By Zeke Gossett
On Logan Martin
Getting into the dead heat of summer can cause some challenges when it comes to trying to catch a bass on Logan Martin Lake.
During the month of July, you can still find some bass out deep, but as we move into the month of August, do not look over the shallow bite.
As we move through the month of July and into August the water can be its hottest it has been all year. This is when the transition starts from fish moving from out deep back to the shallows due to lack of oxygen.
To start out in the mornings, I will generally use a squarebill crank bait around docks and rip rap. I’m generally trying to cause a reaction strike from fish that might not want to eat, and a squarebill does a good job at this.
As the day progresses, I will look for shade. This shade can be either from docks or overhanging trees. Usually around the docks, I prefer some type of finesse jig or shaky head.
For the overhanging trees I go with a hollow body frog. This time of year, some fish can be sitting a lot shallower than you think. It will be tough but when you get a bite, it’ll be more than likely a better fish.
On Neely Henry
Neely Henry is going to fish similararly to Logan Martin this time of year. One main difference is that I would target more water willows in the morning with the frog.
Sometimes, this bite can last all day if the conditions are right. The squarebill can still come in handy when passing by some riprap or an isolated stump in the water.
Once the sun comes up, I like to target shallow brush in and around piers with the finesse jig and shaky head. These fish can be sitting anywhere between a foot to seven-feet deep.
Lastly, keep an eye out for schooling fish this time of year. A lot of bait balls will start cruising the surface of the water column, and you can pick these fish off with a small swimbait. I like to keep this swimbait on a spinning rod with small braid in order to make a long cast to fish that might come up way out from the boat.
Keeping it simple is important to having success this time of year. It will be tough, but try some of these techniques and you will find some success.
