As the leaves start to change color and the air turns crisp, it's time to break out the wake baits for some exciting fall bass fishing. Wake baits are excellent lures to use when bass are in a transitional feeding mode, not quite committing to topwaters but still feeding for winter.
Here are some tips for fishing wake baits in the fall:
- Choose wake baits in shad or baitfish patterns like silver/black, bone, perch or black/chartreuse. Select a pattern that matches the hatch with the forage species in your lake. Go with a smaller profile wake bait in the 2-3 inch size as the water continues to cool.
- Work wake baits over points, humps, grassy flats, and rocky banks; basically anywhere baitfish visit and get ambushed by hungry bass. Focus on wind-blown shorelines first since wind pushes plankton, baitfish follow and the bass do as well.
- Vary your retrieve speed to trigger reaction strikes. Sometimes a slow steady retrieve is best, other times working the wake bait quickly will get bit. Also try stopping it abruptly and letting the bait suspend motionless for a time and then continue the retrieve.
- Try different rod angles on the retrieve. Holding the rod tip up makes the wake bait sputter side to side enticingly. Lowering the rod tip helps give it a tighter wobble.
- Stay alert on the hookset. Bass will often swirl on a wake bait then actually eat it seconds later. Don't set too early so not to pull the bait away from them before they fully commit.
Wake baits are one of bass pro Edwin Ever's favorite fall lures, especially when bass are chasing baitfish such as shad. Take a few moments and watch as EE provides some great on the water insight and tips on his approach to using wake baits in the fall...
Wake baits can be a go-to lure for fall bass, especially when the bass are reluctant to eat a topwater bait. Follow these tips and you'll get exciting near-surface strikes when other anglers struggle to get bit on traditional topwaters.
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