How do you find fish on a new lake? In Bass fishing, this is a question I get asked a lot. There’s no perfect answer. Every lake is different. Weather conditions, time of year, and type of lake will all play into your approach.

As you’ll quickly find out, in this video, this is not a new lake to me. However, I haven’t fished it in several months. The last time I was here, water levels, temperatures, and grass lines were completely different.

00:00 What’s up? Let’s get right into it. One of the most difficult things in the sport of fishing for largemouth bass is finding fish on a lake you’ve never been to before. This lake here, I’ve been… There’s not many lakes in the area that I live that I haven’t been to. I’ve been to this lake many times. I haven’t been here in a couple of months. The water was… It was a different time of the year when I was here last, the water was lower. We didn’t have as much grass and it was a whole different fishing season than right now. So it might as well be just a brand new lake that I haven’t been to. I’m out here with my buddy Jason today and we’re gonna show you guys what it’s like when you basically are going to a lake for the first time, how to find some fish here.

00:44 I don’t even know what we’re gonna be thrown today. I have no idea what pattern these fish are on. I just looked down at my Humminbird down here and marked us. We’re sitting on for grass line. I marked a huge school of fish suspended out here in 10 feet of water off the grass line. I don’t know what we’re gonna catch them on. I’ve got about 10 rods rigged up here with all different stuff, and I’ll probably be re-rigging them with other stuff, but see if we can clarify for some people, one of the most confusing things in bass fishing, which is how to find fish on a new lake. So, stay tuned and we’ll see how it goes.

01:17 Got him?

01:17 There’s one. So it’s been a little bit of a struggle finding fish on this lake. The last time I was here, oh, and I might still not have one, but the last time I was here, and you look out here, it’s a bunch of really good-looking Kissimmee grass. And it was all open water back in here. And two, three months ago, when I was here last, now it’s solid matted up Hydrilla and we’ve been going down this grass line for what? About 45 minutes?

01:51 : Yeah.

01:53 And there’s fish blowing up in this grass. And we’re trying to use search baits, swim jigs, I’d like to be throwing a Rat-L-Trap or something like that, but these fish are holding too tight to this grass. So I went to the fluke, my good old standby, looking at my electronics. That’s real important too, when you’re finding fish on a new lake. I’ll talk more about that later, but this is literally, we’ve been out here for almost two hours. This is the first fish we put in the boat. It’s a decent one, but we’ve seen some good fish blow up on this grass line. I’ve thrown in a couple of top water walking baits, a new kind of hybrid frog-looking bait from 13. I did get one little bite on that. I’ve seen a bunch of fish blowing up on little bait fish and they wouldn’t even touch a fluke, and that’s the first one, but I had to let it sink down. Thrown a Texas Rig once, so they’re being challenging.

02:47So when you’re on a lake that you don’t know anything about, again, I do know a lot about this lake, but I don’t know anything about it right now. Obviously, ’cause this is our first fish and it’s a solid two and a half pound or two and three quarters, but you have to use a lure or lures that are good for searching out fish, something that you can cover a lot of water with. A fluke, kinda in between, you can fish them fast. I caught that one just letting it sink down, kinda dead sticking it, and we caught our first one. But electronics nowadays, you can go to YouTube videos, if you’re watching this, to find information about certain lakes. This isn’t a video about a certain lake, but there are a lot of those videos out there, like if you were traveling to Alabama, or if you’re traveling to Upstate New York, I had a tournament there last year, Lake Champlain. The first thing I did was I went to YouTube and looked at every YouTube video I could on catching smallmouth bass at that certain time of year. So that’s one way you can do your research. I looked into lures, I looked at my maps, I still carry paper maps or printed maps, and all of your GPS units with the map chips in them, whether it’d be Lakemaster or Navionics, that’s a good way to search out lakes.

04:07 But eventually, you have to actually put the boat on the water and no longer look at stuff and read and watch video. And you have to see what the fish wanna do. And that’s what we’re doing right now. My electronics right now aren’t playing a real big part in what we’re doing because it’s 5 feet deep and we’re fishing a grass line. I could side image this. I know there’s not a whole lot out here and the fish are showing us where they’re at, we just have to figure out how to catch them. I still don’t think a fluke is the best thing to throw at ’em because I’ve thrown out what, about a half dozen fish that have blown up, and they don’t care anything about it. He’s throwing some swim baits, like I said, the Texas Rig worm. I threw an underspin, a couple top water walking baits, and we’ve caught one, but we’re gonna go back down this grass line ’til we figure them out, because the fish have been pretty good-sized fish. We saw one back there that threw a bunch of water up. But here we are two hours later. She’s still trying to find fish on this new lake.

