Patterning A Lake For Largemouth?????

[Hunt'nFish]

Maybe some of you Tournement guys can help me here.
I'm trying to gather info on patterning methods for finding largemouth on a lake I've never fished.

Here are two situations...
1. It's calm, warm 80F+, pressure stable.
2. A little low pressure front is moving through. Avg. air temp has fallen 20-30F and there lots of windwave chop on the lake.

Assume this lake has it all: fallen timber above & delow the water, pads, reeds, and inlet creeks w/ long arm channels. It is known to hold relatively few large fish and lots of med fish. This is not a tournement but your sort'a competing against a couple fella in a neighboring campsite.

Under each set of conditions how do you divide up the lake and systematically eliminate unproductive water?
W.Tracker
Mike

[nitrobass]

Assuming its this time of year?

In the first situation I'd throw topwaters early and late, then find main lake points and hammer those all day. Points with wood on them, or boat docks, would be prime. Keep your trolling motor on high while you are tossing topwaters and cover as much water as you can.
Time of year is the easiest way to elimate large portions of the lake. During certain times of the year it makes the most sense to fish certain areas of the lake.

[rob allen]

Boy hmmm I am no expert ok maybe not even all that knowledgeable yet but here it goes anyway.. since we live in the northwest I'll assume the water is reletivelly clear.
situation 1
since we are talking largemouth I'd start early in the AM with a spinnerbait,crankbait or rattletrap. I'd pick a bank that looks good and fish whatever cover was available with a variety of retrieves if the bank failed to produce i'd move out to the next transition point presumable the inside weed edge then if that didn't work i'd move to the outside weed edge. This time of year it would be a bank on or at least very near the main lake, i would avoid going way back into creek arms. If the reaction bite failed to produce i'd slow down and repeat the process with a jig or texas rigged plastic or maybe a weightledd sento. If i got the impression the fish were really turned off i'd go with a split shot or dropshot rig and a small compact plastic bait.

Situation 2 I would use the same approach but my retrieves would be slower, my baits would be smaller and i would fish tighter to the cover.

when trying to establish a pattern every bite is important you need to be of the mindset to remember how the fish bit.
here is an example this spring i was on silver lake and flipping a sweet beaver I noticed that all my bites were on the innitial drop. I wasn't getting any bites at all by leaving the bait in the spot they either hit it right off or they didn't hit it at all, knowing this allowed me to fish much faster than I normally would have. Once you catch a fish or two developing a pattern is simply a matter of listening to what the fish is telling you..
That's really what a pattern is it's simply the fish communication to an angler telling him how to catch the fish. You cannot establish a pattern before you get on the water. There are seasonal patterns telling you where in the lake the fish might be but it's the day to day pattern that tells you the mood of the fish and how to catch them.. the seasonal pattern this time of year will be main lake structures and cover..

[Hunt'nFish]

Rob & Nitro,
Thanks for your insight. I really appreciate it. I'm rather ignorant when it comes to largemouth and when I do get out on a LM lake, I seem to have trouble figuring out a productive pattern that works. I think I'm spending too much time doing the wrong things in the wrong water.

Any methods that help eliminate unproductive water would be helpful.
W.Tracker

[sbasser]

1. It's calm, warm 80F+, pressure stable.

In low light, I'd try a favorite topwater or a suspending jerkbait. Otherwise, an unweighted, nosehooked Senko will get a lot of time in the water. IMO, unless there is a little breeze, don't bother trying Whacky Rigging that Senko.

Splitshotting anything from a 3.5" plastic craw to a 10" Powerworm. No, it wouldn't be a 10" worm on 6 or 8 lb test. But with 14 lb line on a baitcaster, it works, and it's still splitshotting. Next, consider C'rigging something like a 6" Zoom Lizard or 5" grub. A small, slow falling jig would be a good bet. Skip that Senko under docks, cast the splitshot/c'rig alongside docks, points, drops. Splitshot up to 15'-20', C'rig deeper. Splitshot rig is surprisingly snag resistant with a single round #4 > #1 round splitshot. Avoid the 'ez removable' type. They snag easily.

2. A little low pressure front is moving through. Avg. air temp has fallen 20-30F and there lots of windwave chop on the lake.

Spinnerbait, Rattlebait, or crankbait would make sense to me. My experience with storm fronts is good fishing up until the rain starts. After that, sometimes good, sometimes not. Try a suspending Rattletrap...it did work one day in the Fall.

Places to fish: Humps, reefs, logs, points, rock piles, overhanging trees and grass are good. I have little results in lilly pads (and a lot of work/time) and coves. Edges are good. The break between lillypads and "redbushes" are good at Silver Lk., and probably others. Don't pass up fishing boat launch ramps. We looked over the very busy public launch at Lk. Sawyer, and found a lot of nice fish hanging around the edges. Think about it...a lot of propwash knocking edibles out where it can be pounced on. Riprap is good, especially where it forms points. :wave: C&R, Steve

[Hunt'nFish]

Thanks Steve,
It seems like the consensus seems to be topwater stuff right off the bat. I know Kevin VanDam uses this method to cover as much water as possible during his pre-fishing. I guess the thinking is cover as much water as possible and mark the locations where you catch 2-3 fish in an area and then come back and work it during the tourney.

