How To Find Bass in
Unfamiliar Waters

For many bass anglers, one of the toughest challenges of fishing is finding bass in waters with which they are not familiar. It doesn't matter whether these "strange" waters are contained in a 1,000-acre impoundment, a massive lake or a complex river system fear of the unknown overcomes you as you launch into a fishing spot you have not previously visited. Touring pros routinely face this situation whenever new locations are designated for tournaments. Weekend Bass-masters, too, often encounter the challenge of unfamiliar water when they travel away from their home lakes on fishing vacations. As in any bass-fishing puzzle, the best way to find a solution is to take a systematic, analytical approach. Typically, time is limited in your hunt for a bass pattern. Your depthfinder and other electronic devices will be valuable, but don't expect to stumble on a hidden, deep-water hot spot on a weekend jaunt. Instead, the key to finding bass quickly is locating and working thoroughly several obvious types of structure that bass regularly inhabit. A number of options can be discovered if you'll simply be observant, looking on your map and on the water for visual targets. Let's examine some of the most reliable of potential bass hangouts:
Points: A stretch of shoreline that juts out into the water is always a prime area to find bass. Fish utilize points as staging areas for migrations between deep and shallow water. In late winter and early spring, bass typically position on points in deeper water. As the weather warms, they move up from the deeper zones, traversing these points on their way to the shallow banks. During the hottest months, bass often move daily from deep water to the shore as the water cools, returning to the cooler depths as midday approaches. Points are favorite waypoints on their routes. Schools of baitfish also may show up along the windy side of a point as current or wave action concentrates food there. Points can be quickly surveyed by using crankbaits to probe the sides and the end of the point. This is a good strategy if you are on a new lake with numerous points that jut out from the bank. On other lakes, however, you may see only a few such structures. In this situation, it might be better to canvass the entire point with slower, more thorough methods such as crawling plastic worms, hopping jigs or finesse fishing with a tube bait or darter head grub. In addition to electronics, polarized sunglasses are extremely helpful in positioning yourself along a point. What might appear from the bank to be a small outcropping may actually be a long point that extends far under water - a fact you can discover with good sunglasses.
Current: Whenever you can find some type of dramatic water movement - fish it! This may take many forms. An obvious source of current is where a creek or river empties into a lake. Similarly, eddies, tail-outs and converging tributaries in a river also generate substantial water flow. While fishing extensive river or canal vegetation, B.A.S.S. pro Larry Lazoen of Florida tries to focus on areas featuring current. "Because there are so many weeds that grow from bank to bank, the fish are not necessarily up tight," observes Lazoen. "Early and late in the day, bass may be along the bank, but when the sun comes up, they will move out into the current in the middle of the canal." You may have to look for subtle signs of current. On some western reservoirs, for example, underwater conduits are placed in these man-made lakes to withdraw and aerate the water. All year long, baitfish gravitate to the churning, oxygen-rich water near the aerator unit. Bass will follow. Often the water being aerated by the submerged pumps only appears as an eerie-looking mass of swirling current on the surface. This is a prime spot for jigging a spoon, as the bass may stack up in clusters in the current. You can also fish current quickly and efficiently by throwing crankbaits, spinnerbaits and various swimming-tail jigs.
Riprap: The rocky face of a dam or a stretch of bank that has a concentration of rocks is another great place to start bassing on a strange lake. In the winter, fish find warmth where the rocks retain radiant heat. Crawfish also like this kind of terrain. Later in the year, baitfish frequently suspend over the riprap, and bass use the rocks to ambush prey. The problem with a long stretch of riprap is that it all pretty much looks the same. Again, a crankbait in the hands of a skilled angler allows him to work the rocky bank quickly and methodically.
Roadbeds: Bassmasters fishing tournaments are always on the lookout for submerged roadbeds. These are easily discovered if you have a good topographical map of the lake. However, even without the help of electronics or the benefit of the topo map, you may still be able to home in on this prime terrain simply by studying the shoreline. On many of the western lakes where I guide, for example, it is easy to spot where old roads enter the water. Before these impoundments were flooded, various country roads crisscrossed the terrain. Underwater roadbeds may follow a gradual slope, with one side dropping 20 to 30 feet. The bed itself becomes an avenue of travel for baitfish as well as bass. Roadbeds in lakes characterized by bland, muddy bottoms still offer bass plenty of cover, including broken asphalt or gravel and occasional bridges and borrow ditches. Shallow roadbeds like these are excellent spots to slow down and crawl a plastic worm, grub or jig. Western Bass-masters have found this structure to be great for the split-shot technique, in which small reapers, grubs and worms are dragged over and just above the broken roadbed.
