Look Inside the Weeds
For Early Season Success
by Jim Saric
Spring fishing for bass, crappies, and walleyes in natural lakes can be fast and furious, but it can be equally frustrating.
Spring is a great time to fish--water temperatures start to reach 60 degrees, trees and flowers bloom, the grass greens, and warm, stable weather arrives.
These signs usually signal that many fish are shallow and easily accessible, but they are also moving in search of food.
Weed growth is common in many natural lakes throughout the Midwest, and weeds become the key cover for nearly any species of fish. As weeds develop, they hold baitfish and baitfish attract game fish.
As the weeds develop, however, certain portions of a weedbed can be better than others.
Most weedbeds, once fully developed, can be divided into three sections: the inside weedline between the shore and the first weed growth; the weed flat; and the outside weedline marking the deepest extent of weed growth. Weedbeds developing in spring and early summer usually have a developed inside weedline, with scattered patches or clumps of weeds on the flat, and a non-distinct outside edge. This is the time to focus your attention on the inside.
The inside weedline commonly has points and cups (turns) that can hold groups of fish. An extensive sandy, shoreline point may hold spawning bass that may use the adjacent weed edge after spawning is completed. In some lakes where large populations of pike and muskies exist, you can expect the inside weedline and the weed flat to hold bass the entire year.
The turn along the inside weedline will often hold a small group of crappies after a cold front. And I've caught walleyes in only a couple feet of water on bright, sunny days along these areas.
When fishing for walleyes along the inside weedline, I use 1/16- or 1/32-ounce Fuzz-E-Grubs tipped with a chub or leech. This is a very natural presentation that also catches bonus bass. Another favorite presentation is a shallow-running minnow bait such as a Lindy Baitfish or Rapala. Sometimes I throw the lure against the bank and slowly drag it into the water towards the inside weedline. This can trigger fish that are extremely shallow.
When fishing for bass, I have found jerkworms, gitzits, and minnow baits to all be effective. I usually fish a jerkworm or minnow bait first and fish parallel to the inside weedline; if I miss a bass, I follow up with a gitzit.
When fishing crappies, I use a 1/32- or 1/64-ounce jig and a small minnow. If I locate a group of fish, I usually catch as many as possible on the jig, and if fishing slows, I rig a 1/64-ounce jig below a Thill float to catch the less aggressive fish from a small turn in the inside weedline.
Usually each species of fish has a key depth and a preferred type of weed growth along the weedline. The lead-in to the inside is also important, since it may dictate the type of cover that can grow in an area.
Fishing the inside weedline is especially fun because it commonly includes active fish that are shallow enough for sight fishing.
This spring do a little experimenting around the early weed growth. As Buck Perry stated long ago, the fish are either deep, shallow, or somewhere in-between. And the inside weedline is a top producer that you can't afford to overlook early in the year.
