Largemouth bass fishing is the most popular type of fishing in the United States. These fish give anglers all the action they can handle. Every experienced bass fisherman will have at least one tale of a monster largemouth bass that they battled on the lake. One of the reasons bass fishing is so popular is that there is so much to learn about the sport. There are so many different methods to catch a largemouth bass that it seems a bass fisherman’s education is never over.
One of the most important things to understand about bass fishing is that the fish change their ways depending on the time of day. A kind of bait that gets the fish biting like mad dogs in the morning will get nary a nibble in the afternoon. Learning the right bass bait for the time of day is a challenge that any successful bass fisherman needs to conquer.
Morning
Using spinnerbaits and buzzbaits will work best for morning anglers. Try to skim them along the surface for the best results. If these don’t work very well, then a worm should do the trick.
Heat of the Day
When the sun goes overhead and the lake water begins to heat up, largemouth bass retreat to the shade of the shoreline or into deep water. Look to cast bait near the shore, or set it with a weight and drag it along the bottom. When the line gets a bite, it is important to set the hook very hard to keep the fish from escaping.
Later in the Afternoon
When the sun starts to cool off, it is time to switch to plastic baits that imitate small animals like insects, crawfish, lizards and frogs. Start early in the afternoon near shore and move progressively farther out as the sun drops towards the horizon. Make sure to move these plastic baits through the water very slowly, because this will fool the bass into thinking that the bait is an injured animal.
Evening
This is much the same as fishing in the early morning, so switch back to spinnerbaits and buzzbaits that skim along the surface of the lake.
Ask Local Anglers
The best way to see what the fish in a lake are biting on is to ask other anglers what they are having success with. Don’t be afraid to try unconventional bait if local anglers recommend it. The most unorthodox bait sometimes works the best.