off the bottom and dart a foot or so. This will cause a reaction strike from a big bass. I catch more bass with the twitch and pause retrieve once my chub is actually dead. Big bass like the action from the twitch and once they take a closer look, the smell keeps them interested. Many times, I will see a strike right next to the shoreline. The twitch gets them excited, but they usually hit the chub on the pause.
Live or Dead…….
Chubs produce more big bass out of ponds than any other bait or lure that I use. It takes a little work and I only fish a new pond for a couple of hours. With all of the ponds out there, I don’t have time to fish only one pond in a day. I fish 2 or 3 ponds each time I go out looking for new ponds to fish. In one weekend, I can fish up to 6 ponds and I may get only 1 or 2 big bites all day. It’s worth it though because every once in a while, I find a pond that produces big bass every time I fish it.
Save yourself some time. Put the lures away and go get yourself some big chubs. It’s the easiest and fastest way to find new ponds that produce some big bass.
- Fishing tip provided by Kevin Sewell
- Fishing w/Kevin Sewell
Chubs or Shiners. What’s the Best Live Bait for Big Bass?
If you talk to anglers that target big bass, there’s a pretty good chance that they use their share of live bait. If you talked to the fishing guides in Florida, they would tell you that the best live bait is shiners. If you talked to some fishing guides up north, most of them would prefer chubs.
For those that don’t use live bait, you may be missing out on catching some big bass. I definitely prefer using lures over live bait to catch bass, but at the end of the day, I use live bait if that gives me the best chance of landing a big bass.
So the question that needs to be answered…What live bait is going to give me the best chance of landing a big bass? If some states, anglers have the choice of using big chubs and shiners. I haven’t had the chance to fish in every single state, although, I have fished in many of them and I would choose the chub over shiners in every place that I’ve fished except for Florida.
Florida’s just different. I don’t know why, but it is just different.
In case you have the option of using either bait, let me tell you the benefits of using either type of bait.
Shiners:
Great for shallow water situations. Shiners tend to swim towards the surface, which make them great for catching bass in shallow water. With a bobber, they will swim around causing quite a disturbance and shiners will head to the surface once a bass comes near. As the shiner starts dancing around on the surface, you’re in for quite a sight because a bass is likely to come up and attack the shiner on the surface. Without a bobber, you can just let the shiner swim free. If it stay along the surface, you can be in for an awesome topwater strike.
Shiners do die fairly easy in warmer water if you don’t have proper aeration in your bait bucket or live well.
Chubs:
Chubs like to swim down towards the bottom. This can be a problem if there is a ton of brush or snags along the bottom. Chubs work great for situations where you don’t want to use any added weight on the line, but you want to still fish near the bottom. In 3 to 6 feet of water, chubs will easily swim to the bottom with no additional weight. This gives anglers an advantage over the shiner because you are going to need some weight to get the shiner along the bottom in 3 to 6 feet of water. Sometimes, bass will let go of your bait if they feel the additional weight on the line.
Tend to live longer on a hook.
My Recommendation: I prefer using chubs over shiners every time with the exception of fishing for bass in Florida.
- Fishing tip provided by Kevin Sewell
- Fishing w/Kevin Sewell
Bluegill as Live Bait: Don’t Forget About the Almighty Bluegill
- Some anglers believe that bluegill are the best live bait for catching big bass. I disagree because I’ve seen the chub outfish a live bluegill by as much as 4 or 5 to 1 at times. I definitely wouldn’t rule out a bluegill as a great live bait for catching big bass though. The nice thing about using bluegill as live bait is the fact that they are so easy to catch for bait. There are many bait shops that I visit for bait that don’t offer any big live bait and if I’m looking to catch a big bass with live bait, bluegill may be my best option.
