Strategies For Swamp Bass
Story and Photos By Keith Sutton

To visit the lake, I motored down a big bottomland river to a point far from the nearest town. Tying my johnboat to oak steps placed years ago by some now forgotten individual, I clambered to the top of the river bank and followed a barely discernible path through 100 yards of jungle to the lake's edge. A screen of cypress and buckbrush obscured my vision, but I soon spotted the wooden boat awash near shore. No one knows who owns it any more, but ownership is not an issue in this lonely corner of the world. The boat is there for whoever comes along.

I tipped the boat to empty it of water, then placed inside it the rod and reel I had brought, a sculling paddle and a small tackle box holding a few lures. Water edging the oxbow was shallow, and I had no difficulty pushing my way to the outer boundary of the cypress trees using the paddle. As I tied a spinnerbait to my line, I saw shad erupt beside a button willow, a sure sign largemouth bass were hunting there. That brought a smile to my face, for it was largemouths I was after this day.

Casting the lure to the knees surrounding a huge cypress, I found my quarry. A bass inhaled the spinnerbait, shot for cover and did a loop-de-loop around one knee. It mattered not that a 220-pound man held the end of the line opposite the bass. The fish, a 6- or 7-pounder, jumped, flipped its tail and was gone.

Bass in these backcountry waters are brawlers. They fight dirty and make their relatives in bigger, man-made lakes look like wimps.

Maybe it's the extraordinary fertility of these bottomland hardwood swamps that make bass so healthy and strong. In these natural waters, every fish seems to have an extra measure of stamina.

Maybe the confined living space, shallow water and dense cover are what make swamp bass so good at line-busting and throwing hooks. These fish know every inch of their territory — every cypress knee, snag and brushpile — and they use that familiarity to discomfit their human antagonists.

Maybe it's the beauty of swamps that causes these problems. When you're fishing in the shade of 500-year-old cypresses, watching bright-yellow warblers flit through the foliage overhead, the serenity of it all can lull you into a state of total relaxation. Reflexes get sluggish, and consequently, lots of bass get the best of you.

It really doesn't matter. Swamp lakes serve up exceptionally good bass fishing, and if bottomland bass get the jump on you more often than usual, it's a small price to pay for the privilege of being there.

I grew up in Arkansas' Mississippi River Delta and cut my teeth on this brand of swamp fishing. Nowadays, I often fish man-made impoundments, too, but I still prefer fishing a small oxbow in the middle of a swamp. The bassin' is extraordinary, and I value these waters for their beauty and serenity, too. There's nothing prettier than sunrise on a backwater lake ringed by cypresses. And you're never bothered by jet skis, fast-running boats or other distractions.

When I get a bellyful of the modern world, I pack my tackle and head for the bottoms because I know I'll find peace and quiet there. Plus, the lack of fishing pressure allows bass to grow large in most of these remote swamp areas.

Swamp Country
By definition, a swamp is a wetland featuring permanent inundation of large land areas by shallow bodies of water. Most swamps are associated with adjacent rivers or lakes, and unlike marshes, swamps include many woody plants such as cypress trees, tupelos, overcup oaks and button willows. The waters of a swamp are still or slow moving and often rich in tannins from decaying vegetation.

My home state of Arkansas encompasses some of the biggest swamps in the country, including the Big Woods area stretching along the White and Cache rivers, which includes hundreds of thousands of acres punctuated with scores of oxbow lakes, bayous and backwaters full of largemouth bass.

Swamps occur throughout much of the country, from New Jersey and Indiana to Texas and Florida. Many are protected as national wildlife refuges or wildlife-management areas, such as Okefenokee Swamp in Georgia and Florida, Honey Island Swamp in Louisiana and Mingo Swamp in Missouri. Most serve up excellent fishing for largemouth bass. A call to your state fisheries agency should help you find a swamp you can explore and fish on your own.

Equipment And Techniques
Bank fishing and wading rarely are options in these densely vegetated, soft-bottomed waters. You need a boat to access prime bassin' spots otherwise out of reach, and the lighter the boat is, the better it's suited for this type of fishing. You often must carry your craft to the water and finagle your way into and through tight cover. I prefer fishing from a 10- or 12-foot aluminum johnboat, but canoes work well, too. I've even fished out of rubber rafts and belly boats on occasion.