05:11 Oh there you go. See, they’re all chunks. What was that, on swimbait? Look at that, that’s not bad fish.

05:20 He could be fatter. Where did you catch him on? Just swimbait? Were you just grilling it or?

05:26 Yeah, [05:27] __ Good weight. He looks like about two and a half?

05:32 Yeah, he could be in that almost four-pound range if he had any belly to him.

05:37 Look at that gap in his hole, right here.

05:40 Oh, yeah.

05:42 So that was our second fish still on the same grass line, but it’s like 45 minutes later. His first fish, our second fish. We’re trying to treat today like we’re in a tournament, like he’s the co-angler. That’s why he’s weighing his fish. He’s the co-angler and I’m the boater or the pro, and we’re learning a lake that we’ve never been on, like a pre-fishing day or a practice day. And I feel like there’s a ton of fish down this grass line and we’re not doing a very good job of figuring them out. I also think it’s a combination of the fish just aren’t biting that well. I’ve slowed down and thrown a big Texas Rig worm, it’s partly cloudy, 81-degree water. The fish should be biting a lot better. It’s that weird time of year though, right at the beginning of October, and they’re not super aggressive. I’m throwing a really slow moving top water plug right now ’cause we’ve seen probably a dozen or more fish. All good-sized fish, not giants, but good-sized chunks come up, and blow bait fish out of the water.

06:52 But they’re doing it one time, they’re not chasing anything around, and we’ve caught them on, now, two different baits. So we haven’t really figured anything out. But they’ve been decent fish. This lake’s known though for producing good-sized fish. It’s not a lake you’re gonna come catch a bunch of little tiny ones, they’re always usually decent fish. We still haven’t figured anything out. So, keep plugging along here.

07:15 Yeah. I got a bite.

07:18 You got’em?

07:20I had to let it sink all the way to the bottom.

07:23 Oh that swimbait?

07:23 And let it drop and I just dropped them down [07:25] _ the bottom, that one did. [07:27] _ I saw a pattern going with these fish.

07:28 So, we were just sitting here talking about how bad the fishing is today, for no reason at all. That was our third fish in the boat. Unfortunately, it was only like 10-inches long, on a swimbait. As you can see, because the camera’s going back-and-forth like this, we’re in about a… Oh, probably better than a 15-mile-an-hour wind, and we’re out on a wide open, windy bank here. We’re using search bait. I’m throwing a lipless crankbait and on an outside grass line. Can’t really get up in there ’cause it’s chockfull of Hydrilla. He’s throwing a swimbait, and we’re just blowing down this bait. We’re searching for bass, using moving search baits. And one of the problems when you’re on a new lake that you don’t know a lot about or if you’re on a lake that you haven’t been to in a while, might as well be a new lake, like we’re doing today, is what do you do when you’re searching for fish, and they won’t eat search baits? That’s the problem we’re kind of running into now.

08:26 You have to… What’s going on? Are we not using the right baits, is the biggest question, or are the fish simply not biting? ‘Cause sometimes they don’t bite. The old adage that if you’re around the fish and you’re using the right lure that you’re gonna catch them, is not true. Sometimes fish don’t eat. And that might be because of the time of the year and what’s kind of been going on in the general area around here. They haven’t been biting that great this week, on any of the lakes around here. So we don’t know if that’s what’s happening, because with a three-fish sample, you haven’t learned anything yet. We do know the three… All three fish we’ve caught have been on outside grass line. We have gone up inside there, but this lake that we’re on here, of this chain of lakes… The particular lake we’re on right now doesn’t have a lot of stuff out.

09:17 It’s a sand bottom out here. I don’t know… And I’m sure there’s some shell beds out here. I don’t know where they’re at. I don’t fish out here enough to have found them yet. The lake… One of the lakes connected to this has a bunch of offshore Hydrilla and the water’s a lot clearer, so if we don’t put anything together in here in this more stained water soon, we’re gonna venture in there and see if we can find some better fish, or find more fish with search baits. But we’re just still plugging along. We’ve been out here almost four hours. We’ve been out here about three-and-a-half hours.

09:48 There you go. You’re kind of burning that on the surface, weren’t you?

09:54 That one was. The other ones were on the bottom. I was like, “I’m going to try something a little bit different.”

