(Editor's note: The following is the 10th in a series of fishing tips presented by The Bass University. Check back each Friday for a new tip.)
Todd Faircloth learned to fish on the grass-laden lakes of East Texas, so grass fishing is in his blood. It’s the primary cover that he looks for year-round, whether it’s hydrilla, milfoil, pepper grass, coontail or some other sort of vegetation. Hydrilla is his favorite, because he believes it grows thickest and provides the best canopy, but he won’t turn down an opportunity to ply the others.
Coming out of true deep water winter patterns, he’ll follow bass along the contour lines of the lake as they point toward their spawning zones. He’ll focus on main lake areas and the mouths of major creeks, hitting the outside grass lines to intercept them.
“My No. 1 tool at that time of year is the Carolina Rig,” he said. He can fish it slowly but cover water thoroughly, no matter what the depth might be. One of his favorite baits is a green pumpkin Rage Hawg – “I can go anywhere in the country and catch them on green pumpkin,” he said – but he won’t hesitate to try a lizard or French fry, too.
One thing he does differently than many anglers is to use a “Carolina Keeper” instead of a swivel to attach his leader. It allows him to quickly adjust his leader length and only requires him to tie one knot versus the three of the normal rig. He’ll also have crankbaits like a Strike King 5XD or 6XD tied on, noting that the “No. 1 thing is to try to stick with some kind of crankbait that has a tight wiggle to it,” because the fish are still sluggish. He prefers Sunline fluorocarbon to maximize depths, and while he’ll start with a shad pattern crankbait, he’ll also mix in a few craw patterns.
Another lure that gets the call this time of year is a big spinnerbait with big blades, which allows him to fish it slow. This is particularly effective in the afternoon, when the sun gets up and the fish start to get more active. “The sun is your friend this time of year,” he explained.
Once fish progress a little bit further into the pre-spawn, he’ll turn to a lipless crankbait, usually a red one. “A lot of people consider this bait a dummy bait,” he explained, before adding that the two biggest bass of his life came on 3/4-ounce lipless cranks. He’ll focus on flats in creeks, starting on the northwest banks, looking for high spots. Drains funneling into the spawning areas are also part of his focus. He’ll typically fish the lures on 12- to 16-pound Sunline Sniper, but if there’s a lot of super-shallow grass or floating grass, he’ll turn to 30-pound Sunline braid instead. In order to mix it up, he’ll add in a vibrating jig, and both rattling and silent square-bill crankbaits.
He cautioned anglers not to assume that fish all spawn at the same time. On a lake like Sam Rayburn, the process can play out over a 2-month period. He’ll try to follow that bite throughout a lake as long as he can, but while he’s an excellent sight-fisherman, he prefers to bomb them with long casts instead.
“If you can see the fish, the fish can see you,” he cautioned, so he tries to figure out where the beds might be and keep his distance. He’ll focus inside the grass line, which might be a small zone in low-water years, or it could be expansive when the water is high, but either way you’re “not fishing the grass, you’re fishing the hard spots.” If there’s a lot of room to cover, he’ll employ a lightweight Carolina Rig, but his number one tool is a green pumpkin soft stickbait, which he said is the “one bait to go anywhere in the country to catch a bass on.” At this time of year he’ll rig it wacky-style, weightless, Texas-rigged and Carolina-rigged, and each has its moment in the sun.
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