Call 'Em "Dog Days" or "Summer Doldrums"; Either Way, They're the Pits

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to tell us that late summer is a tough time to bass fish. As observed by Virginia's John Crews (right), "Many of the fish are suspended, and they're about as hard to catch as it gets. At the same time, others are super deep. Still others are shallow. Along with all of that, a fair number of bass are relating to structure."

So, yeah, it's tough fishing, but as Crews added, "At the same time, it presents us with a wealth of opportunity. It's a matter of the glass being half full, instead of half empty."

Crews went on to note that, when it comes to shallow bass, "there's no better way to target them than with a topwater bait. Buzzbaits, Whopper Ploppers, Zara Spooks, frogs, toads, and Pop-Rs will all get their attention. The trick to being successful is to alternate your topwater offerings until you start getting bites. Not every lure will do that. Sometimes, they want a little noise, and sometimes they want things soft and subtle. It's our job to figure that out.

"I'm not going to tell you there are any hard and fast rules," continued Crews, "but here's the way I select my baits, at least to start. Buzzbaits are good around light cover. Whopper Ploppers cover bare banks really well, and a Zara Spook or Pop-R can be the deal when you're targeting weed lines."

Another great bait this time of year, according to Crews, is a crankbait.

"The key to being successful with them is to make sure there are baitfish around," he said. "There is something about the vibration of a crankbait in the late summer and fall that gets their attention.

"At SPRO, we have a complete line of crankbaits that'll cover most every depth you'll be fishing," continued Crews. "When they aren't too deep, I really like a Little John. It's a great fall lure, and because the water is clear in most lakes and rivers in the late summer and early fall, they can see it from a ways away, as well as feel it."

A man who seconds that motion about crankbaits is David Fritts (left).

According to him, "A lot of guys feel more comfortable in August fishing way up the river or way in the back of creeks. That's because they can find current. What's good to know is that, in this situation, bass will get on flat-sided crankbaits when nothing else will work, especially if you've had plenty of rain and there's water moving where you're fishing."

The last bait--really a technique--that Crews mentioned is a drop shot, which is about as subtle and natural as you can get. Another nice thing he pointed out is that it can be fished at any depth, depending on how you rig it.

Crews uses spinning tackle for this technique. He pays special attention to the color of the baitfish.

"It seems like color matters more with a drop shot than it does with some other lures," he noted. "It's critical that you match the hatch."

Color also matters to Fritts. As he pointed out, "Your chartreuse colors start to come back in August. I love the rubbertail bream and lone ranger colors, which are sort of a chartreuse baby bass and chartreuse/silver back. Your baitfish colors like honey shad and chartreuse/blue also will be good. The first two colors, though, are extremely good for getting big bites."

Even though it's hot in August, and the fish don't seem to be interested in many offerings, Fritts urges anglers to keep looking for them in places that are off the beaten path, away from all the rest of the boats and fishermen.

"Bear in mind that August also is the start of the time of year when fish really start hanging around wood better than anything else," said Fritts. "You start seeing them around isolated brush and stumps. You just have to fish enough places to find ones where they're biting. At Buggs Island, for example, out of 100 brush piles you fish, you might only find 10 where they're biting."

As both Crews and Fritts urged, "Give these suggestions a chance, and I'm guessing you'll be glad you did."