10:00 So we still… We’re on fish number four, and we still haven’t learned anything. Oh, he’s bigger than I thought he was. Look at that. That’s our biggest fish yet, and it ate it up on the surface.

10:14 Yeah.

10:16 S1: So fish number four, a good three-pounder. Healthy three-pounder. He’s caught now three on his little swimbait, and that one hit it while I was reeling it over the surface. It just kind of rode up. Got four fish total on two different grass lines, and for a lot of people, that would be a… They would be satisfied, but if we were practicing for a tournament, you need something way better than this. And we still haven’t really learned anything, ’cause we’re beat… Oh, there’s one. I got one on a lipless. So windy banks, apparently, are maybe a deal. So now we’ve caught five fish, and… Stop it. We’ve caught five fish. But what we are doing is… We’ve been going down this windy bank and now we’re back in a sort of… I guess you’d call, a windy cove. Right?

11:20 Yeah, yeah.

11:21 Chunks. Two-and-a-half pounder. How much is that one?

11:24 Three-ten.

11:24 Three-ten. So we’re catching chunks, and I guess we’re finding a pattern. It’s kind of what you’d think if you saw this lake. Last time I was here, there was not very much Hydrilla, and you could catch fish all the way to the bank, actual bank. The Hydrilla is so thick, it’s pushed a lot of these fish out. Water is cooler. Fish are on the outside grass lines. So that’s what we’ve learned. And like I said, if I didn’t know anything about this lake, I probably would have come out here, and for at least an hour, studied my maps. Which I probably won’t get into that, that much in this video, but if you’re on a lake you’ve never been to, make sure you have good fish-finding units. Humminbirds. That’s what I use. Side-imaging, always come… Down-imaging, now all that stuff comes into play. I’m not gonna spend time doing that, ’cause I know what the bottom looks like here. But we’re figuring some stuff out. Except for that one fish, they’ve all been chunks. Right. Online.

12:27 Feeder.

12:28 Got him?

12:29 Yeah, there it is. Darn.

12:33 Well, let me see that bait real quick. So that was kind of fish number six. He’s catching them all on a little swimbait. I’ve had one on a fluke, one on a lipless, and you’ve had four now on this little swimbait. We got some storms moving in and it’s getting windier. It might be a little front coming through, but we’ve only fished… We’ve fished three banks now. Nothing on the first place, and a couple on that one spot, and then four here. So if this was a little tournament that we had getting… That we were preparing for, we haven’t figured out a lot, but we found two lengthy grass lines that I would probably end up either trying to recreate, expand on, or whatever, to catch a 20-pound bag. But our best five today, because we’ve had some chunks, are probably up close to that. High 13s, into the 14-pound range with our best spot.

13:32 Yeah.

13:32 Because we don’t have five over three. We have a couple over three, and the rest of them are under. But it’s getting windy. Oh, I missed that one. That was a weird bite, that was was like a flutter.

Have you ever wondered how wind can be your secret weapon in bass fishing? In this blog post, we’ll unveil the secrets of “how wind affects bass” behavior, influencing their feeding, movement, and the water conditions they inhabit. By understanding how wind affects bass, you can harness the power of wind to increase your chances of success on the water.

Overview

1. Harness the power of wind to increase your chances of successful bass fishing with strategic boat positioning, lure selection and casting technique.
2. Identify prime wind-driven hotspots such as banks, points and flats for ideal conditions.
3. Prepare equipment & monitor weather conditions for a safe yet enjoyable trip.
4. This article applies to hard bottom lakes. Florida, and other soft bottom lakes are different.

The Influence of Wind on Bass Behavior

Wind significantly influences bass behavior, impacting their feeding, movement, and the water conditions they prefer. As the wind blows, it generates rollers and waves, encouraging feeding sprees among bass and other gamefish. The positive effects of wind on the movement patterns of bass include bringing them into shallower areas where they are easier to catch and oxygenating the water, which can stimulate bass activity. Moreover, wind can positively affect water clarity and temperature, shaping bass behavior and location.

Every bass angler needs to comprehend how wind impacts bass behavior. Leveraging windy conditions can notably boost your success rates on the water. Subsequent sections will delve into the specific impacts of wind on bass behavior, such as prompting feeding activity, aiding movement, and altering water clarity and temperature.

Stimulating Feeding Activity

Wind enhances bass feeding activity by:

• Stirring up zooplankton in the shallows
• Drawing baitfish to feed on the microorganisms
• Attracting bass and other predators to the shallows to feed on the baitfish

When the wind starts blowing on windy days, a strong wind creates movement in the water that can encourage feeding sprees among bass and other gamefish, leading to a few bites for anglers.

