(Editor's note: The following is the latest installment in a series of fishing tips presented by The Bass University. Check back each Friday for a new tip.)
When temperatures are at their hottest, whether he’s fishing a tidal river or a big impoundment, one of Bass University founder Pete Gluszek’s favorite ways to fish is to get as far back in a creek as he can.
“It’s built for hot summertime,” he explained. That’s because bass, like humans, want to get out of the oppressive heat. Springs, shade, current and other factors are the driving force that typically cause these areas to be cooler than the other parts of a fishery. “That’s the magic. That’s what causes all kinds of cool stuff to happen.”
It’s the opposite of the early spring, when anglers typically want to seek out the warmest water. Now the cooler areas are what congregate bait, which in turn brings in the bass. Accordingly, he’ll start off looking for visual signs of activity, including not just prey themselves, but also fish-eating birds.
“They’re not in here to be social,” he said of predators like great blue herons. “They’re in here to feed.”
Of course, getting into these areas, especially the less-pressured ones, can be difficult. Oftentimes their entryways are silted in, and Gluszek will spend hours idling, running his trolling motor, or even getting out of the boat (when permissible) to find the best ways in. He’ll also use his electronics, including down-imaging and side-imaging, to find the best cover and the best routes for entry and egress. The entire time he’ll be paying attention to changing water temperatures and looking for high-percentage areas.
One easy clue is to try to look ahead for hard turns, the outside portions of which will usually contain deeper water. There may be flats in between that are difficult to traverse, but the payoff can be huge. That’s especially true on tidal waters where the fish may have no choice on low tides but to congregate in those deeper holes.
While he’ll work diligently to get to the next potential hot spot, he also cautioned that exploring anglers should “tread lightly” because if you’re not reasonably cautious you can get stuck, get injured or damage your equipment. One area that he always likes to find on tidal rivers is the spot where the incoming tide meets the outgoing creek current, as that’s often where the change in temperature will occur most sharply. When he gets as far back in a creek as he thinks is possible, he’ll fish his way back, drifting with the current. One deadly presentation is to cast upstream and let your lure wash under overhanging cover, where lazy bass hide and wait to ambush their food.
Fortunately, in these areas there are few magic tricks, lures or casts.
“It’s really the 101 of bass fishing,” Gluszek said. “It’s fish what’s in front of you.”
He’ll often start with a two-pronged approach: A bulky jig that gets into thick cover, provides a high strike-to-catch rate and tends to catch big fish; and a finesse option like a soft stickbait. He’ll also have some other power fishing tool on the deck, like a squarebill, a vibrating jig, a spinnerbait or a hollow frog.
If you want to learn some of the other secrets of how Gluszek approaches bass like trout, including a list of the shallow-diving crankbaits he relies upon most heavily, check out his full on-the-water video, available only by subscribing to The Bass University TV.
