Coming off the vernal equinox (March 20), days are growing longer, waters are getting warmer and bass have spawning on their minds. Depending on latitude, the fish may be on their way or on their beds. Four Bassmaster Elite Series pros offer their insight into how they find April big ’uns.
Bill Lowen — MUDDY RIVER
A self-described river rat who cut his teeth on the turbid Ohio River, Bill Lowen knows that low visibility keeps a lot of fish shallow much of the year. Expecting a prespawn to spawning focus in April (depending on latitude), Lowen will focus his attention even shallower and look for what he describes as transition areas.
“The perfect scenario would be a creek channel leading into the spawning area with an isolated piece of cover, like a laydown, in proximity to that, or a single dock, a stump, a big piece of rock or a grass clump,” Lowen said. “We tend to think more is better — more targets, more opportunities to catch a bass. It seems like I get my biggest bites off those isolated pieces of cover.”
Using a single dock as an example, Lowen said it’s common for anglers to avoid what they consider the time waste of running into a backwater prespawn area to fish one dock. On the contrary, Lowen said, overlooking such isolated structure in favor of a garden-variety stretch sprouting a dozen docks actually sounds less appealing.
“The big fish like those isolated pieces of cover because they get overlooked,” Lowen said.
Worth noting here: Lowen warns against assuming that unpressured equals easy. A shallow bass is always a wary creature, but thankfully, the spawning urge certainly does minimize the angst.
“Sometimes, I think big fish are really dumb, and then other times, I think they’re really smart,” Lowen said. “It’s like big deer — they’re really smart, and then they get crazy during the rut.
“I don’t know if that’s true for fish, but I do know that a fish that may have eluded us all year tends to come shallow and show itself during that time. I don’t know if that makes her easier to catch, but I know it makes it easier for us to know where she’s going to be.”
To that point, Lowen lets water temperature guide his search. That’s partly a matter of leveraging the sun’s warming effects, but it’s also about avoiding the cooling influences that can stymie spring progress.
“I always want to find the warmer water, so that typically eliminates headwaters of creeks,” Lowen said. “I want to find pockets without [cold water] coming in, but also pockets protected from that north wind. If we get a big north wind, those protected areas don’t cool down as fast.”
Favoring a warm and partly cloudy day with a little wind, Lowen does most of his shallow river work with a one-two punch of flipping baits. He’ll use either a 3/8- or 1/2-ounce signature series Lure Parts Online Flipping Jig with a Zoom Super Chunk trailer, or a Zoom Brush Hog with a 1/4- to 5/16-ounce Ark tungsten weight.
“I want to flip those isolated pieces of cover because I want to get it in there and soak it around and leave it in the cover a long time — almost deadstick it,” Lowen said. “Fishing is trial and error, but water temperature determines which bait I’ll throw. I’ll use the jig when the water’s a little cooler and the Texas rig when it’s warmer.”
Lastly, Lowen stresses persistence: “I may make 10 to 15 casts to a piece of cover. I see a lot of guys make two to three pitches and go on to the next one, but I’ve seen times when I get a bite on my eighth or ninth pitch. I don’t know if we’ve made enough racket to draw a fish to that piece of cover, or [if] we’ve finally aggravated him enough to make him bite.”
BAIT: Lure Parts Online Lowen Signature Flipping Jig with Zoom Super Chunk
WHY: Persistence
WHERE: Single cover
John Crews — TIDAL FISHERY
From mid-Atlantic waters like the Potomac River or Chesapeake Bay to the California Delta, where he won the 2010 Bassmaster Elite event out of Stockton, John Crews expects spawners. He also expects those big females in a heightened state of wariness.
“Remember that on tidal fisheries, they typically do not like low-water scenarios, so I’m fishing for spawners in areas outside the current,” Crews said. “I’m looking for an oxbow or a gravel pit where they can make a bed kind of like [in] a normal lake.”
Crews said he finds tidal spawners most relaxed during the second half of the incoming tide through the first half of the outgoing. This is when he’ll pitch a big Texas-rigged creature bait like the Missile Baits D Stroyer with a 3/8- to 1/2-ounce weight.
Noting the give-and-take of higher water, Crews said he’s willing to sacrifice the sight-fishing ability for a more approachable opponent. Basically blind casting to anywhere he thinks a tidal bass may bed, he values seclusion over size.
“I’m looking for [subtle] spots like a small piece of structure,” he said. “A lot of times on a tidal fishery they don’t spawn on the bigger cover; they’re just looking for whatever they can find on a firm bank.
“You’re going to pitch around those areas and let the bait stay near the piece of cover. You’re going to shake the bait really slow. Leave your bait in there a good 15 seconds or more. Once you get a bite or two, there’s probably going to be more fish in that area.”
Crews said wind is less of a concern when he’s targeting those protected backwater areas. He does prefer sunnier days, which renew the bottom warmth that may be lost during tidal movement.
As for overall mood, Crews said: “Tidal bass are as territorial as [bass] in lakes. I think the biggest difference is they tend to be a little more aggressive when spawning, but harder to see.
“They’re also aware of your boat, so it’s like a false sense of security. You might think you can get right on top of them during high water, but they always bite better on a long cast.”
And, while low water certainly offers valuable recon opportunities for him to spot fanned-out bedding areas, Crews won’t waste his time trying to fish for a bass that’s giving him the side eye. In his view, any visual advantage actually works against him.