Zooplankton are fascinating tiny creatures that live in lakes, rivers, and oceans, providing a nutritious food source for small fish like baitfish. Strong winds and wave action churn up the water, which is an exciting stimulus for baitfish and predators alike. As the wind churns up zooplankton, a chain reaction occurs, attracting small fish and then larger predators like bass. Grasping this food chain scenario enables anglers to select optimal bass lures that imitate bass’s natural prey, thereby enhancing their likelihood of a successful catch.

Encouraging Movement

Wind facilitates bass movement to specific hotspots, making them easier to locate and catch. Ideal locations for bass in windy conditions include:

• Shoreline pockets
• Points
• Flats near a point
• Areas with moving water around structure

Wind direction can greatly benefit the movement of bass, as it creates current in the water and positions bass to ambush bait, making it an ideal period of activity for bass.

Wind speed beneficially alters the movement patterns of bass, leading them to shallower areas for feeding. The wind:

• Chops the surface and reduces light penetration, making the bass more active
• Brings them into shallower areas, making them easier to catch
• Moves the baitfish and their food supply, further increasing the activity of the bass

Overall, wind can be incredibly beneficial in stimulating the movement and feeding behavior of feeding bass.

Affecting Water Clarity and Temperature

Wind favorably impacts water clarity and temperature, subsequently influencing bass behavior and location. Wind-induced water mixing can lead to a more even temperature distribution throughout the water body, while wind-induced turbulence can create waves and currents that mix the surface water with the cooler water below. Additionally, wind can influence the rate of heat transfer between the water and the surrounding air, with stronger winds generally leading to faster heat loss from the water.

Wind can enhance the clarity of water in bass fishing locations by stirring up sediment and life in the water, increasing light penetration and enhancing visibility. Changes in water clarity and temperature can have beneficial effects on bass behavior, enhancing their ability to see and target prey, as well as increasing their metabolism, activity level, and feeding patterns. Understanding the effects of wind on water clarity and temperature can help anglers plan their fishing trips and select the best bass lures for the situation.

Harnessing the Power of Wind: Techniques for Successful Bass Fishing

Having recognized the significance of wind in bass behavior, we should now examine techniques that utilize the wind’s power for a successful bass fishing experience. By positioning your boat to take advantage of the wind, selecting the ideal lures for windy conditions, and adjusting your casting technique, you can greatly increase your chances of catching bass.

Subsequent sections will investigate specific strategies for maximizing windy conditions. These include positioning your boat, selecting the right lures, and adapting your casting technique to present your lure smoothly and efficiently in windy conditions.

Positioning Your Boat

Wind direction can significantly aid in positioning your boat for bass fishing. The wind creates current in the water, positioning the bass to ambush bait and making it an ideal period of activity for bass. Additionally, the wind can disturb the water’s surface and reduce light penetration, making it easier for bass to spot and catch their prey. Anglers can position their boat in a way that allows them to take advantage of these factors.

Drift socks can be used to effectively control boat drift when bass fishing in wind by attaching a larger sock to a cleat just below the bow and a smaller sock at the rear on either the port or starboard side. This helps to keep the boat perfectly perpendicular to the current or wind, allowing for excellent control and positioning while fishing.

Alternatively, using a trolling motor for controlling boat speed while bass fishing in windy conditions enables you to maintain a consistent speed and direction, even in strong winds, which facilitates staying on target and covering more water efficiently.

Selecting the Right Lures

Selecting appropriate lures for windy conditions is pivotal to successful bass fishing. In windy conditions, heavy, flashy, and fast-moving lures that mimic baitfish are the most effective. Reaction baits like speed worms, crankbaits, spinnerbaits, swimbaits, and jerkbaits are the most effective bass fishing lures for windy conditions.

Heavy lures are advantageous in windy conditions because they are more aerodynamic, providing better casting and control even in strong winds. Flashy lures with bright colors and reflective surfaces can mimic the look of baitfish, making them more visible and attractive to bass. Furthermore, the flash and vibration created by these lures can help bass identify and hit the lure despite the disturbance caused by wind and waves.

Adapting Your Casting Technique

Modifying your casting technique is key to presenting your lure naturally and effectively in windy conditions. Casting into the wind is the ideal way to present your lure smoothly and efficiently in windy conditions.

