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DROP
- In bassin' terminology, a 'drop' is any rapid contour change of the
bottom resulting in deeper water.
LEDGE
- A 'ledge' is defined as the upper lip of a drop. (It is possible to
have a series of drops and ledges,
like stair steps progressing down towards the deeper water.)
FISHING LURE -
A carefully selected fishing 'tool' which is chosen by first considering
depth and speed
requirements, in that order.
LURE
PRESENTATION - The act of presenting the lure in a deliberate
manner, after considering the
characteristics of the location, water, weather and seasonal conditions.
COVER
- A place a fish may hide for safety.
STRUCTURE
- A location usually associated with a feeding area.
Bass are structure-oriented
fish. That is to say, they tend to be found around abrupt change
features on
the bottom. Ledges and drops are the most common of these and usually
the more productive. However, not
all structures appeal to fish. There are other factors which tend to
have a strong influence on whether bass
will use a specific feature for holding and feeding.
The most significant of
these factors is the relationship of deep water access. Except for the
Spring
spawning season, a bass will nearly always key to structure that is
adjacent to, or in very close proximity of,
the deepest water in the general area. That is not to say the bass,
himself, will be deep. His usual range in a
normal body of water will be eight to 15 feet. (In exceptionally clear
waters, a good rule of thumb is to double
those numbers.) Deep water undoubtedly satisfies his need for a readily
available haven of safety.
The next influencing factor
is the availability of a food supply. Therefore, the presence of some
current flow
will present an ideal situation. Why go looking for your groceries if
the moving water will bring it up to your
doorstep? This is precisely why certain structure features in 'dead
water' areas become hotspots under windy
conditions, or when water levels are rising or falling (with the
associated induced currents). An artificially
induced current is just as good as a natural one, so far as the bass is
concerned. If current is not present,
the ledge or drop requires nearby cover, such as a stumps or weeds, to
hold food and be potentially
productive. Should the structure feature, itself, be gravel or rock, the
crayfish population may satisfy the
food requirement.
The actual depth of the
ledge is critical in determining if the bass will be found in large
numbers (a school)
and whether they will hold there for a period of time. Active, feeding
bass will move into very shallow water
on occasions. However, they will not normally remain there for very
long. For safety and to preclude outside
disturbance, bass will always move back to positions near deeper water
when not actively pursuing food.
This depth range, as we stated before, is usually between eight and 15
feet. Therefore, the most potentially
productive ledges will be within that range.
The quickest way to locate
good ledges and drops is to consult a well-defined topographical map.
Start
your map analysis near river and feeder creek channels (for moving water
possibilities and depth) and look
for strong bottom irregularities and rapid contour (depth) changes. Key
to those that fall within the 8-15 foot
range and mark them with a black pen. Now, survey the general area for
indications of cover close by. A
good map will show old timber areas, which will tip off the remains of
stumps and brush. Mark these in red.
Take a close look at your handiwork and, wherever the black and red are
adjacent, further mark them with a
star or 'X'. Give added attention to those potential locations closest
to deep water. The final step becomes to
prioritize the list. To do this, select the locations with the sharpest
drop-off and deepest adjacent water and
number them. You now have a plan of attack which has been thought out in
a logical manner.
The next phase of locating
our potential 'honey holes' is to back away from the old channels and
look for
similar contour variations and cover features in back-water sections of
the lake or river. Apply the same
rationale as before, but be especially conscious of the proximity of the
deepest available water.
Bass, particularly the
larger ones, will invariably be found near the edge of the drop-off and
where the
deepest water is readily available. If there are stumps or large rocks
on the ledge, they will use them for
cover. If the ledge is barren, look for the bass to be just below the
lip, hiding in the shadows. If a cold front
has recently passed through, we can expect the fish to be somewhat
deeper along the side of the drop or
holding on a deeper ledge of the structure feature.
Even with the use of the
topographical map, it will be difficult to actually pinpoint intended
structure fishing
locations without a depth finder. To be consistently successful at bass
fishing, the angler simply must
become proficient with that invaluable tool of the trade.
In order to successfully
fish a ledge or drop, the angler must select the proper lure. The word
'proper', as
used here, is synonymous with 'depth'. For example, if the depth of the
ledge is 12 feet, we certainly would
not expect a shallow crank plug to be the best choice. Bass habitually
stay on, or very near, the bottom.
