Sun Low, Think Top, Sun High, Think Bottom

As we ease from spring and into summer, my approach to presentations takes on a timing pattern throughout the day based on the phrase…

Sun Low, Think Top, Sun High, Think Bottom

One thing to keep in mind…

Depth control matters relative to the time of the day…

Before I set out on an early morning trip to one of my favorite waters, I rig several rods with a variety of lures allowing me to adjust presentation depth as the Sun climbs higher in sky…

Starting at the pre-dawn launch until around 8 AM, the two rigs garnering the most action are the topwater and buzzbait rods since the Sun is still low on the horizon and bass are more active on top…

As the day ages and we approach the 9 AM hour, the topwater bite often slows and there’s a switch to mid-depth presentations.

Accordingly the rods rigged with a spinnerbait, crankbait, swim jig or slow sinking stickbait start to see more use…

Once the noon hour approaches and “Ole Man Sol” is high in the sky, I’ll make another transition to rods rigged with weighted plastics, jigs and deeper crankbaits since bass tend to adjust to deeper cover during this hours…

If the trip is a day-long venture, the lure selection  trend typically reverses as the Sun slides downward towards the western horizon…

In other words, around 4 PM the mid-depth selection comes back into play and the focus returns to the topwater baits after 6 PM…

Even though this is my general approach during the course of the day, I have been known to throw a topwater at noon or jig in the early morning…

We have to remain versatile after all