When I take a weekend to go camping w/ the family to a lake, that's all I have is a pre-fish. 2-3days to figure a lake out and catch enough fish to make me feel good about my fishing. So my thinking was to apply the same pre-fish tactics that you tourney guys use to pattern a lake. And I know wind can dramatically change how you fish a lake. I know that several days of preceeding wind can blow food to the opposite shore. And if it regularly blows that way, it will usually be the more productive side. I don't know if this is true for LM, but smallmouth tend to run in like sizes. Dinks like the company of dinks, larger fish tend to be found together as well. I don't know if it's a matter of the larger fish taking the best feediing spots or if there's other factors more important. I think SM have more of a schooling instinct that LM's.... IS THIS TRUE?

Generally I learn very little from watching most fishing shows. There are a few exceptions: Bill Dance, Shaw & Jimmy Houston are some I rarely miss. They seem to be better about the why's of LM fishing that most of the others.
One show I've really come to enjoy is Ultimate Match Fishing. This show is more like a football game than a fishing show. For those unfamilar w/ the shows format it's run like this: 2 guys to a boat, 4 quarters (I think it's 2hr per quarter), each guy gets to pilot 2qtrs. 5 fish limit, top weight wins. The pilot runs the boat and can go whereever he wants, he also gets to run the bowmount and fish up front. The other guy fishes from the rear and takes the leftovers. It's a run & gun version of bass fishing. Cover as much water as possible and position yourself over the best fishing. These are the best fisherman in the country and the show is filmed a day or two after a big tourney, so these guys are using knowledge they've aquired over the last week or so. It's very interesting to see the differant guy's fishing styles. The last episode I watched had Clumm up against K. VanDam. Wow what a match. The commentators watch from another boat and act as field judges and talk about the strategies. Watching these guys fish is interesting and much can be learned. The trick is applying this to our lakes.

My goal w/ this thread is to capture as many views on patterning a lake and then use it in the field on my next trip. You've mentioned time of season affecting how you pattern, explain? How does weed growth through the season affect your patterning?
Much Appreciated,
W.Tracker
Mike

[shalom]

Hi Mike ,
I enjoy , and watch all of the tv shows that you mentioned ,
except the Ultimate match fishing . I have never seen it advertized . Is it on OLN or ?????????????????????????????
Thanks for the help .

[Hunt'nFish]

Bert,
The Ultimate Match Fishing program is on the Outdoor Channel.
Mike

[shalom]

I watch it a lot and have never see it . the next time that you watch it , would you let me know , what time and what day ? thanks .

[bucketmouth]

Bert, it was on last night at 8:30. Kinda of funny. I learned about it and saw it on tv all in the same day!

[Hunt'nFish]

All showings of "Ultimate Match Fishing" episodes

Mon 9/19 5:30 PM Ultimate Match Fishing 153 OUTDOOR
Thu 9/22 3:30 AM Ultimate Match Fishing 153 OUTDOOR
Fri 9/23 10:00 PM Ultimate Match Fishing 153 OUTDOOR
Mon 9/26 5:30 PM Ultimate Match Fishing 153 OUTDOOR


2 showings of "Ultimate Match Fishing - Series Re-Cap"

Thu 9/15 3:30 AM Ultimate Match Fishing - Series Re-Cap... 153 OUTDOOR description: Highlights.
Fri 9/16 10:00 PM Ultimate Match Fishing - Series Re-Cap... 153 OUTDOOR description: Highlights.

[sbasser]

I seldom watch fishing shows anymore, but occasionally by accident, surfing. Seattle Times' TV schedule in the Sunday paper changed format, and hasn't been worth a spit since. I am not a tournament fisherman, tho I have fished in club tournaments. It's just an excuse to go to a lake I wouldn't go to otherwise. I really don't care about T's, one way or the other.

This time of year, I'd look on feeding flats, or on the drops adjacent the feeding flat, especially docks in such areas. I generally don't mess about with topwaters, even early/late. Less chance of catching a big fish, too great a chance of being pestered by dinks, and not a great hookup ratio for most folks. I would rather throw a shallow crank, suspending jerkbait, or spinnerbait, in low light times. Even a Senko. Hard to beat a Senko if it's not too windy.

If it is windy, get out there on the windblown shores and points. I'm not convinced that "the food gets blown over there" is the correct reason. I suspect that the food is already there, just more active due to reduced clarity and light penetration, or disturbed by the wave action. I would add, however, that fishing out in the wind isn't a lot of fun, and if it isn't fun, don't do it, because it's also likely to be unsafe (sooner or later). :smash: C&R, Steve

[shalom]

Thank You Walleye Tracker !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
How did you find the dates and times ? I have tried OLN web site and have had little success ?????

[bigfoot]

Thank You Walleye Tracker !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
How did you find the dates and times ? I have tried OLN web site and have had little success ?????



Here is the link ... ultimate match fishing (http://www.outdoorchannel.com/showinfo/index.cfm?PageName=Shows&ShowID=523&ShowType=Fishi ng)

[Hunt'nFish]

www.tvclick.com (http://www.tvclick.com), Yahoo.com, msn.com
A simple cut and paste affair.