Bluegill can be used under a bobber, with a weight on the bottom or on a hook with no weight and no bobber. Anglers catch big bass on bluegill all year long, but I prefer to use bluegill as bait about a month after the bluegill spawn. You can easily throw a cast net along the shoreline of most ponds and catch recently hatched bluegill in the 2 to 3 inch range. In ponds, bass will absolutely attack these small bluegill early morning and late evening every day throughout early summer. This is the primary food source during the first month of summer for bass in many of the ponds that I fish. Sometimes, I have a hard time getting a bass to eat one of my lures, so I’ll catch a few small bluegill and cast them out. I’ll typically catch 4 to 5 nice sized bass with these small bluegill. Most anglers don’t even think about using these baby bluegill for bait, but you can really catch some nice bass every summer using this technique.
Bigger Bluegill for Big Bass…….
Bigger bluegill definitely do work for big bass. I was actually able to catch a 7 pound bass from a pond in Quincy, Illinois on a big bluegill. I saw a big bass attacking bluegill along the shoreline and I decided to catch one of the bluegill and throw it out as bait. I thought the bluegill was way too big, but within a few minutes, I had a 7 pound bass eat a big bluegill.
I have heard plenty of stories from other anglers that use big bluegill for bass as well, so I know that big bluegill work for big bass. I prefer using a big chub, but you may want to give bluegill a try.
- Fishing Tip From Kevin Sewell
- Fishing w/Kevin Sewell
Winter Marquesas Keys Fishing
Winter is a great time to fish the keys. Hardly any people and lots of different fish species. Fish are still on the flats and there are lots of fish on the wrecks and reefs as well. From permit, redfish, snook and tarpon to grouper and snapper, there is plenty here to catch in the winter.
Winter probably is the best time to catch the most different species around the Marquesas Keys. The only problem with all of the different species……what fish do you go after? Don’t worry. Most popular saltwater baits and lures will catch a variety of species.
Fishing Resources
Fall Marquesas Keys Fishing
The fall is a great time to fish the Marquesas Keys because many of the tourists are gone and the fishing pressure is down quite a bit. The reefs and wrecks provide some good fishing at this time of year, but the flats can be real productive. If you’re looking for smaller tarpon, bonefish and permit, check out the flats on the Marquesas Keys.
Fishing Resources
Summer Marquesas Keys Fishing
Summer calls for hot weather in the Marquesas Keys, but it’s worth dealing with the heat to catch some of the fish that are around. Tarpon fishing is very good with shark fishing hitting its peak during the summer time. The shallow reefs, wrecks and flats will hold fish in the summer. Expect to catch permit, bonefish, snapper and more during this time of year.
Fishing Resources
Spring Marquesas Keys Fishing
The spring time provides lots of action around the Marquesas Keys. The tarpon begin migrating along the Keys. Shark fishing is good. Permit can be found throughout the area and many other species of fish can be caught — barracuda, snapper, grouper to just name a few.
Fishing Resources
Fishing the Marquesas Keys (Florida Keys)
For those people that haven’t heard of the Marquesas Keys, this place is a special place located about 25 to 30 miles off the coast of Key West, Florida.
The fishing can be absolutely incredible here. From fishing the flats to the patch reefs and ship wrecks, there are numerous opportunities to fish here.
The flats have plenty of baby tarpon, bonefish, permit, jacks and sharks. Try the reefs and wrecks for permit, snapper, cobia, grouper, snook, jacks, barracudas, sharks and more.
You will most likely need a fishing guide or charter that operates out of Key West to take you to this destination. It’s a special place to fish.
Fishing Resources
Permit in the Florida Keys
Permit are a big, strong and exciting fish to hook up with and the Florida Keys have plenty of them for anglers to catch year round, although, spring and fall are the best times to target permit in the keys.
Some good baits to catch these fish are crabs, shrimp, mollusks and bait fish. Artificial flies that resemble crabs are the top choice among most fly fishermen that fish for permit. These flies usually are weighted in the front to imitate a retreating crab heading for cover on the bottom.
Fishing Resources
Feeding Tarpon in the Keys
Ever experience anything like this? You can actually feed the tarpon by hands right off of the docks at Robbie’s in Islamorada. Here is a picture from their website.
image from robbies.com
