Spring Fishing
The time of year that gets every fisherman's heart pumping and mind racing with the first warm rays of late winter. Thoughts of big sow bass beginning to make that move up to spawn and that first fish of the year caught just seem to flood your head. You forget about the cold rainy days with no fish and bright sun shiny days that are so pretty, but you can’t seem to make a fish bite. But oh that glorious day when it all comes together and you seem to catch one every cast and the big sows are all exactly where you think they should be. Winter seems to fade off into the back of your mind.
The point of this section is to better understand the spring fishing season and how to dissect the behavior and mood of the fish. Spring can be broken out into 3 distinct seasons with different locations and techniques used to catch the fish. Prespawn starts in late winter to early spring when the water gets to around 45-55 degrees then moving into Spawn at 58-67 degrees and finally into the Postspawn once the spawn occurs. Each of these is its own distinct season within a season and different groups of fish on the same lake and water can each be in their own stage of these cycles. Also, remember moon phases have a lot to do with spawning and fish getting onto the beds. Full moons activate those full blown spawning cycles though you can find fish spawning in between a full moon seems to activate large groups to go to the bank. So lets break this down by each cycle and the areas and techniques that are pertinent.
This time of year the bass's primary forage is crawfish early and baitfish as the water gets warmer. As the water warms bass look for sunny rocky banks with wood or dead grass first due to the warmth they provide. They will be looking for the warmest water for those big females to spawn in and to generate eggs. Once the spawn starts they are looking for sandy or fine gravel areas to form beds in. Get out their and enjoy the fishing and try different baits and areas until the fish tell you what to do. The three attached pages break down each of these subseasons and how and where to fish.
Prespawn - Water is 45 -58 degrees and warming
Spawn - Water is in the 58-67 degree range with a full moon pushing the urge to spawn
Post Spawn - Once the fish finish spawning usually once the water passes the 70 degree mark
Check out the other pages to for more details and hints around spring fishing.
Hope this helps and good luck!
The point of this section is to better understand the spring fishing season and how to dissect the behavior and mood of the fish. Spring can be broken out into 3 distinct seasons with different locations and techniques used to catch the fish. Prespawn starts in late winter to early spring when the water gets to around 45-55 degrees then moving into Spawn at 58-67 degrees and finally into the Postspawn once the spawn occurs. Each of these is its own distinct season within a season and different groups of fish on the same lake and water can each be in their own stage of these cycles. Also, remember moon phases have a lot to do with spawning and fish getting onto the beds. Full moons activate those full blown spawning cycles though you can find fish spawning in between a full moon seems to activate large groups to go to the bank. So lets break this down by each cycle and the areas and techniques that are pertinent.
This time of year the bass's primary forage is crawfish early and baitfish as the water gets warmer. As the water warms bass look for sunny rocky banks with wood or dead grass first due to the warmth they provide. They will be looking for the warmest water for those big females to spawn in and to generate eggs. Once the spawn starts they are looking for sandy or fine gravel areas to form beds in. Get out their and enjoy the fishing and try different baits and areas until the fish tell you what to do. The three attached pages break down each of these subseasons and how and where to fish.
Prespawn - Water is 45 -58 degrees and warming
Spawn - Water is in the 58-67 degree range with a full moon pushing the urge to spawn
Post Spawn - Once the fish finish spawning usually once the water passes the 70 degree mark
Check out the other pages to for more details and hints around spring fishing.
Hope this helps and good luck!