Sun And Shade: In winter it usually helps to concentrate on the shallow zones that receive the first sun, since these sections of a lake or river warm quickest and draw bass first. In hot weather, however, shallow areas covered by shade may be best in both the early morning and late afternoon period. Light penetration can be intense during this time of the year and the bass typically move into cooler, shadier zones. A shallow cove that receives first sun in the summer, for instance, may be a poor choice for throwing a topwater lure. Your better option might be the coves on the other side of the lake that receive sunlight a few hours later. The bass will be more prone to attack a shallow surface plug in the darker water where they find sanctuary from the early sunlight. By midday, you may have to look toward the end of those long, extended points or the sheer, steep canyon walls where considerable shade can be found, along with cooler, deeper water.
Rubble: On many lakes in the West, the shoreline terrain is stark and barren. Therefore, almost any deviation in topography can be a virtual oasis in a desert. For that reason, western anglers sometimes look for small clusters of rubble when challenging unknown waters. These spots feature larger boulders or broken rocks scattered along small stretches of the bank. Like roadbeds that lead into the water, rubble on the bank can lead you to similar rocky cover under the water. These are excellent places to work worms, jigs or finesse baits, which can probe these isolated pieces of structure thoroughly. B.A.S.S. pro Mike Folkestad has made a science out of fishing isolated clumps of rubble on small western impoundments. "I look for even the smallest amount of rock or brush that might break up a barren shoreline," he explains. "It doesn't take a lot to hold bass on these muddy-bottom lakes."
Obvious Targets: On any body of water, certain types of cover are easily visible from above water and can hold plenty of fish. Man-made structures such as bridges, piers and boat docks should be given some attention, and natural cover like weedbeds, stick-ups and submerged trees may equally hold fish. But remember that these obvious spots probably are fished by an army of other bass fishermen. It is important, therefore, to find cover in conjunction with additional subtle features that might distinguish them from other similar structures. For instance, when fishing docks, piers and bridges, always look for the shadier side of the pilings. In hydrilla beds and along tule banks, look for small, subtle points formed along the edges of the vegetation. Top B.A.S.S. pro Shaw Grigsby observes this condition frequently in the canals he fishes in southern Florida. "The hydrilla may form a point sometimes even in the center of the canal," he notes. "The point then leads to deeper water. This area is particularly good when the water temperature rises above 70 degrees. Bass gravitate to these points for the sanctuary of the depth and the coolness provided by the plants." For another example, groups of stick-ups may be intermixed with rubble, or they may extend toward deeper water along an obscure, submerged point. Your eyes (with the aid of polarized glasses) can help you locate the best batches of visible cover, but good-quality depthfinding devices can further increase your chances when fishing new water. Use your electronics and a good contour map to pinpoint more subtle types of structure where bass may congregate.
Ledges And Breaks: Deeper ledges are similar in importance to points that extend out from the bank. For the structure fisherman, a ledge or a break may be the prime place to concentrate his efforts. These drop-offs may be as dramatic as a 20- to 35-foot break or as subtle as a stairstep bottom falling off in 4-foot increments. At times, either type of ledge is the site of major concentrations of bass. Whatever the situation, as you motor around the lake and discover one of these breaks, look for signs of baitfish nearby. It is common for the bait (and the bass) to position on the edge of the drop-off - a perfect situation for vertical approaches such as doodling a tiny worm, bouncing a jig or yo-yoing a spoon.
Humps: Among the most subtle types of underwater structure are gentle "humps" or mounds that rise above the muddy bottom. Humps may be found on many shallow lakes that evidence few dramatic ledges or shoreline structure. A small mound may thus become the major bass-holding spot on a reservoir.
Ditches: Similarly, many lakes feature a series of small, narrow crevices or ditches, which often can be found in shallow water a short distance from the bank. Unlike breaks, these small underwater cuts may only drop from 3 to 5 feet. Still, this may be all you need in the way of viable structure, particularly on a lake with a monotonous bottom.
Obvious Underwater Targets: Using topographical maps, a Bassmaster should be able to pinpoint submerged trees, rockpiles, man-made reefs and building foundations. Again, remember that these are likely to be hammered by the throng of weekenders armed with similar maps and basic electronics. Obvious targets like these offer shortcuts to finding bass in unfamiliar water. You may have a better chance at a limit-day or a lunker fish by patiently seeking out the more obscure underwater terrain such as breaks, humps or ditches. Whether you concentrate on obvious spots or subtle structure, it is important in fishing unfamiliar water to be confident in your ability to find bass and patient enough to stay with your strategy until something works. Furthermore, it is helpful to spend at least some time motoring around a section of the lake to get a preliminary lay of the land. Look for riprap, old roadbeds, rubble, points, shade and sun. Keep your depthfinder on, and monitor it for those distinct ledges and more obscure humps and ditches.
When you find one of these hot spots, or another type of cover that pays off on your home lakes, stop and fish it. More than likely, the techniques you have already mastered will work just as well in this new environment.