Finding bass in the summer can be difficult due to how bass will move to deeper water and often suspend and the sheer number of boats on a lake; however bass feed more often during the summertime. When do they feed one might ask the answer is nighttime.
During the night bass will move up on points and secondary point and to structure to feed. You can catch some real beautiful fish during the night the trick is knowing how to fish in the darkness of night. Here are some tips that will make your fishing experience at night a much happier one.
Night Fishing Gear Needed
- Black Light - A black light and blue fluorescent line is probably the most important thing to have when fishing at night. The fluorescent line will glow blue like a piece of rope and will allow you to see your line going into the water and will also make it much easier to tie on new hooks.
- Clear Blue Fluorescent Line - Needed to allow your line to glow with the use of a Black Light. Black light makes this stuff look like a piece of rope out there.
- LED Head Lamp - A head lamp make finding your fishing equipment much easier and will allow you to keep both hand free while working with line, lures, etc..
- Spotlight - Get either a battery powered rechargeable spotlight or if your boat has a 12V plug-in adapter get a plug-in spotlight. When running a boat at night it is essential you know where the shore is at all times. Drive slow and keep you eye on the shore with the use of a spotlight.
Best Lures for Night
- Tubes - Fishing with a tube at night is a staple for me crawfish will move about and crawl out from under their rocks at night and bass love feeding on crawfish. Fishing a tube texas rigged will keep you from getting snagged so often and when you do cast your tube into a overhanging tree on the shore often you can slip it out.
- Spinnerbaits - Fishing with a spinnerbaits at night is also very productive if the fish are feeding on baitfish. Spinnerbaits in black with one large Colorado blade seem to work the best. The Colorado blade puts out the most vibration and will allow bass to find the spinnerbait at night easily.
- Topwaters - Fish at night feed from the top very readily due to baitfish that will move to the top of the water column at night. When fishing at night you will hear fish working the top and chasing baitfish all around you. Some of the best topwater baits are those that make a lot of noise such as torpedoes, rattle spooks, pop-rs, etc.. Nothing is more fun than fishing at night with a topwater, but you will miss some fish due to the bass short hitting or missing the lure. But just hearing that splash by your lure is often heart stopping.
Finding Bass at Night
- Points - Bass will move up on points at night due to them being a superhighway for baitfish, and if you can find rocky points all the better. If the point is rocky crawfish will be moving around during the night hours. I feel that secondary points, which are points in coves and bays, seem to be better at night due to the amount of baitfish that resides in bays and coves.
- Weeded or Wooded Flats - Fishing on flats can be very productive again fish will move up from their deeper water haunts in the thermocline to feed on baitfish and crawfish. Often when fishing a flat at night I will use a spinnerbait or a topwater to cover as much water as possible.
- Brush Piles - These things are absolute bass magnets at night the problem is knowing where they are. If you do know where a brush pile resides that is productive during the day, try it at night. Some real monster bass will move into these at night and feed on baitfish that passes by. A great way to fish a brush pile at night is by using either a jig or a tube and working it through the brush pile. Also when your line crosses a branch in the brush pile pop it up and down keeping it in the structure as long as possible.
Fishing at night is a great time to fish there is no boat traffic and it is very peaceful and the fishing is awesome. However you do need to be aware of the dangers of fishing at night as well and be careful when running your boat at night. A good many boaters have had accidents when fishing at night but if you use some common sense fishing at night is the right time to fish for bass in the summer.