Dissecting Large Bodies of Water

Author: Will Petty

Monday, December 15, 2008

    Trying to locate and catch bass on larger reservoirs can be a very challenging task.  It is very easy to get overwhelmed when you look out across the lake from the ramp and cannot see the other shore.  For this article I will be referring to Kerr Lake (Buggs Island if you are from Virginia) since I have a decent amount of experience on that particular body of water.  If you follow a few helpful pointers on how to locate bass on larger bodies of water, you should increase your catch rate dramatically.

    The first thing to remember when you get to the lake is that you cannot fish the whole lake.  I have found that if you take a certain section of that particular lake and focus your attention on that area, your time on the water will be more productive and less frustrating.  Just as an example, Kerr Lake has numerous large tributaries that you could spend days fishing in productive water.  What works well for me is to take one of the major tributaries and treat it like it is it’s own lake.  By doing this you can try various different patterns and techniques without spending a whole lot of time riding from one part of the lake to another.  Once you figure the pattern out in that one section or creek you can then expand that pattern to other areas of the lake.

    One of the biggest hang-ups that people run into on larger bodies of water is that they tend to fish spots instead of patterns.  By this I mean they tend to fish in the past; hitting spots that they caught fish from before even though the conditions are not conducive for that particular spot to produce again.  Fish by what the conditions will give you.  A good rule of thumb that I have learned is that the fish on the lower end of the lake tend to bite better when it is cloudy.  This is the case since there usually is clearer water in that part of the lake and the fish use the low light conditions to extend their feeding periods.  When it is sunny and flat, the dirtier water up lake tends to produce more consistently since the fish are less skittish.

    Another thing that I try to do when approaching a large body of water is to fish to my strengths.  You know that if you are a flipper then maybe you should begin your search in the upper reaches of that particular body of water since typically you will find an abundance of shallow cover and dirtier water.  That is not to say that you can’t get on a good flipping bite in clear water but fishing is a game of percentages.  Any time you can put yourself in a high percentage area the better your chances are of doing well.

    These few tips will hopefully get you point in the right direction next time you set out on a large, unfamiliar body of water like Kerr Lake.