When fishing in windy conditions, bass fishermen can improve their success by employing certain casting techniques, such as:

• Using spinnerbaits and crankbaits
• Targeting wind-blown banks, riprap, and points
• Staying stable and maintaining balance
• Utilizing shallow-water anchors and modern trolling motors

Understanding the effects of wind on your casting technique and adapting accordingly can greatly improve your chances of a successful catch.

Identifying Prime Wind-Driven Bass Hotspots

To fully capitalize on windy conditions, targeting prime wind-driven bass hotspots is crucial. These include:

• Windblown banks
• Points
• Flats
• Shallow water areas

All of these areas are known to attract bass and increase your chances to catch bass on the water, especially for bass anglers seeking more bass.

In the following subsections, we’ll explore each of these prime wind-driven bass hotspots in more detail, discussing the specific advantages and techniques associated with fishing in these areas during windy conditions.

Windblown Banks

Windblown banks can be ideal fishing spots for bass because they:

• Trigger bass into biting
• Provide increased feeding opportunities
• Create ripples and waves that change subsurface light, attracting bass
• Depending on the direction of the wind, position them in advantageous areas near windblown banks.

The effect of wind on bait distribution along windblown banks is beneficial as it makes baitfish more active due to the movement of their food supply, which can attract bass. Furthermore, wind pushes bait up onto riprap, natural rock, and mud lines along the banks, providing more opportunities for bass to feed. By targeting windblown banks, you can greatly increase your chances of successful bass fishing.

Points and Flats

Points and flats are prime locations for bass in windy conditions because they provide cover and feeding opportunities. Bass take advantage of the current created by the wind, which pushes baitfish and other prey towards these areas, making them easy targets. The wind can also create choppy water and provide cover, making it even easier for the bass to ambush their prey.

Spinnerbaits, lipless crankbaits, chatterbaits, jerkbaits, and crankbaits are all excellent choices for bass fishing at points and flats in windy conditions. By targeting points and flats during windy conditions, you can increase your chances of catching bass.

Shallow Water

Shallow water areas attract baitfish and bass during windy conditions, leading to increased chances of successful bass fishing. The wind creates ‘mud lines’ which bring forage and cover for bass and also oxygenates the water, making shallow water areas more favorable for bass.

Reaction baits that can be effectively used in these conditions include:

• Crankbaits
• Spinnerbaits
• Swimbaits
• Jerkbaits
• Speed Worms

The jerking and pausing method can also be effective. Additionally, the wind can be taken advantage of to concentrate baitfish against shorelines. By focusing on shallow water areas during windy conditions, you can greatly improve your chances of catching bass.

Staying Safe While Bass Fishing in Windy Conditions

Guaranteeing safety during bass fishing in windy conditions is paramount. Preparing your equipment and monitoring weather conditions can help you stay safe and make the most of your fishing experience.

In the following subsections, we’ll discuss specific safety measures you can take when bass fishing in windy conditions, including preparing your equipment and monitoring weather conditions.

Preparing Your Equipment

Prior to venturing out in windy conditions, it’s crucial to inspect and secure your equipment, charge batteries, and safely store loose items. Charging batteries for your fishing equipment properly is key, as it can extend their lifespan and ensure optimal performance. When charging batteries, it’s important to follow the manufacturer’s instructions and connect the charger accordingly, as well as avoid overcharging the batteries to prevent potential damage from overheating.

During high winds on a fishing boat, it’s important to ensure loose items remain safe by removing and securely storing them in a secure location. If there are items that cannot be removed, such as doors, windows, or storage hatches, it’s recommended to tie them down to keep them secure.

Monitoring Weather Conditions

Keeping an eye on weather forecasts is a great way to ensure a successful and safe fishing experience. If wind velocity or direction changes significantly, you can make any necessary adjustments to your plans. Monitoring weather conditions can help you plan your fishing trips more effectively, as changes in wind velocity and direction can have a positive impact on the behavior of bass.

BassForecast and Fishbrain are the best apps for monitoring weather conditions for bass fishing. These apps provide incredibly accurate predictions based on factors like moon phases and seasonal patterns, so you can plan your fishing trips with confidence.

Summary

In conclusion, understanding the influence of wind on bass behavior is crucial for successful bass fishing. By harnessing the power of wind and targeting prime wind-driven bass hotspots, you can increase your chances of success on the water. Always remember to prepare your equipment and monitor weather conditions to ensure a safe and enjoyable fishing experience. With the right knowledge, techniques, and safety precautions, you can transform windy conditions into your secret weapon for bass fishing success.

Frequently Asked Questions