Lake Martin has a ton of spotted bass and fewer largemouth, but the largemouth run bigger. When I fished the recent Bassmaster Elite Series tournament there, I relied on forward-facing sonar in the morning to catch an 8- to 10-pound bag of spotted bass on finesse baits.
In the afternoon, I fished docks in search of kicker largemouth as the warming water and brighter conditions pulled more bass to this manmade cover.
My strategy was simple. But figuring which of the lake’s gazillion docks to concentrate on wasn’t so simple. The dock pattern changed every day and forced me to adjust.
On the first afternoon, I began by fishing different types of docks in a variety of places. I needed to get a bite or two to clue me in.
For as long as I’ve fished professionally – 31 years so far – one thing has remained constant. Fishermen lie, but the fish never lie. I needed the bass to tell me which docks to fish.
I caught my first bass by skipping a wacky-rigged Berkley Powerbait The General stickbait under a pontoon boat. I opted for the green pumpkin candy color to mimic bluegill. That bass didn’t allow me to cull, but it was a bite.
One bite may or may not point you in the right direction, but I’m a big believer that two bites doing the same thing is a strong indicator. About 15 minutes later, I caught another bass from under a pontoon boat.
For the rest of the day, I fished nothing but pontoon boats with the wacky rig. I believe the sunny conditions that day had the bass seeking maximum shade, which is what the pontoon boats provided. My biggest dock bass that day, a largemouth, weighed 2 1/2 pounds. That was a kicker in that tournament.
Day 2 dock pattern
After catching a base limit of spotted bass the next morning, I went straight to the docks and began skipping a wacky rig under pontoon boats. After fishing several pontoon boats without a bite, the bass were telling me I needed to try something different.
About halfway back in a short pocket, I got my first bite by pitching a jig under a floating dock supported by black floats. That fish helped me cull up a few ounces.
Maybe 20 minutes later, I flipped the jig under another dock with black floats and caught a 5-3 largemouth, the Big Bass of the tournament. The rest of the day, I stuck with that pattern. My jig was a 1/2-ounce Missile Baits green pumpkin Mini Flip dressed with a black and blue Berkley Powerbait Chigger Craw.
I believe the bass moved under those docks because they were drawn to the warmth radiating from the black floats. It had been really cold the previous night.
I ended the day with 13-12, which jumped me to 17th place. I was jacked.
Day 3 dock pattern
I had to fish until noon to get my base limit of spotted bass the next day before I could hit the docks. After fishing floating docks with black floats and pontoon boats for 45 minutes, I had yet to get the first bite.
I had to start from scratch and begin fishing all types of docks. I finally got my first bite, pitching the Missile jig to a dock with wood supports the size of telephone poles. That fish gave me a slight upgrade. A short time later, I caught another bass on a similar dock.
I ran docks with wood supports for the rest of the afternoon. My biggest cull fish was a 2-pound largemouth. I dropped to 33rd place, but I’m pleased with my finish, considering forward-facing sonar was allowed in this event. I’m getting more confident with this technology.
You can learn more about how I fish docks and other tactics at www.mikeiaconelli.com or www.youtube.com/c/goingike.
