Once you know more about where bass move throughout the season and how the weather affects them, you can start figuring out where the bass
should be for that particular day you are fishing. If it's late spring, you're not going to be fishing deep water because most bass will be moving shallow
to get ready to spawn. If it's the day after a bad thunderstorm combined with a cold front, you're not going to be fishing open water in the shallows. If
you are fishing the shallows, you're going to be looking for the heaviest cover possible. If you can find a spillway in the shallows, that will work, but in
most situations, you're looking at heavy cover or drop-offs that are located near shallow feeding areas. After a severe cold front, most bass are going
to move deeper and be less active. These are just a couple of situations that could come up. Every time you are out on the water, try to be more
aware of the conditions and your results and you should start building some valuable experience that will help you on future trips.
- Here is an example of Finding the Pattern for a specific day.
Let's say you start fishing deep weeds in 12 to 17 feet of water. As you start casting your crankbait over the area, you make a long cast and get a hit
immediately. You make another cast and you catch another fish. After a 3rd bass, you move your boat closer to that area. Once you get to the spot,
you look at your fish finder and see that you are in 8 feet of water with weeds. You just found a pattern. Bass are in 8 feet of water with weeds. Fish
every area you can that has weeds in 8 feet of water until it is time to go home or they stop biting. If they stop biting, try to figure out if they moved
deeper or if they are less aggressive. I would start by slowing down with soft plastics or even live bait to see if the bass are still there, but just less
active. If that doesn't work, throw your crankbait again in deeper water with weeds.
Can you see how you have to constantly adjust to find the bass that are feeding? Sometimes a certain pattern can work for 3 or 4 days in a row.
Sometimes it works for half an hour or less and then you have to switch to something else. Find the pattern and you will catch more bass. As a general
rule, it you catch one bass you have something to refer to. When you catch two bass, you're onto something. If you catch 3 bass in a similar area or
type of cover or with a specific lure, you've found a pattern. If I can catch 3 bass early in the morning along a wooded area, I am going to find as many
wooded areas with the same depth as the first spot. You can put a lot more fish in the boat by finding the pattern and targeting similar areas with similar
baits. Remember, there are some general patterns that will always work, but don't be afraid to adjust because the fish can pick up and move at any
time.
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