In this information age, everything we want to know about is right before us if we know where to look. Computers and smartphones open the world to finding knowledge about any subject, including bass fishing.
There are countless outlets to brush up on your fishing skills, learn a new technique, or discover new fishing gear without leaving your home. There are also many ways to find good fishing locations from your phone or computer. Here are a few ways to find your next honey hole or new spots on your favorite lake.
Google Earth
One potent tool is Google Earth, as the satellite imagery shows many different years. It can be invaluable for finding backwaters and sneaky places to check out on your next trip to the lake. If you know where to look, the images also provide many clues.
One great feature is the historical image data. This allows you to look at different sections of a lake or river and see the changes through various seasons and over the years. Some clues you can quickly gather are where water is typically dirtier or where most aquatic vegetation is. Suppose you search through historical images at different water levels. In that case, you can also often find images of low water periods to find offshore humps, points, and many more objects that could be great fishing spots when the water is higher.
Mapping Apps
The days of old paper maps are mostly behind us, but they still serve a purpose, and sometimes, they can show things that even the best electronic map cards don’t. However, generally, the mapping cards in our electronics are very detailed and show incredible contour lines and irregularities that can point out some of the best spots on the lake. It’s easy enough to jump in your boat in your garage or driveway and turn on your electronics, but you can also do it from your phone.
The Navionics Boating App and Humminbird’s One-Boat Network app are great tools for searching for fishing spots. You can easily mark a pile of potential spots from your phone and check them out when you get on the water. It’s a great way to research for your next fishing trip and is more productive than aimlessly scrolling through social media because it will lead to more fish catches. For Humminbird and Minn-Kota users, the One-Boat Network also allows you to update the software on your units, control your trolling motor from your phone, and much more.
Videos, Fishing Reports, and Tournament Recaps
YouTube is an incredible resource to teach you how to do everything from repairs on your car or home to learning about bass fishing. With the popularity of people filming their fishing trips, it can also be a great way to learn a new technique or about a body of water. Searching for videos on the water you are going to can be very helpful. Not to find the exact fishing spot where they were catching fish but to learn more about what the lake looks like. You can see a great deal about the cover in the fishery by watching these videos, which can give hints about the fish species, typical size, and some techniques to try when you get there.
Online fishing reports are another way to research for an upcoming trip. The one caveat is that you often have to take everything you read with a grain of salt because we're fishermen, and there may be some exaggeration. Still, paying attention to the reports can be helpful if you start seeing themes popping up with techniques and other tidbits of information. One thing to remember when reading these reports is the year they were posted, as things can change significantly over time, and the same is true of the season, as fishing will be much different depending on the time of year.
Like fishing reports, reading about past bass tournaments can give you great insight into a lake. For one, you can quickly tell what a good day of fishing is for that lake or river based on the top weights. Another clue is when there are details about the top baits and patterns used by the anglers, which can help give you an idea about what works there. Often, there will also be mentions of specific creeks or sections of the lake, which can give you an idea of where to start when you get there. You can also view hours of live coverage recorded and put on YouTube if a professional tournament has been to the same body of water in recent years.
Other Apps
There are also several fishing spot apps with community members showing their fish catches for various bodies of water. One is the FishBrain app, where anglers submit catches from bodies of water. Only some of the information will be completely reliable, but it will lead to some clues, like other fishing reports. It could also show a lake you’ve never heard of but holds bass. It’s worth a look if you are looking for new areas to fish, whether at home or when traveling and looking for a place to wet a line.
For general information on weather and fishing conditions, several great weather apps can help you plan for a day. One fishing-focused app, BassForecast, will have all the information you need and the best fishing conditions. It’s all good information to know, and if you have a choice of when to hit the water, you can plan your trips accordingly.
The Internet and mobile phone apps have changed our world for the better. Some may point to the adverse effects, but plenty of good can come from them. For the fishermen, that is a better understanding of fishing in general and the chance to find new fishing spots right from the comfort of their own homes on their phones or computers.
