Later Summer Pattern

A lot of fisherman are looking forward to when the water cools and the early fall fishing season starts. My self included but we will have to wait a few more weeks for that. At this time the days are still very hot and the water is in the 83 degree range on most of our area lakes. This is the time of the year that some people call late summer. But at the same time with the hot air and high water temps most of the fish will still hold in a normal summer pattern. Y

ou may ask , what does the term pattern mean and what does it have to do with fishing. Well I feel the term pattern has a double meaning in fishing. First let me describe what a pattern is exactly. A pattern can be what the fish should be doing based of the time of year. Such as now the fish are holding deeper in the cooler water during the day on cover and main lake structure. And moving more shallow at night and in low light and over cast conditions. This is the pattern that the fish are using now a typical late summer type pattern. Then a fishing pattern is what you do to find and locate the most active and aggressive fish you can by using the right bait and the right presentation. Then when you repeat this same action over and over and continue to catch fish you have established a fish catching pattern. So the term pattern can be used in two ways in fishing a seasonal pattern and a fishing pattern.

The pattern I am referring to as a late summer deeper holding pattern is he seasonal pattern. As for the best fishing pattern to catch fish like the bass, crappie walleye and musky on some lakes. Is to fish during the peak feeding times like at night, during low light conditions and during over cast and foggy weather. The fish will use these type of weather and darker skies to move up more shallow to feed and will become more active and easier to catch. A smart angler will use this type of knowledge and be in the right place in the right time and take advantage of this time. Then use baits that will work best in this shallow type water area. Also don't ever be afraid to use top water baits and buzz baits In low light and night time conditions. A slow reeled squeaky buzz bait can bring heart stopping strikes. Also you can throw shallow running crank baits.

Try to use a darker colored bait that has a built in rattle. When a fish like the bass is searching for food during a low light condition they rely on the sound and vibration given off by a struggling bait fish or other bait and will hone in on these sounds and vibrations by the use of the nerves in the lateral line that runs the full length of a large mouth bass. So by using a bait that has a rattle or makes a noise the bass can find it quicker. All of this will help you catch more bass. Then if you would rather go after crappie, then by fishing at night time and during low light conditions you can increase your catch rate. Because crappie will use the shallow water cover and will feed more during this time of year. Then they will go deeper during the day to search out cooler water.

So just try to find out or figure out the seasonal pattern of the fish that you are after and then the best fish catching pattern to use at that time and you will defiantly catch more fish than you would with out doing this.