Late Summer Bass Fishing

[ChrisB]

Every lake in Pierce Co is good for bass. Which lakes do you live by ?

[253Caster]

I live within walking distance of Bradley Lake/Pond and have fished it out pretty good. I did manage to hook a lil .5 lb largie outta there lol.

[clarkhess122]

Frog fishing with mono is a heartbreak waiting to happen. It is difficult to get the hookset needed for frog fishing with mono because it is too stretchy, 6lb is also wayy too light for the type of fish that eat frogs. To get the hookset you need for frog fishing, your reel should have its drag locked all the way down. With the drag locked down, even a 3-4 lber could snap your line pretty easily. One way I found to get braid cheaper is to just get your reel loaded by a tackle shop (i get mine at 3 rivers) They charge like 10-14 cents a yard and it ends up being wayyy cheaper like 5-7 bucks per reel. Also, you should invest in a decent frog like livetarget or a pad crasher (livetargets better) if you have 30-50lb braid you won't lose anymore frogs! hope this helps.

[Amx]

Makes me want to go frogging tomorrow. Oh ya. I am going fishing tomorrow. Guess I'd better start at the pads for a change.

I used 20 lb mono for MANY years. Last summer, mid/late summer I changed over to 50 lb braid, seemed to work just fine on the fish I caught in the pads. The line is straighter because of no curlies as there is no memory. So the cast is longer and more acurite. The culies will throw off the accuritcy. Frogs, buzzbaits, and sluggos.

[Amx]

Well, I just got back from fishing. Found them in the freezer, stuck them on a hook, wiggled them a little and then stuck them in the oven. Oh, they are called 'fish sticks'.

[fishingmachine]

I cant stress enough the need for heavy braid frogging. Frog hooks are very thick so you need the no stretch to drive em home. Also the abraision resistance as well as the braid being able to cut through vegetation. I use 65lb only. Never had any fish break me off. I havent even retied in the past two trips with 5 fish over 5lbs in the boat.

[rl206]

6lb test?!!!!

braid is a MUST.

Got on an awesome frog bite today, fish were very aggressive.
I was getting worried w/ 50lb, hauling the fish over the thicker pads was nerve-racking. I was stubborn earlier this yr and got 50lb again, after today especially, I will be doing 65lb for both frogging and punching as well as a new rod.

[rl206]

Well, I just got back from fishing. Found them in the freezer, stuck them on a hook, wiggled them a little and then stuck them in the oven. Oh, they are called 'fish sticks'.

Did you have tartar sauce?

[Amx]

Well, I just got back from fishing. Found them in the freezer, stuck them on a hook, wiggled them a little and then stuck them in the oven. Oh, they are called 'fish sticks'.

Did you have tartar sauce?

Na, just catsup.

[Bigbass Dez]

Dont forget about the power of Cranking for late summer Largemouth :

[clarkhess122]

Nice fish! Thats actually one thing I've never been able to dial in very well. I usually throw crankbaits around docks and shoreline structure. I've had a little success with that , but deep/mid depth cranking has always stumped me. :P

[Amx]

Find 'stuff' on the bottom to cast a crank to, like ledges, rocks, brush pile, perch//bluegill/trout schools, and of course outside and inside weedlines. Dropoffs, points, anything that is a corner or edge of any kind. Same stuff lots of people throw jig, carolina rigs, and dropshot at. If the fish are active they'll come and get it, if not, then throw the slow stuff at the spots.

[Bigbass Dez]

Nice fish! Thats actually one thing I've never been able to dial in very well. I usually throw crankbaits around docks and shoreline structure. I've had a little success with that , but deep/mid depth cranking has always stumped me. :P

ClarkHess ,

Hey bud i just did a seminar on summer cranking and topwaters down at limit out a few weeks ago . One piece of advise that i can offer everyone about late summertime cranking is too first stop "looking" for structure to make cast at !!

This time of the year i like to fan cast my crank over deep water primarily in search for a off shore hump , island , hugh rocks etc .
Once i located these forms of structure i will continue to make many cast all over it from many differant directions attempting to create a "reaction strike " 90% of time an angler can pull 2-4 bass off the cover if properly worked .

As for smallmouth cranking in the summer , I really like to fish the outter weed edges that extends out into deep dropoffs . You would be surprized at the amount of smallies that will suspend next to these areas during the summer months .
In this scenario you can sit in 25-28ft of water and make multiple casts paralleling the weed edges .
I usually start out with a crankbait that will get down 10-12ft (burn ~ it) untill i get a strike , sometime you may have too chucnk a deep crankbait that will get down 12-16th (let the fish tell ya)
Keep in mind regarding too smallmouth cranking , you dont need to run or deflect you crankbait into any form of cover in order too get a reaction strike from those suspended fish during the summer months,in most cases they are already in ambush mode on the weed walls .

Hope this keeps a little bit , good luck out there

BBD

[clarkhess122]

Yeah I know, unfortunately I was out of town and missed it. :( Thanks so much for summarizing here. I'm excited to get out there and give it a try!
Thanks again,
Clark

[Bigbass Dez]

Yeah I know, unfortunately I was out of town and missed it. :( Thanks so much for summarizing here. I'm excited to get out there and give it a try!
Thanks again,
Clark

Clark , One more important factor that is a make or break deal on the water is about your reel selection .One of the biggest mistake you can make while cranking is using a reel with a high gear ratio like 6.4:1 or 7.0:1
Keep in mind that one of your goals is to keep your crank in the "strike zone" for as long as possible during your retrieve . The higher gear ratio reels will not allow you to do this because it will simply move your bait faster than required and due to that you will miss out on strikes . In most cases a good general rule of thumb is too use a reel ratio with at least 5.4:1 ratio , this will allow that crank too stay in the strike zone much longer period Good luck and keep us posted on your results bud

BBD