Your rod should be slightly shorter than you probably use elsewhere — 51/2 feet is generally best — because of the cramped quarters of the boat and the tight, brushy fishing conditions usually encountered. You don't need a big tackle box either. Instead, use a small box with a dozen spinnerbaits, an assortment of plastic worms, a couple of shallow-running crankbaits and topwater lures, and a handful of other favorites.

If you can drive close to the bank, you may want to haul a trolling motor, too, but if you're looking at a longer walk to the lake, it's not worth the trouble. Take a sculling paddle instead.

Fishing techniques in swamp systems aren't terribly complicated. Start by working shoreline cover carefully, probing every nook in the brush and every likely log or cypress tree. Change lures and presentations until you locate one bass find appealing, starting the day with topwaters and spinnerbaits, then changing to bottom-bouncers like worms and crankbaits as the day progresses.

If you're fishing an oxbow, remember that the outside bend of the lake is always a little deeper than the inside bend. This is important in summer when water temperatures sometimes reach the 90s. During midday, bass gather on the lake's deeper side, lying in shadows of logs and cypress trees where conditions are more comfortable.

Cypress Fishing
Speaking of cypress trees, these tall swamp lovers are common in most swamps, and fishing around them often is the best way to nab a lunker largemouth. The wide, fluted base provides support in wet soils where cypresses typically grow. The spike-like knees are part of the root system. Botanists still are unsure of their exact function. They may provide support in unstable soil or enable gas exchange to oxygenate underwater roots. Extensive root systems may interlock with those of other trees, forming mats of shallow roots and knees that reinforce each other.

To better understand bass/cypress relationships, think of the root system as a big raised doughnut surrounding the tree. The doughnut's hole is a pocket of slightly deeper water adjacent the buttress. Moving outward, you encounter the doughnut itself, which extends 10 to 20 feet or more away from the tree. Beyond the doughnut, you encounter a flat, featureless bottom, unless another tree is nearby and the root systems interlock.

Cypress knees are part of the doughnut and may be the only surface feature indicating the doughnut's breadth. You should remember, however, the doughnut may extend several feet beyond visible knees, providing underwater bass structure.

The biggest mistake most anglers make is fishing only the water nearest each tree — inside the doughnut hole. While a well-placed cast here may entice a bass, do not confine your fishing to this area alone. Often, bass relate to underwater features on portions of the root system farther from the buttress.

The best areas usually are related to something slightly different from surrounding portions of the doughnut — a knee with a hollow, for example, or a cluster of knees or perhaps a point of root growth extending toward deeper water. Bass also hold along the doughnut's outer edges.

To fish a root system thoroughly, begin on one side of the tree, casting close to it for starters, then working progressively outward to cover the entire doughnut, particularly irregular features you can see or "feel." When you've fished thoroughly from this angle, reposition your boat on the opposite side and do the same thing.

Crayfish-imitation crankbaits and plastic worms produce cypress bass year-round. Topwater plugs and buzzbaits excel near dawn and dusk in summer. Spinnerbaits are superb in murky water. Work the doughnut of each tree methodically and thoroughly, and you'll get the most enjoyment from each visit to these beautiful waters.

Button-Willow Bass
Button willows are woody shrubs 3 to 8 feet tall that grow in dense thickets in the shallows of many swamps. Bass often ambush prey from the interior of these thickets, and if you target these fish in the proper manner, you can hook some hawgs.

To catch button-willow bass, move past the outer edge and into the thicket. Grab limbs and pull your boat in. This requires a narrow johnboat or canoe. Position it near a stump, log or other feature within the thicket if possible.

Casting is impossible, so use a long, heavy jigging pole with heavy line (30- to 50-pound braid) to bring fish quickly into the boat. Weedless lures such as plastic worms are best. Pull the line so your lure is tight against the rod tip and then work it carefully through the brush until you can ease it down into an opening.

When a fish strikes, set the hook immediately and back the fish into the boat. This may be frustrating at first. You'll lose many fish and lures before getting the hang of it, so be patient. After some practice, you'll land a high percentage of big button-willow bass.

Keep in mind that fishing swamps isn't for everyone. Bottomland anglers must contend with hordes of mosquitoes, the occasional cottonmouth and stifling heat and humidity. However, when you need some peace and quiet, and the tug of a big bass on your line to make you happy, these wetland jewels are always worth a visit.