Sneaky night fishermen catch bass.

Kay Richey shows off a nice smallmouth bass caught after the sun went down.

Fishing is often better after sundown during the summer. Some of the state’s best bass, trout and walleyes are hooked in the evening.

Largemouth and smallmouth bass, favorite targets of summer fishermen, might be hesitant to strike during daylight hours when many lakes are abuzz with jet skis, water skiers and power boaters.

But when the sun goes down, and the crowd leaves the water, the mood of a lake slows down and mellows out. Fish begin ascending from deeper water and feeding along the edge of weed beds, docks, lily pads, swimming rafts and other shoreline structure.

There is a big difference about night fishing. It’s quiet and peaceful on the water.

The best hours, according to many sundown fishermen, are from 10 p.m. to midnight. Bass begin to prowl lakes, and fishermen with small boats can scull slowly along and cast plugs toward the shoreline or parallel to the first deepwater edge of weed beds.

Although many anglers would disagree, the lure of choice for most after-dark fishermen is a top-water plug. A Jitterbug or Hula Popper cast into the shallows, allowed to rest motionless until all ripples subside, and then brought back to the boast with a stop-start gurgling motion will produce explosive surface strikes.

A top-water strike is a happening, something that can be seen, heard and felt. It’s the one thing that keeps bringing fishermen back to this sport.

Top-water fishermen should concentrate their efforts near docks jutting into lakes, around swimming rafts, along edges of swimming beachs and near lily pads or shallow coves chocked with weeds. Another great place to try is near a boat tied to the dock. Bass often hold under the boat, and often are feeding.

Experiment with surface, sub-surface and deep-diving lures and lure colors.

One technique that works even better (although the strike will be underwater, unseen and unheard) is to fish a sinking Rapala, sinking Rebel, River Runt or any other crankbait along the deepwater edge of weedbeds. Cast parallel to the weed edges and retrieve just fast to bring out the action.

Midnight bass fishing is a serene sport – until a bass hits. The lake is calm, the crowd is gone and the only competition a fisherman will find is one bass competing with another for the lure.

A friend of mind had the same attitude about lure color for afterdark fishing as Henry Ford had about his early car color.

“I don’t care what color it is as long as it’s black,” Ford is credited with saying.

The same thing holds true with lures. Think of it this way. A bass is looking upward through the water at a lure chuckling along on the surface. The night sky almost always has some light from homes, stars and other light sources.

A black lure against a lighter surface is easier for fish to see. Make it easier for fish to see. A black-and-white shore minnow pattern is a good choice, and we all know what happens to the color red in darkness. It appears to be black. I’ve also has some very good success with purple colored lures.

Silence and no light is the key to fishing near shore for bass.

The importance of being quiet cannot be over-stated. My early efforts toward bass fishing at night came along much before the use of electric motors. I often fished from a 12-foot aluminum pram, a flat-bottomed boat. A canoe worked as well, and was even quieter.

Who knows how many bass get spooked from the shallows when an angler kicks over his tackle box or drops a canoe paddle eonto the bottom of a fiberglass or wood canoe. Above all, learn how to fish without lights.

It appears more difficult that I think it is to cast a lure accurately after dark. I’ve seen grown men cast lures above their head, and to the left or right of the position rather than casting out in front when you need to place the lure.

At night, your ears take over for your loss of vision. Do it often enough, and you’ll find the right rhythm to each case. An inner sense tell you when to stop the cast, and it beigins to plunk down with a soft splash near shore.

Relax, fish slow but methodically, and never reveal your presence by making noise.

Practice casting alongside docks and anchored boats. The trick is to keep working your lures through as much fishable water as possible. What after-dark anglers must strive for is the unerring accuracy they are capable of during daylight hours. There is always some light on the water, but it should never be from a flashlight.

Any bright light shining directly on the area being fished will usually be fruitless. It scares off the fish.

The trick, if there really is one, is to become one with the darkness and silence. Quiet fishermen often can hear bass chasing minnows near the surface, and although these fishy sound are seldom loud, a strike from a big fish near  the boat can be very loud.

Prowl the lad like a silent predator. Give bass no advance warning of your presence, and glide smoothly over the water without sound. Do so, you can find great success on many lakes as you catch fish while everyone else is asleep.

Title: Sneaky night fishermen catch bass.

Tags: ((David, Richey, Michigan, outdoors, night, fishing, dark, lures, absolute, silence, boats, docks, swimming, rafts))

Posted via email from Dave Richey Outdoors