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Most of what we hear about lure
selection and presentation is for lakes that have some stain or
color to the water. But not all lakes have color, and you'd
be mistaken to use the same tactics in ultra-clear water as you
do in dark or off-color water.
“Clear water” is
a relative term. What Southern reservoir anglers may consider
clear is stained in my home state of Michigan, where visibility
down to 12 feet is not uncommon.
To me, clear water is when an
angler can see his lure in water deeper than 1½ feet. A
lake is stained when I can see the lure from 8 inches to 1½
feet. I consider the water muddy when I can't see my lure
in water deeper than 8 inches.
While it's true you can
catch bass deep on some clear lakes, it doesn't mean they
don't live shallow. Also, just because you can't see
the fish in clear water doesn't mean they aren't there.
Bass have chameleon-like characteristics in that they can blend
in with their surroundings. I've caught too many clear-water
fish in very shallow water to worry about whether I can see them
or if they see me.
The thing to remember is bass
feed more by sight in clear lakes than they do in dirty water.
Because they can see much better, they're less apt to be
fooled by a lure that doesn't look natural or that isn't
presented properly. The fact that bass can see better works to
the advantage of anglers who fish fast-moving lures, such as crankbaits,
spinnerbaits and topwaters, or fish soft plastics erratically
along the bottom. I know this goes against traditional thinking,
since most clear-water anglers tend to fish slow-moving finesse
lures. However, it's been my experience that the fast movers
fool more bass.
The reason is simple. You can
disguise your lure better by blending natural color with speed.
If you're moving a lure slowly, the bass can scrutinize
it more closely. If the bass senses the color or shape isn't
natural, especially on heavily pressured waters, it is less likely
to strike.
However, a fast lure in color combinations and sizes that closely
resemble the natural forage doesn't give the bass time to
think of it in any other way. The motion of the lure creates a
blurred image, and the relative sizes and colors enable it to
blend in with the environment.
That's why I never let
my lure sit still in clear water. If the strike zone is small,
I will choose a jerkbait or a topwater that I can move constantly
without pulling it too far from the fish. If I'm crankbaiting,
I'll opt for a lure that dives slightly deeper so it bounces
wildly along the bottom. If I'm fishing a spinnerbait, I'll
work it fast, twitch it or let it flutter for a split second to
create erratic movements.
Because of the water clarity,
don't use gaudy colors that project unnatural images. If
I'm fishing a spinnerbait, I'll use a translucent
skirt and match the blade size and color to the forage. If I'm
using a crankbait, I want a color that doesn't stand out
or detract from the action of the lure.
The same holds true with soft-plastic
lures and also applies to the secondary colors in the baits. I've
seen situations when a slightly different color of flake in your
soft-plastic lure made a big difference in how many bites you
get.
Since all native forage tends
to blend in with its surroundings, the best way to match the forage
in clear water is to match the lure to the background of the cover
or bottom you're fishing. Therefore, if it's a sandy
bottom, colors that blend in with sand will be best. If you're
fishing in vegetation, watermelon becomes an effective color.
Try putting these tips to work
and you'll soon be catching bass from lakes where other
anglers aren't getting bites.
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