Night Bass Fishing

Bud Kennedy · March 27, 2018, 07:42:31 PM

This is something that I have never tried. I do know that a lot of folks up in NC do a lot of night fishing including several tournament groups. I have seen posts from Bo James that strongly indicate his preference for night fishing. I would like to see a discussion about how this is done and what techniques are productive and perhaps some information about on water navigation etc. during night hours. Summers here in the South are so dang hot that for some the only fishing they do is after the sun goes down.

twocold · March 27, 2018, 08:07:45 PM

In N California black spinner bait Colorado blades work well

D.W. Verts · March 27, 2018, 09:13:28 PM

It takes an attitude, careful planning, organizational skills, attitude, and I loved doin' it with a Black Light. They've probably invented something better by now.

I used to really dig fishin' with 20# Stren Hi-Vis line and that Black Light. Like shootin' lazer beams on every cast. And you could actually SEE the strikes.

During my tournament days (oops, nights) it was almost strictly a worm/jig thing. But I did manage to scare myself a few times over the years with a Musky Jitterbug. Very romantical, old-school fishin' with that monster bait out there in the dark, plop, plop, ploppin' along. Gonna have to do that again, for sure.

Donald Garner · March 27, 2018, 09:26:36 PM

I've done it a few times in my younger days when I was part of the MBAA at Ft. Polk back in the mid 80's Like Dale mentioned CAREFUL PLANNING is the most important thing. We pre-fished and marked our locations. Most of the time we sat on (1) spot all night long. Our baits of choice were Texas Rigged Big Plastic Lizards and Jigs. We used Berkley Big Game Clear 20lb Mono at the time.

merc1997 · March 27, 2018, 09:32:41 PM

bass fishing at night is really not any different than daytime fishing. you can actually catch them on the same things you use in the daytime. night time bass can, at some times, be a taste shallower than daytime. many like throwing a spinner bait at night, but i catch way more better quality bass on a jig.

bo

zippyduck · March 27, 2018, 09:49:49 PM

I really need to get out at night this year.

We used to have a group of us get together every Friday night and we caught our biggest bass of the year always.

Black spinnerbaits and jitterbugs were our favorites. but we caught more on T-rigs and jigs.

Wizard · March 27, 2018, 10:31:09 PM

Like bo, I fished a lot at night at Table Rock. I also night fished at LOZ and Truman. It is hard to night fish at LOZ these days because of the cruiser traffic. So many drunks on the lake not able to drive safely. Add in the dead men floating in the lake when Truman dam is opened and it is a scary situation. Truman has it's own dangers. Tree lines, sheer bluff walls, sudden shallow areas, etc means slow boat travel. So few anglers fishing that if you have a problem, there is no one to help.
I'm saying that night fishing is fun and you have a better chance of catching a good bass BUT you have to be careful. PFD, phone, flashlight, everything in case something goes wrong. Pick a lake that isn't dangerous if possible. Many anglers fish shallow at night. I fish long sloping points and off shore structure during hot weather. A football jig or large slow rolled spinner bait worked deep. A short arm spinnerbait along the bluff walls and ends with worms or jigs in the brush piles.

Wizard

coldfront · March 27, 2018, 10:57:56 PM

Quote from: merc1997 on March 27, 2018, 09:32:41 PM
bass fishing at night is really not any different than daytime fishing. you can actually catch them on the same things you use in the daytime. night time bass can, at some times, be a taste shallower than daytime. many like throwing a spinner bait at night, but i catch way more better quality bass on a jig.

bo

was introduced to night fishing with black lights by a guide on Table Rock back in 1990. One of my favorite trip memories is a couple years later spending a few days there with a buddy chasing spawners. it was also when the Hale Bop comet was in the northern sky. Stayed down at a resort on Shell Knob.

fished during the day and it was a little slow. Went out at night and were tossing jigs up tight to shoreline and they were getting CRUSHED by aggressively feeding spots.

oh, and the size of those fish was over a pound better than what we were finding during the day.

have also had a ball on a local (omaha) lake fishing soft plastics through weed beds at night. that was back in my bank-beater days. could fish a 6 inch zoom lizard, weightless, through the weeds really slow and get a lot of bites. easy to do with the solid earth under my feet. harder to concentrate, hold still in a boat and do this.

there are also other aspects of this night fishing stuff: a few more safety considerations.

