From Bassin' Magazine
Best Spot On Any Lake
Story By Darl Black

During the summer months, deep weedlines on natural lakes often act as a cafeteria chow line for largemouth bass. With the right adjacent bottom composition, smallmouth bass frequently forage a weedline as well. But to be consistently successful on these lakes, you must understand what to look for along the deep weed edge and how to choose the right lure presentation to fish the area effectively.

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Search For Something Different
All weedlines are not equal. Straight-line weed edges are generally the least productive areas on the lake.
“Anglers must look for something different — points, inside turns, cuts, alleys and
finger-like projections,” says pro angler Paul Hirosky. “Irregular weedlines indicate changes in depth or changes in bottom composition, which both attract bass. Irregular weedlines also give predator bass an upper hand in ambushing baitfish.”
While it may be possible to encounter average-sized largemouth almost anywhere along deep weeds, the biggest bass most often relate to an interface of rocks and weeds.
“If I had only one piece of advice to give anglers for deep weed-edge fishing, it would be to find the rock and weed intersections,” Hirosky says.
Sometimes the water is clear enough to see rock outcropping along weedlines. Often you observe a void in the weed growth, indicating something is preventing vegetation from taking root, such as a rock-rubble bottom. In other instances, you can locate the key hard bottom just off the weedline with sonar.

Pay Attention To Wind Direction
Bass anglers have long been advised to fish the windward side of a reservoir because churned water tends to activate baitfish into feeding and at the same time disorient them slightly. This provides bass with an advantage. According to Hirosky, the same advice applies to natural lakes, but with a twist.
“You’ve got to consider that the wind-driven-bass/prey interaction is likely taking place on a deep weed edge some distance off the shoreline,” Hirosky says. “The weedline acts as a shoreline or breakline. This is where the underwater turmoil is taking place. I always look for a windward weed edge or the windward side of a big weedy point. However, if the wind is so strong that you cannot maintain boat control, then it’s time to look elsewhere for bass.”

Check The Sun Angle
When the sun is bright and the wind is not blowing, shade is very important. Bass love to position themselves in the shadows to ambush prey. The broken patterns resulting from sunlight filtering through vegetation provide perfect camouflage for largemouth bass.
“When the sun is high overhead, weedline shade is minimal,” Hirosky notes. “Bass will retreat into the weedbed or move out to deeper water. However, low sun angle creates the best shadows on edges, thereby drawing bass to the shady side of a weedy point or cut.”
Hirosky reminds anglers that shade location changes from morning to afternoon. If you caught fish on the shady side of a point in the morning, it is likely bass will reposition on the other side in the afternoon.
Hirosky recalls a conversation following a local tournament with a couple of fishermen who claimed they could only catch bass in the competition by letting the boat drift with the wind. Every time the pair worked into the wind, they could not get a bite. Therefore, both fishermen assumed they had to go with the wind to catch fish.
“However, it was a very light breeze, not enough to excite baitfish or bass,” explains Hirosky. “I had noticed them fishing on one side of the small lake all afternoon. Given the direction of their drift, they were casting to the shady side of weed-finger projections. When they turned into the wind to rework an area, they were casting to the sunny side. It was shade, not the direction of the breeze, that was a key to their success.”

Go Deep In The Morning
Anglers on natural lakes typically head to shallow water or to the inside weedline first thing in the morning, believing bass will be shallow. However, Hirosky doesn’t employ this approach.
“It’s the fashionable thing to do,” Hirosky says. “Fish shallow early and then go to the deep outside weedline when the sun is high. That is a mistake. The bigger bass will be feeding on the deep weed edge in the morning. Don’t wait until later in the day to get out there. The same thing applies as evening approaches. Go to prime spots on the deep weed edge.”

Fish More Than Just The Edge
Many anglers follow a weedline with dogged determination. They think perfection is landing every cast on the weed edge. While it is possible to catch bass doing this, you may not be maximizing the potential of the area.
“Bass do not always cruise the weedline or hide among the fringe stalks,” Hirosky explains. “Depending on weed density, prey species, bottom composition, bottom slope and of course the weather, bass may retreat farther back into the weed canopy or move off the weedline toward deeper water. In particular, the better smallmouth sites may be only a long cast off the weedline to a hard-bottom rise. Do not overlook presentations that address these areas.”

Flip The Canopy
Flipping and pitching to a weed edge is a popular presentation on natural lakes. Many anglers believe that the bait should fall very slowly so they favor exceptionally light weights. However, light weights often hang up on foliage.
“I employ a 3⁄8- or 1⁄2-ounce weight so the bait gets to the bottom without interference,” Hirosky says. “This is particularly important on days when bass are not overly aggressive. They are smack on the bottom and backed up under the canopy. I’ll fish 10 feet or more into the weedbed, targeting any little opening that allows my bait to enter cleanly and drop straight down. If it hits bottom without a strike, I’ll pause for a moment, then lift it a couple of inches and drop it again. After it sits for a few seconds, I’ll make another pitch.”
Hirosky generally flips and pitches a Texas-rigged tube or compact beaver-tailed bait with a pegged tungsten weight on 15-pound fluorocarbon line. Green pumpkin is his usual go-to color. Occasionally, he will switch from soft plastics to a finesse-flipping jig with a Zoom Speed Craw.

Cast A Jigworm
When bass are inactive, Hirosky’s presentation for the weedline is a 1⁄4-ounce Slider Spider Classic Head with a 4-inch worm.
“Charlie Brewer’s Spider Classic Head features a larger size and heavier-gauge hook than the standard Spider Head,” he says. “The offset hook allows for weedless rigging, and the cone-shaped head slips through vegetation stalks. I prefer to rig it with a Zoom Centipede in a translucent color like watermelon or ice, but you can use any 4-inch worm. I fish it on spinning tackle with 8-pound test and catch bass of all sizes.”
Hirosky casts parallel to the weedline and lets it sink to the bottom. Then he uses the rod tip to lift the bait and pull it 2 to 3 feet before letting it settle back to the bottom. During a 5-second pause, he takes up slack line before pulling the lure again.

Crank The Edge
A deep-diving crankbait is Hirosky’s secret weapon when fishing weedlines.
“It’s a lure that many anglers avoid using around weedbeds on natural lakes, but it sure triggers the bites, especially big bass,” he says. “When bass are actively feeding, this is the lure I want to be throwing.”
Hirosky chooses big-bodied deep divers that can easily reach bottom at the depth where weeds stop growing. Rather than use a moderate-action cranking rod, he opts for a stiff medium-heavy rod with a fast action in order to rip the bait free of vegetation. His line is 12-pound fluorocarbon.
“I can cover a lot of territory with a crankbait,” Hirosky says. “To crank the edge correctly, you cannot be afraid of getting treble hooks hung up on weeds. Ripping them loose can trigger a strike.”
Hirosky normally will parallel-cast extremely tight to the weeds, target open alleys in the weedbeds, work the crankbait through sparse weed clumps and then turn 180 degrees to shoot a cast toward open water.
“I’m burning the bait, turning the handle as fast as possible,” he explains. “This isn’t a finesse presentation for me. I’m strictly looking for the reaction bite.”
For Hirosky, cranking is a big-bass technique on natural lakes.
“I’ll put my limit of crankbait bass against a limit taken by flipping any day and come away the winner,” he says.

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