Story by Todd Goade | Photos by Tanner & Travis Lyons
The post-spawn and early summer are some of my favorite times of year because the fish are hungry, and two high percentage techniques come into play: a wacky rig and a topwater. Fish tend to be aggressive as they feed up after the spawn and—when you find them—you can catch them in a hurry with these two baits.
Anywhere you fish after the bass spawn, a topwater bait is a must have. One of my favorites is a buzzbait because it’s fun to throw and because it’s a great bait for running down the bank and catching fry guarders that are still holding up shallow. Something about the noise and action gets those bass mad, and you can catch big ones with this technique.
I also like to start looking for schools of fish, and one of the best ways to cover water quickly is with a walking topwater bait like a Zara Spook, which has a great walking action and commotion that calls fish from long distances. I use the Super Spook and stick with bone, chrome, and anything that looks like a shad. Keep it simple!
I throw the buzzbait and the walking bait on a Pulse Fish Matt Arey Tournament Edition “Check Casher” rod. It’s 7-foot-3, medium-heavy casting rod with a fast action, and I pair it with an Ark Fishing Gravity 5 casting reel (7.1:1 gear ratio) and 40-pound test K9 Fishing 9-strand Super Braid.
A super productive way to catch bass—and I use it just about everywhere in the country—is a wacky rig, and early summer is the best time to throw it. I use a Zoom Fluke Stick, and when fish are up shallow, there’s nothing better at catching them than wacky-rigged plastics. I like to skip them under docks when the sun gets high (bass want that shade), but I also fish them around laydowns, rock, and anything that could hold a fish. The wacky rig really works everywhere.
I rig it on a number 2 Decoy Worm108 Body Guard HD Weedless Wacky Hook and fish it on a Pulse Fish “Simply Shaky” spinning rod (7-foot-1, fast action) with a 2500 series Ark Fishing Gravity spinning reel spooled with 15-pound test K9 Fishing 9-strand Super Braid tied to a leader of 10-pound test K9 Fishing Pro 100 fluorocarbon.
After the bass finish spawning, I start to work backwards as I figure out where they’re headed next. I’ve found over the years that bass can be pretty predictable this time of year. They’ll use many of the same areas they used in the pre-spawn. Just following the same migration routes out to deeper water. They spawn close to the main channel or main lake, in pockets and coves. The first points outside of those areas are usually excellent places to start as the bass start to group up. That’s also where you find a lot of shad. Bass know that and wait for their food to come by.
The post-spawn is a great time of year to be out on the water, and when you find one bass you’ve usually found more than one. I hope that my favorite baits at this time of year will help you catch more bass!
Tight Lines!
Todd Goade – Angler Profile
