It doesn’t matter if you’re a novice fisherman or an expert, you’ll enjoy the thrill of reeling in a bass. In our previous review of fishing, we explored fishing in four great states and found that bass was in each one. In this next installment of Catching Dinner, we dive into all you need to know about the illusive bass.
First, we need to delve into the basics. Largemouth bass are among the most popular game fish in North America. Bass tend to live an average life span of about 16 years, where they can grow to around 25 inches in length and can weigh 20 pounds. Their diet mostly consists of other small bait fish, small frogs, insects, crawfish and other small snakes. They have the ability to eat prey of up to 50 percent of their total body length. This is pretty impressive for such a small predator swimming around the lake or pound.
Next, learn to think like a bass. Imagine what you would do if you were a hungry bass. Remember that saying that the early bird gets the worm? Bass like to bite when the water is between 55 to 65 degrees, so pre-dawn times are usually perfect for fishing. Also the last few hours of day also can be fruitful. If you’re fishing in the daylight hours, look for shady spots to cast out, because bass will hide among the weeds and logs to escape the heat.
Live bait may be your best bet. There is nothing like a nice, live minnow or a wiggly worm to draw in a big hungry bass. That’s not saying that lures don’t work either. Many lures will move just like the real thing, and the bass will take the bait just the same. It really comes down to what works for a particular lake. Bass tend to go after bait that is 25 to 50 percent of their size, so it’s worth mentioning that bigger bait will produce lager fish.
Now that you have a better understanding of the inner workings of bass fishing, what are you waiting for? Get out there, cast out a line and see what you can get. You don’t know what will work until you’re out experiencing the real thing. One last piece of advice is to learn secrets from old timers. They have a have a vast amount of knowledge to offer. Before your know it, you will be catching your next trophy bass or maybe just dinner. Cast away and keep your eyes on the line.