FlatsNBay · March 28, 2018, 04:35:20 AM

I used to fish at night many years ago. There is something special about getting a hit in the dark. You never what is on the end of your line. Every fish feels like a monster!

SteelHorseCowboy · March 28, 2018, 07:15:13 AM

Nope! Dusk maybe. Gators own the night.

LgMouthGambler · March 28, 2018, 07:43:40 AM

I like night fishing. Used to do it a lot. Been out a couple of times with Lou. The best time is when its a full moon. When you are out with no light pollution, the moon will light up everything!

SFL BassHunter · March 28, 2018, 08:27:38 AM

I've night fished a bit. But my night fishing has consisted of fishing from sundown to around 10 or 10:30PM at a local park. I'd stay later but they close at 10:30.
There is a gator in the lake I fish but it rarely comes out. The 1 time I did see it was at night roaming the middle of the lake. Not too big and scary. I have to keep watch for all the other night critters though. Raccoons come out and play at that time and can be very curious. They are also sneaky and silent.

I've caught some nice sized fish at night though. I do think the big girls are more willing to feed.
I've tried topwater frog but it's not easy to time your hookset when you can't see if your frog disappeared or not. So I've had the best luck dragging a big 12" worm or Vibe Tail and a 1/8oz-1/2oz bullet weight.
At night I like baits that have a large profile or move water and create vibrations in the water to draw the fish. Funny thing is at night you can throw a 12" worm and even the small fish will eat it.

I wear a cap light because I can't stand the head band type lights. The cap light gets the job done, but I need to buy a new one. Mine broke. They have lights with green bulbs and red bulbs. Those two colors are better for night than your traditional white bulb. But green attracts more bugs. So red I think is the way to go.
I like to shut off the light while I am fishing and let my eyes adapt to the darkness. Only time I turn on the red light is to walk or if I need to retie or I catch a fish and need to see what I am doing better.

Generally I will do my night fishing in the winter months because it gets dark around 6.

SFL BassHunter · March 28, 2018, 08:34:34 AM

And for those that are afraid of the dark for 95 bucks you can get one of these. Comes with a red and a green filter lol

I prefer something a little smaller. Something like this has a UV setting

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Oldfart9999 · March 28, 2018, 09:03:14 AM

My Dad used to take me when I was a kid, jitterbugs on Skaneateles Lake with small mouth, lot's of good memories. Most of the ramps around here close at night and the private ones can be pricey, so I've not done it, may have to rethink it.
Rodney

LgMouthGambler · March 30, 2018, 04:18:07 PM

Going tonight with this killer moon. Just me and the cultured one. Its gonna be soo romantic!

D.W. Verts · March 30, 2018, 05:05:17 PM

We'd about freeze to death if we tried it tonight. This has been a horrible spring so far.

SFL BassHunter · March 30, 2018, 06:35:17 PM

Quote from: LgMouthGambler on March 30, 2018, 04:18:07 PM
Going tonight with this killer moon. Just me and the cultured one. Its gonna be soo romantic!

Aww you two have Fun!

HTTR · March 30, 2018, 08:47:54 PM

Do it if you get the chance! I had never done it until a week ago and I've been 3 times since then. I snagged my personal best tonight on a lizard. It is a totally new and exciting experience. It's almost all feel unless you have a good moon or glare on the water. I got to see the head wake from this fish tonight.

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SFL BassHunter · March 30, 2018, 09:15:35 PM

Quote from: HTTR on March 30, 2018, 08:47:54 PM
Do it if you get the chance! I had never done it until a week ago and I've been 3 times since then. I snagged my personal best tonight on a lizard. It is a totally new and exciting experience. It's almost all feel unless you have a good moon or glare on the water. I got to see the head wake from this fish tonight.

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Good going there! It can certainly be worth it. All your scenes are heightened after a while. It's pretty cool!

Bassinkorea · March 30, 2018, 11:10:25 PM

I've fished at night several times years ago fom the bank at a small lake famous for lots of small bass. The fish I caught there at night were on average a lot bigger.

I'd love to fish on the local river by boat sometime this summer.