“They’ll still be there, but they’ll be super-spooky,” Crews said. “It’s counterproductive. You might think it’s easy to go on low water and sight fish, but the fish are [unlikely to bite.]”
BAIT: Missile Baits D Stroyer
WHY: Reaction bait
WHERE: Tight cover
Greg Hackney — CYPRESS TREE LAKE
From his Louisiana home waters to the St. Johns River, where he notched second-place finishes in 2016 and 2021, Greg Hackney maintains two beliefs about bald cypress trees: First, just about any of these fish magnets could hold a spring spawner. Second, only a relatively small number will host a legit giant.
“Cypress tree lakes can be overwhelming because there’s so many trees,” Hackney said. “Most of the time, I have the most confidence catching a big fish when I’m around smaller groups away from the main groups, or single trees by themselves.
“It takes more time to fish those trees, and you won’t get bit off all of them. But when you get bit off an isolated tree in the month of April, it will be a big one. It could also be a tree that sits off the main group a little — something different typically isolates those big females.”
While Hackney generally wants to be in 4 feet or less, he’s less concerned with specific depth as he is with finding hard sand or shell bottom. Most of the time, he finds such areas by dropping his Power-Poles. If they stick hard or drag, he’s good to go.
“I lean more toward smaller trees than giant trees that time of year,” Hackney said. “Some of the biggest fish I’ve caught off cypress trees have been on a non-
chalant little tree out by itself. I also like trees that are leading into spawning areas because the fish will pass them on their way in and out.”
Digging deeper, he notes that not all cypress trees grow the same. Some sport emergent knees, while others grow root systems that remain subsurface and surround the trunk. The latter scenario often finds fish spawning on the tops of those root wads.
Typically flipping these trees with a 1/2-ounce Strike King Hack Attack Jig and a Strike King Rage Lobster trailer, Hackney swims his bait back to the boat after each flip. This allows him to probe a tree’s perimeter and detect the high spots.
“Once you catch fish on a tree or two, you’ll know if you need to fish around them or just target the base of the tree,” Hackney said. “Typically, the type of cypress tree there will be the type that are in the entire area.”
Hackney occasionally complements the jig with a Strike King Sexy Frog, especially on the warm, muggy days when the fish often hold higher in the water column. When sunny, high-pressure conditions pin them deeper and they’re not liking the big, bold jig presentation, a wacky-rigged Strike King Ocho can work wonders.
Whatever he throws, Hackney’s tackled-up for the task of separating fish from cypress. That’s a little tougher with the wacky rig’s spinning tackle, but even there, he’ll rig a 12-pound fluorocarbon leader.
“Using bigger line will help you get them out because they will try to wrap around that tree,” Hackney said. “With the jig and the frog, I’m using 50-pound braid, so I just manhandle them.”
BAIT: Strike King Hack Attack Jig with Strike King Rage Lobster
WHY: Toughness
WHERE: Cypress
Steve Kennedy — SOUTHERN GRASS LAKE
On weedy Southern waters, particularly Florida’s, Steve Kennedy expects his highest postspawn potential to arise during the early-morning shad spawns. After losing weight during the reproductive ritual, big, spawned-out females need to pack on the calories, and a bunch of distracted baitfish make easy pickings.
With tournament competition typically starting after sunrise Kennedy knows he’s chasing a rapidly closing window. Shad start their spawns overnight and wrap up once the sun illuminates the water, so Kennedy maximizes his time with a one-two punch comprising a swim jig and a bladed jig.
“I like a 5/8- or 3/4-ounce D&L Advantage Jig with a white Zoom Super Chunk around reeds or the Dirty Jigs or 4×4 swim jig with a Strike King Rage Craw or a Zoom Super Speed Craw around grass,” Kennedy said. “I’m swimming those baits along the vegetation, hanging it on the grass and bumping everything.”
For more lateral-line appeal, Kennedy throws a Z-Man ChatterBait JackHammer or a G-Ratt Weedless Vibrating Jig with a G-Ratt Mixer trailer. The vibration, he said, mimics the commotion of spawning shad, while that twin-tail trailer resembles a couple of baitfish chasing his bait.
“I like the vibrating jig when I’m covering water and trying to attract aggressive fish,” he said. “When they’re aggressive, they’ll come and find that thing. The swim jig, especially those heavier swim jigs, is more of a reaction bite. I’m trying to tease them more.”
With either bait, Kennedy knows he can often trigger a big fish with a pause. Reeling at normal speed, he’ll kill the bait over holes in the grass and let it fall.
“It’s often all about the drop; you swim it up high and then you drop it,” Kennedy said. “That change in direction will trigger a bite. You get a big fish following the bait and she’s looking for an opportunity to eat it. When you give it that little change in direction, she has to either eat the bait or give away her position.
“The fish has momentum coming along, and she’s going to run into the bait if she doesn’t eat it. You’re swimming the bait along and when that big mouth comes up, it’s almost like dropping the bait into a bucket.”
With big postspawners typically coming out of backwater areas, Kennedy first looks to the points and corners where he can cast parallel to grass edges. The fish often follow the spawning shad into the vegetation, so he’ll try to dial in the most effective cast that allows him to bump his way through the melee.
“You have about an hour of good stuff before the sun gets on them and the shad [stop spawning],” Kennedy said. “When you find them, there’s no thinking about it; it’ll happen as fast as you can cast.”
BAIT: G-Ratt Weedless Vibrating Jig with G-Ratt Mixer
WHY: Mimics shad
WHERE: Grassbeds
