Fishing Deep

[bbbking]

I wanted to get everyones feedback on what to fish with when you have to fish deep for bass

[swilliams]

Depends on what type of structure/cover I am fishing. Deep water to me is anything over 15ft on most lakes. If I go to Smith Lake, 15ft is shallow...so I have to adjust my thinkin....I pretty much always start with some kind of big jig (crankbait for ledges) and go from there.

<U>Ledges:</U>
Rapala dt 14 or 16, brians b18, b24, b16 (crankbaits are only effective to me down to about 17ft. I have some that will hit 19ft, but you have to be lined up just right because they don't stay there long.) I think the average person can only fish effectively down to about 12ft with a crankbait but that is another subject...
big (1/2-1oz) swim jig or football jig with 6" twin tail (fished pretty much like a ledgebuster spinnerbait or a drug like a carolina rig)
dropshot
carolina rig

Bluffs:<U></U>
big football jig with 6-7" twin tail
single colorado blade spinnerbait
7" senko - wacky rigged
jighead/worm

Deep brushpiles:<U></U>
eakins type jig
jighead/worm
dropshot
6-7"senko texas rigged

Bridges:<U></U>
6-7" senko (depends on how deep I want to get)
spoon
dropshot
swim jig

You probably think I am crazy for putting a 7" senko on here, buy you will be suprised the size and number of bass you catch on a 7" senko. Most people will never throw them. I have caught 2lb keepers and 9lb trophies on them. They fall fast. I really like them when I am fishing vertical structure. I like white and watermelon red. I dip the tail of the white ones in chartreuse spike it.

One more thing, when fishing deep water (over 20 feet) I always use fluorocarbon or braid because of the amount of line out. The fluorcarbon is so much more dense than mono that it transmits bites better for me and the braid just doesn't stretch. The only thing I don't like about braid is if a fish comes to me, I usually won't feel him and have to rely on seeing the line move. At night that is pretty much impossible for me. With mono or fluorocarbon I have a better chance of feeling them when they come at me.

That is how I fish deep water. Hope it helps.

[Bass Hawk 87]

I fish much of the same things as Steve. He gave you some excellent advice. That big 7" Senko intimidates a lot of anglers, and it is hard to get used to casting because of the weight. It can tear off easily so remember to think of it as "Live" bait when casting and sort of lob it out there, and hang on.

I fish a lot of ledges and drops and if possible, I will use a crankbait to cover some water first, or even a C-rig and work the areas quickly. Once I locate some fish, then I come back with a jig. My first choice is a 3/8 - 3/4 oz football hear with a Yamamoto Hula Grub Twin Tail.

Most often I am using a 3/8 - 1/2 oz when fishing water in the 20-30' range.

Another choice for fishing ledges or points is a dropshot. I like using a 4" or 5" straight worm type bait, like a Cut Tail or Flat Tail from Yamamoto, but other good choices include the Zoom Finesse worm or Meathead worm, and the RoboWorm 4" or 5" Sculpin.

If I am fishing brushpiles, which is quite common on lakes here, I like to use a 4" straight worm, with a 2/0 EWG hook, a 6mm Glass bead and a 3/16- 1/4 oz brass weight.

Rig the worm like a standard Texas rig, but with the bead between the weight and hook. Once you drop this down into the brush, you can shake the rod and make the weight click against the bead. It creates a loud rattle that drives fish crazy in deep brush.

Another bait that gets over looked in summer is a spoon. They work as well in summer as they do in winter. I like a 3/4 oz - 1 oz Strata Spoon from BPS. It is the same as the Hopkins but at about 1/3 of the cost. Other good choices are Flex-It and the SPRO Spoon

[MidMO]

Out of curiosity - are you all using marker buoys when fishing ledges?

[Bass Hawk 87]

I occasionally will toss out a bouy if I am fishing a very specific spot, such as a brushpile with a worm or jig etc. If I am fishing crankbaits or working along the ledge. I just use my electronics to work along the edges.

On Lanier and a few other lakes, you can catch big fish by working topwater baits over deep brushpiles or ledges on the sides of humps or points, often over really deep water. For that type of fishing, I will mark both ends of the area with bouys and then stay back off of it so I can make long casts across the brushpiles to draw fish up, and it works best during mid day.