Beat the heat while catching bass

By By Mikes Giles / outdoors writer
July 5, 2002
Now that summertime is upon us, many anglers have swapped their rods and boats for the comfort of the easy chair and air conditioning. And who could blame most of them? With the temperatures climbing into the nineties the heat becomes oppressive. However, a few fishermen are still having some success locating and catching bass.
Dawn and dusk are the best times of the day to locate and catch bass this time of year. After a long night many bass will feed heavily during the transition period from night to day. The trick is to be in the right place at the right time.
Pre-dawn action
On a recent trip to a local lake I launched my boat before the sun arose. Shortly after making my first cast of the day I heard the sound of a bass annihilating some poor baitfish. I heard the noise but couldn't see due to the thick blanket of darkness that still enveloped the approaching dawn.
Suddenly my rod was thrust forward and almost torn from my hands. The bass had indeed smashed something; my topwater bait! At first I could do no more than hold on for dear life! However, as the fish tired I was able to turn him around and bring him to the boat. Turns out the feisty bass was a Kentucky spotted bass as fat as a butterball. In fact, he looked like he had just come out of the Tombigbee River.
For the next thirty or so minutes, I caught and released bass after bass on a variety of baits. The hungry fish hit Devil's Horses, Rogues, jigs and worms. If you could hit the right spot, you would get a bite. On more than one occasion I had a bass literally fling the bait through the air towards me.
Suddenly the action was over just as fast as it had begun. As the first rays of sunlight peaked over the horizon, the bass shut off. The shallow shelf that they had been feeding on was no longer adequate for their needs. The deeper water beckoned them to the safety and comfort of cooler water.
Dusk brings action
Although many fishermen will stay and fish during the heat of the day, most of the action will dissipate and the fishing may seem like work. During my younger years I would have fought it and fished right up through the heat. Age and experience does sometimes have its benefits, if you're not too hard headed!
On another recent late afternoon, I arrived at the water an hour or so before dusk just as most of the skiers and jet skis were leaving! I pulled up onto a ledge just off of the creek channel and started catching bass almost immediately. Once again, just like my early morning experience, the bass really turned on. This time they hit worms, jigs and crankbaits with equal force.
The bass were stacked up and feeding on shad and baitfish that swam over the lip or edge of the ledge. As the bass waited for more baitfish, they occasionally fell victim to one of my Zoom Worms or Bandit crankbaits.
The largest bass of the day succumbed to a strategically placed crankbait. As the last rays of light disappeared, I left the fish still feeding on shad, baitfish or whatever they could find. I had caught and released quite a few bass to live and fight another day.
Although you can never predict what will happen on any given fishing trip, the odds will increase in your favor if you pick the right times and place. With the higher temperatures that we are having, you can be sure the fish will be in or near deep water. By fishing at dawn and dusk, anglers will be able to beat the heat and catch a few bass. Try it. You just might like it.