Bass Fishing With Spinner Rigs
Spinner rigs are not a common bass lure at all, but they can be highly effective for aggressive bass. The same spinner rigs that walleye anglers carry dozens of will work for bass, but you don’t have to fish them with live bait such as nightcrawlers, leeches and minnows. Live bait will work, but a spinner rig tipped with a 5 to 6 inch soft plastic minnow that has a curly type tail will catch lots of nice-sized bass. A 6 to 7 inch soft plastic worm will also work as a trailer. Fish these baits just like a spinnerbait. Cover some water and hold on because you will get bit.
Just be prepared to run into a northern pike every once in a while if you are fishing some waters that hold northern pike. If you are fishing a good northern pike lake, you may want to use 20 pound test line because northern pike will tear this bait up.
Bass Fishing Resources:
- Shop Spinner Rigs
- Largemouth Bass Fishing Library
- Smallmouth Bass Fishing Library
- Top Bass Fishing Trips
Bass Fishing With Bobbers
Using bobbers and live bait for bass is a popular method for beginning anglers as well as advanced anglers. Many parents introduce young kids to fishing with a simple bobber, hook and a nightcrawler at the local pond and this technique will produce plenty of bass…even big bass.
A bobber, hook and a nightcrawler, minnow or leech will do well for largemouth and smallmouth bass. It’s basic, easy and a lot of fun for younger anglers.
Some other methods for using bobbers are to keep your bait right next to a piece of cover, whether it is a shallow water brush pile, sunken logs, flooded grass, a weed line, boat dock, etc. Many very big bass are caught this way and it’s not just a technique for young anglers.
One technique used by many florida fishing guides is to troll with live shiners very slow with the trolling motor. A big bobber, big wild shiner and a big hook is all that is needed. A slow troll one #1 or #2 speed with the trolling motor will get many strikes from very big bass in Florida and this technique will also work in other parts of the country as well.
Bass Fishing Resources:
- Shop Bobbers
- Fishing With Live Bait
- Largemouth Bass Fishing Library
- Smallmouth Bass Fishing Library
- Top Bass Fishing Trips
Shallow Water Walleye In Dark Water Lakes
Walleye can be found in shallow water in any lakes during certain times of the day. Early morning, late evening and night time will bring some walleye in shallower to feed on bait fish. You can catch a stringer full of walleye in 2 to 3 feet of water at these times.
In darker water lakes, you can catch walleye in 4 to 6 feet of water throughout the day if you can find the right types of cover. Wood, weeds and rocks that have access to deeper water will all hold walleye at some point throughout the day in darker water.
If you can find wood and weeds, you should be able to find fish. This doesn’t mean that there aren’t fish deep as well, but there are fish to be caught shallow. Stay close to the cover and you will catch some walleye.
Any typical walleye rigs will work. Jigs tipped with minnows, leeches and crawlers work well. Crankbaits and spinners will catch walleye. Bobbers and live bait work and don’t forget about drop shotting the docks to fill your live well.
Fishing Tip provided by Kevin Sewell. Make sure to check out my videos at Fishing With Kevin Sewell.
Walleye Fishing Resources:
- Walleye Fishing Library
- Top Walleye Fishing Trips
- Walleye Fishing Articles
- More Walleye Fishing Tips
Dock Fishing For Walleye
Walleye will hang around the docks from spring through fall and especially during the summer when it is hot. The key is to find the right docks that have plenty of shade and some depth nearby. 6 to 10 feet of water is plenty deep during the summer unless the lake is real clear. In clearer water, I’m looking for 12 to 20 feet of water near the docks which is much harder to find.
I use small jigheads tipped with leeches, nightcrawler and minnows and I will go from dock to dock getting about 8 to 10 casts in on each dock. If there aren’t a lot of docks in the lake, then I’ll spend more time at each dock to try to get an unaggressive walleye to bite. If there are hundreds of docks, then I’m moving a little quicker to try and find the active walleye.
Here’s a great tip….Don’t cast underneath the dock on your first cast. Work the outside edges, then start working in the shade farther and farther underneath and around the dock. Shade is key here, but you may be able to catch 2 or 3 walleye on one dock by working the edges first, then moving in to the hard to reach spots. Pick off the fish on the outside first so you don’t spook as many fish.
Walleye Fishing Resources:
- Walleye Fishing Library
- Top Walleye Fishing Trips
- Walleye Fishing Articles
- More Walleye Fishing Tips
Bottom Bouncing For Summer Walleye
Trolling bottom bouncer rigs are a great way to catch walleye, especially in the summer when they are deep. Here are a few things that I like to keep in mind when trolling bottom bouncers.
Make sure to use a heavy enough weight to stay on the bottom for the speed you are trolling. A slower speed will allow you to use a lighter weight. A faster trolling speed requires heavier weight.
Let out enough line so the line can get down to the bottom. If you’re not bouncing the bottom, you’re going to be missing fish most of the time when fishing for walleye. (sometimes, they will be suspended)
Spinner rigs work well with bottom bouncers. Green, chartreuse, orange and glow in the dark colors work really well. Nightcrawlers, leeches and minnows all work well with spinner rigs.
You can use bottom bouncers with live bait and just a hook as well. Leeches swim well and usually produce quality fish in the summer, but don’t forgot about nightcrawlers, minnows and chubs.
