Big Bass in Thick Weeds

Ham and eggs. Biscuits and gravy. Bass and weeds. You may find one without the other, but most of the time it's a match. Weed growth in a body of water usually equates to more bass. But that doesn't necessarily mean you'll boat more, unless you know some tricks for fishing the weeds.

Finding the Weeds

The first early season weed growth usually will be found where the best combination of sunlight and a fertile bottom coexist. Usually, sheltered areas pummeled by lots of direct sunlight will have the best early weed growth. Bays on the north-northeast side of the lake receive lots of radiant heat from the spring sun, and if they have a softer fertile bottom, weeds quickly begin to grow. An incoming flow from a creek, ditch or other feeder brings in warm, fertile water that also "stimulates weed growth.
Lake maps can be a big aid in locating summer weeds. More infertile lakes may only have isolated weedbeds, but when these beds are located they can be loaded with bass. Look for wider areas (slower tapers) on a lake map (where the contour lines are farther apart). Bay areas, places where the shoreline makes a wide turn, flats at the mouth of incoming water, or around several adjacent structures (for example, a point near a hump, a cluster of islands, etc.) all have potential. Some lake maps show bottom consistency. Watch the map legend for indications of soft-bottom areas such as "m" (marl), "mk" (muck), or "c" (clay). If you get real lucky, submergent weedbeds may be indicated by a symbol on your map.
Other excellent ways of finding weeds in lakes that have minimal amounts are watching for sand-lined, cupped areas (from small indentations along the shore to large bays) which usually have adjacent weedbeds, or observing isolated slick (calmer) areas of surface water under low or no wind conditions, which usually indicates weeds.

Weed Identification

You don't have to have a degree in "weedology" to catch bass, but knowing what type of bottoms the weeds grow on in the lakes you fish helps pattern bass. 
Weed types vary somewhat from one area to another, but generally, reeds (long thin green above-water stems) are best during the prespawn. Various types of rushes grow on softer bottoms and are generally better during the warmer months, especially when adjacent to other types of vegetation. Short-growing, dill-like sandgrass is often found blanketing large areas of the lake. When it borders a higher growing weedbed, the edge that's created can be terrific.

Pads seem to be better the further south you fish. In northern lakes lily pads are generally found in soft, flat bays, which frequently only produce prior to the spawn. In lakes in the deep South I've seen pads grow in 8-foot-plus depths on sandy bottoms, and these beds were productive all year. Watch for isolated patches of smaller "dollar pads" or arrowhead-shaped pads in an area of bigger pads. This often indicates spots with harder bottoms. 
Usually, pads are best in shallow, fertile, flatter lakes. The weeds that often provide the best all around bass fishing are the deeper bushy-leaf plants (milfoil-coontail types) and the leafy plants ("cabbage" types).

The Approach

Many anglers roar up to a weedbed, turn the boat sideways and drop their electric motor. It's best to head directly toward the weedbed and kill ._ the outboard when the boat is about 50 yards from the weeds. The electric motor is gently dropped as you head directly toward the weeds.
If fishing an erratic deeper edge — especially if it can't be seen and must be felt out with lures — it's generally best to point the boat into the wind. If drifting downwind and occasionally using the electric motor for adjustment, it's easy to blow past a small point, turn or slot that may be the best area along an edge. If going upwind and "something different" is uncovered, you can stop the motor, drift downwind, then regroup and fish the spot correctly. Drifting over flatter or shallower stretches can be effective, especially when casting. targets are visible above water. Avoid moving the boat with frequent blasts from a high setting. A slower, steady approach where the electric motor purrs smoothly is best. Seeing key spots on a weed edge will be easier if wearing a long-billed hat. Cup the 
sides of the brim downward to reduce side glare. Glasses with glass or plastic side panels on the stems, and, of course, polarized lenses also will help reduce glare and allow you to see deeper into the water.

