FALL WHITE BASS ARE A BLAST

White bass fishing in the fall is a blast. Spectacular fishing occurs from early September through mid October.

During spring, white bass move to staging areas and then into the spawning areas of lakes and rivers. In the fall the process is reversed. Key areas are current areas and rock or gravel points. These are ideal locations for ground pounders.

White bass are a cousin of the saltwater striped bass and as such have much of the savage instinct of their brethren. They will hit light tackle and give the angler more than he can handle.

As the water temperatures begin to fall below the mid fifties, white bass begin to seek deeper water. Generally they will be found suspended over structure or on the bottom in creek channels. This is when vertical jigging with a slip bobber comes into play.

Catching white bass is easy, finding them is the tough part.

White bass are an active fish that feeds constantly. Whites prefer to spend their time in water deeper than 10 feet but will often move into the shallows to feed. Their favorite meal is shad. If the angler can find large schools of shad, chances are that the white bass are near. Late in the fall shad will congregate in coves.

On warmer days whites will feed on the surface, concentrations of seagulls will pinpoint the location for the angler. At close range, he can find them by spotting the splashing water caused by the feeding fish breaking the surface as they chase the shad. At times the fish will stay up for ten to fifteen minutes. More often they will feed for only a minute or two and then dive back down. Usually they will surface again a short distance away.

A little later, the whites become more difficult to find. The easiest way to find them is to go where all the other ground pounders are and join in the action.

If you don't have someone else to follow, it is possible to find white bass by fan casting small deep diving crankbaits. Start in the mouth of the feeder creeks and work back up river until you find the fish. Once you find the white bass, then dig out the jigs and minnows.

For the shore angler, it is possible to wade rock and gravel points and cast into the edge of current breaks. The key to success is to cover water.

Light tackle is a must for white bass. Small jigs are good with line in the four to eight pound test range. Small tube jigs tipped with a plastic grub will do the job. The grubs should be ones with contrasting dark and light colors work.

The astute angler will notice the size of the bait fish and match his lure to that size.

Perhaps the best rig at this time of the year is the tandem rig used often by crappie anglers. Tie your main line to a three way swivel. Next tie leaders of different lengths to each of the other two parts of the swivel. Some good lengths are 12 and 24 inches. To each of these leaders tie a jig with a small minnow attached.

With this rig suspended beneath a slip bobber one can fish on the bottom and also just off the bottom at the same time. It also allows one to set the hook when a fish hits one jig and wait for another white to hit the second jig.

Blade baits and small spinners also are effective on white bass. Fly fisherman report success using a flashy feathered streamer patten.

Angling success tends to be dependant on year hatches. A year with incredible numbers can help carry the population over lean years. The best fishing, in a particular body of water, is likely to be about two years after a large year hatch.

Fall whites are great fun and a way to pass time until hunting season.


                                                           Don Gasaway - The Ground Pounder