When water temperatures move up in the range of 58 to 62 degrees, bass have only one thing on their minds –to spawn. In order to time this right and find the mother load of bass, there are several variables to consider:
One mentioned above is water temperature. When the water begins hitting these levels, it’s time to start looking for bass beds in coves and spawning flats. Another variable correlating with temperature is the current stage of the moon. I recommend fishing on a full or new moon, timing this accordingly with water temperatures.
It’s also critical to consider location. The north side of a lake tends to reach optimum spawning temperatures first, due to the fact that it will receive the most amount of sunlight. It’s important to look for bays and shallow flats on the north side of lakes first. As for prime habitat, a hard bottom is the ideal place to find the best bass. These areas can be found in shallow bays and coves. If hard bottom is difficult to find, the next structure to look for is hard wood.
Now that you’ve found some fish sitting on beds, what’s next? I personally like throwing small bright colored baits. My three favorite for spawning bass are 3.5" tubes with open hook, craws, or creature baits Texas rigged, and flukes. I'd typically rig these baits on 3/0 to 5/0 hooks, depending on bait size.
Brighter colors such as white or neon orange allow me to see the bait in the bed. As bass are often in a defensive mood during the springtime, bright colors help to provoke the bass to defend their nest.
Don’t waste too much time if fish are acting spooky. Chances are, they have already been caught or have not locked in and committed to the bed. The defensive behavior that provokes them to strike has not set in. Bounce around – sooner or later you’ll come up on a bed with a willing fish.
