Where to find the good-sized fish?

[seaphantom]

Hi,

I've been fishing in a small lake that I now live on. Off the boat or on the shore, I've been catching bass none of which are keepers. They're all mostly 7-9 inches...

Now, I need to fix the problem. Without a depth finder, how can I find the big boys and wear them out this season?

The lake is 50 acres with flats of really shallow water to deep water of 15-20 feet. Water's relatively clear and warm. Lots of shore cover lines the lake.

thanks for help,


seaphantom

[Rodman_Rob]

big fish like deeper waters, yet come often come to the shallows to feed. I'll look for some shallow water near the deep water.

[Mac1]

You can learn a lot by rigging a medium sized grub with a medium sized leadhead....use a black permanent marker to put a spot on each side of the grub to mark it as your depth finder.
Use it to count down each cast when noting the depth....casting and counting until the line slacks on the fall. If you take notes, you will learn a whole bunch in a short time......where the dropoffs, slight indentations, rocks, weeds, muck and sand bottoms are. I realize this takes time to map out, but you will also be catching fish on the grub as you mark out the spots. Later on, after having known a certain area, say 5 counts deep in general and your grub suddenly stops at 3, set the hook....you could be resting on a weed or log, but then again...you could be setting the hook on a biggun. A white grub, say a Fat Albert, would be a good depth finder......doesn't sink too fast, but makes a good lure at the same time.

The leadhead may sink too fast, if so, a pair of wire cutters will clip lead on each side of the jig to slow it down a bit......

[lizardsrule]

Try fishing at night. The odds of catching a Hawg are small, no matter how good you are. But time on the water will always up your odds. I believe the biggest Bass caught on the B.A.S.S. tour this year was 11lbs +. So if the pro's cant's catch them all the time, in some of the waters they get to fish, then it's not as simple as that. You have to be at the right place at the right time. Bigger bass often are loners, so they eat, and rest by themselves, on their OWN schedule. With that said, I would work the flats, and the drop offs, and any main lake points. If they is some underwater structure, such as an old road, or creek, that is also a good place to work.

Lizards

[seaphantom]

I know this is a stupid question, but what are the odds of the EXISTENCE of a HOG in the lake? Only a few people fish in it, but there is an awful lot of really small ones. My brother did catch one close to a pound though lol


seaphantom