Where to Find Summer Bass

Mon, August 9, 2021

The summer is when bass have made it to their homing area and will stay close by until the seasons start to change in the fall. The key thing to look for in the summer is anything that would generally have more oxygen associated with it (vegetation, current, above thermocline). During the heat of the summer, bass tend to be more active during low light (dusk/dawn) conditions and go through a lull when the sun is at its highest towards the middle of the day. Use more moving baits (crankbait, topwater, swimbait) first thing in the morning and in the late afternoon to evening. Then switch to slower/finesse (spinnerbait, jig, worm) tactics in the middle of the day.

Home in on points or flats close to cover/deeper water for the moving baits. In the middle of the day, look for shade/cover/vegetation and throw directly to it, trying to keep your bait in the strike zone as long as possible. Main lake points and outside weed edges hold groups of fish all summer long. For color selection, you will want to emulate what bass are feeding on in that specific lake. Generally, it will be greens and browns for soft plastics and silvers, purples, greens, and yellows for hard plastics.