Zeroing In On the Best Spots

Acres and acres of vegetation cover many lakes, and anglers often get caught up fishing a lot of dead water. A strategy that can help achieve immediate success is keying in on darker (stained) water and playing the wind. Lots of lakes, and even a higher percentage of reservoirs, have a variance of water color. Fishing often will be better in the areas with more color. Here, the bass will be easier to approach and fool, and will bite for longer periods during the day. Darker water also will be less affected by cold fronts and calm, sunny conditions. Stained water usually can be found in flatter, more fertile areas, especially if incoming water is present. Headwater areas and arms of a reservoir surrounded by flatter terrain usually have darker water.
Wind is another plus, especially on bright days. If the wind is brisk, it's not a problem to find weeds affected by wind. If winds are light, water movement will be intensified in funnel areas (where wider sections of water are channeled through narrower areas), and that's where to try to find weeds. A good game plan is to fish the clearer water the first and last few hours of the day, and the darker water when the sun is high enough to penetrate into the water. 
Watch for changes in a weedbed. A point, corner, turn, slot, where several types of weeds exist or where bottom characteristics near the weeds change, all can be that "something different" that makes one area better than another.

Special Techniques

Sometimes we are faced with a big weed-choked flat with lots of cover that can be very time 
consuming to fish. Fish-holding patterns need to be developed as quickly as possible. Are the bass at a certain depth, are they in open pockets or where rushes border the lily pads? Maybe the isolated patches of dollar pads are the key, or where heavily matted surface clutter exists. You don't want to fish everything slowly and meticulously to find the fish, so a two-lure, fast-slow approach is generally used.
If the water above the weeds is a little open or if long slots exist, my "fast" search lure is, a quality willow-leaf spinnerbait such as a Stanley Wedge, Terminator or Strike King Elite. If the weeds are too thick for a spinnerbait, a weedless frog such as the 1/2-ounce Spro Bronzeye Frog Jr. or a weedless spoon would be used to cover ground. A good "in-between" lure that can be used fast and slow is the Snag Proof Floating Buzzbait. It can be fished fast across the top, yet it will float in place if stopped. It can be twitched or jiggled in place to tease a bass that missed it into coming back for a second try. The search lures are backed up by a slower presentation that's tossed back immediately into the exact spot after a missed strike. Favorites are a bulky, lightly-weighted plastic lizard rigged Texas style or a Jumbo Uncle Josh Pork Frog on a weedless hook. If a hot weed pattern or two can be isolated, then you may want to only fish it with one of the slower presentations.
Crankbaits are favorite lures for weed edges and sparse weeds. A tight-wiggling diver often can be ripped through sparse weeds, especially if they are the easy-to-tear leafy type vegetation.
If the weeds are thick, a bump-and-pause technique that lets the lure rise from weeds 6 to 12 inches before movement is deadly. This is a real killer presentation at night or in stained water.
Trolling crankbaits along a deep weed edge is a good way to learn the contour and get a lure to its maximum depth. If working an erratic edge, a shorter line with a deep diver allows you to more easily follow the contour. When trolling waters with lots of floating vegetation, keep the rod tip under the surface or put a large split ring about 18 inches above the lure to deflect weeds.
Jigs allow you to deal with the toughest weed-fishing situations. When working crispy, easy-to-tear weeds, I prefer using jigs with exposed hooks. Clingy, bushy-tailed weeds have to be carefully fished with a more weedless presentation.
Upon contacting weeds with a jig, don't be in a rush to disrupt the vegetation, especially if the bass aren't active. When hung on a weed clump, point the rod tip at the lure and reel slowly. If the lure breaks free, quickly extend your arms toward the weeds so the jig drops right next to the clump. Watch the line for a strike.
Sometimes you might not be able to reel a jig through a weed clump, so it must be snapped free.
Rather than pulling against a weed snag with a tight line, which often ends up with a ball of weeds around the jig, snap the rod tip downward from a 1 to 4 o'clock position, throwing some slack in the line, then sharply snap it upward to a 12 o'clock position. It's sort of like cracking the whip. If using a jig and plastic combo, glue the plastic to the jighead to prevent it from riding down the hook shank.
Don't be intimidated by lakes with immense weedbeds. These tricks will help you zero in on the bass and catch more than ever.