Walleye Fishing Resources:
- Shop Bottom Bouncers
- Walleye Fishing Library
- Top Walleye Fishing Trips
- Walleye Fishing Articles
- More Walleye Fishing Tips
Summertime Rainy Lake Smallmouth Bass
Smallmouth bass bite well here in the summer. Typical summer patterns will work on smallmouth bass here. Bass will school up in open water and stay near bait fish, although, there will still be plenty of shallow water bass to catch also.
Find weed edges that have access to deep water close by. Rocky areas near deep water will also be productive. Some bass will be in big schools just roaming deeper water following schools of bait fish. Use your electronics to find deeper fish and start throwing crankbaits, x-raps for suspended fish, live bait on jigs or drop shots, weighted tubes and jigs or any other good deep water lure that you may use for smallmouth bass. Worms, leeches and minnows will all produce during the summer time.
For shallow water summer fishing, try crankbaits, tubes, x-raps, 4 inch finesse worms, sinking rapala minnows and spinnerbaits. Live bait will also work.
If you are a patient fishermen, spend the time in deep water trying to locate schools of fish. It will take time to find them, but smallmouth bass will school up big time. I’m talking 50 to 60 fish in one spot.
Rainy Lake Resources:
- Rainy Lake Bait Shops
- Rainy Lake Boat Rentals
- Rainy Lake Fishing Guides
- Rainy Lake Lodging
- Rainy Lake Lake Maps
Bluegill Spring Fishing
In the springtime, bluegill will head towards the shallows. This is the time to start catching these tasty critters in 6 feet of water or less as they get ready to spawn. As the water warms, you will start to see bluegill all along the shoreline. Some shorelines will be better than others. Sandy bottoms and rocky bottoms tend to hold plenty of bluegill, although, you can find them in many different areas.
To catch these fish in the spring, it’s as simple as using a small ice fishing jig tipped with a tiny worm, small leech or even the head of a minnow. Try a small hook, bobber, a tiny worm and you will also catch plenty of bluegill in the spring.
Lake Geneva Bluegill Fishing
Lake Geneva has some excellent bluegill fishing. I don’t fish for bluegill a lot, but I do catch quite a few big ones every year while I am fishing for smallmouth bass with a live leech or nightcrawler. I’m typically using a drop shot rig with a small hook, 4 pound test and my live bait. Every once in a while, I’ll run into a school of big bluegill and I’ll hammer quite a few of them in a short amount of time.
They fight hard, taste great and are easy to catch. I don’t spend much time targeting them, so I’m sure the good bluegill fishermen can do really well on this lake for bluegill. When I do catch them, it seems like I drifted into a little shallower water than I intended to. I’ll be fishing 22 to 35 feet of water for smallmouth bass, then all of a sudden, I’ll catch a big bluegill. A quick look at the graph and I can see that I’m in 16 to 18 feet of water. This is the situation the majority of the time when I run into bigger bluegill. I’ll catch a few real quick, then get back into deeper water for the smallmouth bass.
Lake Geneva Resources:
- Lake Geneva Bait Shops
- Lake Geneva Beaches
- Lake Geneva Boat Launches
- Lake Geneva Boat Rentals
- Lake Geneva Fishing Guides
- Lake Geneva Lodging
- Lake Geneva Lake Maps
Lake Geneva Rock Bass Fishing
Most anglers are annoyed by the Rock Bass in Lake Geneva. There are tons of them in here and they are typically located in similar spots as the smallmouth bass. You can EASILY go through 5 to 6 dozen nightcrawlers if you find a good school of rock bass. There are times when you may want to keep dropping your baits down because I have caught some of the biggest smallmouth bass during these stretches where I catch 20 rock bass in a row.
If you like fishing for rock bass, all you need is a drop shot rig with a small hook and a small piece of worm. Small leeches work really well also and the leech will stay on the hook a lot longer that a worm. Jigs tipped with a small worm or leech will also work well.
If you intend on drifting to find fish, try a single-hooked spinner rig, preferably in green and add a small leech or worm. This rig works extremely well for rock bass, especially big rock bass. On days when there is a nice drift along the shoreline, you can easily drift with a couple of spinner rigs out. Hold onto the rods so you can feel the bite. You may want to anchor or use the trolling motor to stay on the school of fish once you find them. You can catch them in bunches on Lake Geneva and they taste pretty good.
You can catch rock bass in all types of depths, but 14 to 18 feet seems to produce well. In the middle of the summer, you will find them deeper as well.
Lake Geneva Resources:
- Lake Geneva Bait Shops
- Lake Geneva Beaches
- Lake Geneva Boat Launches
- Lake Geneva Boat Rentals
- Lake Geneva Fishing Guides
- Lake Geneva Lodging
- Lake Geneva Lake Maps
Just Shake It - Drop Shotting
I saw your post on drop shotting for bass. I just wanted to add a tip to your website. When drop shotting for finicky bass, you can really draw a strike by just shaking your rod tip and leaving your bait in about the same spot.
Basically, your weight stays on the bottom and you just shake the rod tip enough to get the plastic worm to dance. I also do this with live bait to draw a few more strikes. Leeches, nightcrawlers, smaller worms for bluegill, crappie and other panfish, minnows and even dead minnows. Trust me. It works.
Just add some life to your baits. Give ‘em a little shake.