Therefore, proper lure selection simply means selecting one which
operates near that specific depth. The
same rule applies if we suspect that the fish are holding off of and
even with the lip of the drop line--select
a lure which operates at the intended depth.
The second lure selection
criteria is speed. This is related to the time of year or the weather
conditions
prevailing at the time. If it is the Winter season, or soon after a cold
front passage, we can anticipate that
the fish will be somewhat dormant and reluctant to chase a lure.
Therefore, we would choose a bait that we
present slowly, such as a plastic worm or jig. Any other time, a faster
moving lure should prove to be better.
Keep in mind that most bass lures do not resemble natural foods too
closely, either in appearance or action.
Artificial baits generally agitate and invoke a predatory response from
the fish. It really doesn't matter too
much if you choose to use a diving crank plug or a bottom lure, such as
the worm, so long as you apply the
principles of depth and speed to your selection process.
Once the proper type lure
has been chosen, it is all- important to present it properly to the
intended target
or structure. In order to do this, we need to have a constant 'picture'
in our mind of the shape of the structure
feature and exactly where the ledges and drops are located. We do this
by the use of floats, or marker
buoys. NEVER place these markers directly on the target. They are just
going to be your reference points.
Instead, lay them a constant distance away, say 20 feet. By doing so,
you will not spook the bass and will
decrease the chances of having a fish tangle you in one of the lines.
Start out by casting across
the most shallow portion of the structure feature, gradually moving
deeper
towards the edge of the drop. (The more shallow the bass, the more
active he will be and we want to get
these fish first.) If necessary, change lures as you do this to maintain
proper depth control. Once you have
worked out to the edge of the drop, move the boat in over the drop-off
edge and start to make your casts
parallel along it. This is particularly effective when using diving
crank plugs. Using the depth finder, ease the
boat along slowly along the edge of the drop, covering the lip
thoroughly with overlapping casts. Next, go to
a deeper lure and work the area below, and along the side of, the drop.
Finally, if there are deeper, secondary
ledges down the side of the drop-off, change to an appropriate lure and
cover them. These areas have an
excellent potential of having schools of fish; the trick is to locate
exactly where they are holding at that
particular time.
Ledges and drops are the
most predictable of all locations to find bass. Learn to locate and fish
them
properly and you will virtually never go home empty-handed.
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The following is a short
list of `truisms' regarding bass fishing structure. They have been found
to be
accurate in lakes, rivers, and ponds, and even in saltwater use. If any
are unclear, please consider re-
reading the accompanying article. To become fully proficient as a
structure angler, each element must
be readily understood and practiced.
The terms 'cover' and
'structure' are NOT synonymous. They are different features.
The potential
of a given structure feature can be reasonably determined by:
The nearby availability of 25 feet or more of depth;
And,
the 'steepness' of the drop-off associated with the access to that
depth.
Structure, even if it
consists of weeds, brush or timber, is not used to hide the bass, nor is
it used for
his protection. Cover is for hiding; structure is for feeding.
A productive structure
feature is one which provides ready availability of food or serves as a
reference
point during periods of inactivity.
When a bass experiences fear
or senses danger, his instinctive reaction is to dash for deep water.
Unless actively feeding, a
bass will always hold near the edge of the drop into deep water.
Of all available structure
features, ledges and drops are the most common AND the most continuously
productive.
A `drop' is a contour change
resulting in deeper water and has a downwards angler of decent of 30
degrees, or more. Any change less than 30 degrees is considered a slope
and will not be as productive.
A `ledge' is the upper lip,
or edge, of a drop.
While ledges and drops
usually exist throughout a body of water, those associated with
submerged
channels and the deepest water in the area are always the more
consistently productive.
`Pattern depth' is a term
used to define the location (depth) the majority of bass schools can be
expected
to be found in a given body of water.
It is dependent upon the
coloration/ clarity of the water.
The `pattern depth' of the
normal, lightly-stained reservoir is 12-18 feet.
The clearer the water, the
greater the `pattern depth'.
Evaluating and selecting
structure is a four step process:
Consider the season, weather
and probable bass activity.
Determine the approximate
`pattern depth'.
Using a map, identify and
prioritize selected structure.
Perform an on-the-water evaluation
of the prioritized locations, identify significant features and
re- prioritize.
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