Bass

What’s more fun than hammering skinny water largemouths—those fish that bust your topwater over shallow, emerging weeds, or inhale a spinnerbait helicoptered beside a dock piling? Not much.

Long before the arrival of precision tuned suspending lures, anglers were catching awakening springtime bass on modified spoonbill-style hardbaits. 

Soft-bait offerings that suggest a crawfish profile are adaptable presentations, particularly when a swimming retrieve is part of the mix.

Following its initial tournament-dominating success, few lure types creating the buzz of the chatter bait.  Bait manufacturers scrambled to create their own version of the metal-lipped shaker.  With the dust now settled, the question begs, “Is there still reason to chatter?”

Known for his exploits on the walleye scene, Tommy Skarlis also has a yen for bass, and over the years he’s honed a deadly one-two punch pattern that takes flowing water largemouths from late summer well into fall.

Whether it’s deep or shallow, aggressive or inactive, lakes or rivers, or largemouth or smallmouth, jigs factor heavily in mid-fall bass fishing. 

An Arizona pro fisherman takes the average angler through the process of frog fishing.

NAFC member Thomas Saunders shares the story of his 8-year-old son Tristan who caught a 15 1/2" largemouth bass at a recent fishing derby.

Michigan Pro Steve Price takes you through what makes using baby swimbaits a better option than bigger swimbaits.

We all know sound can factor into getting bass to bite, but that’s about all most of us have to go on. One sound does not fit all bass, fisheries or conditions.