By Joey Bloom, Bait Cave Customs Pro
The days may still be hot now, but the nights will begin to cool as fall moves closer. Water temperatures that have been in the 80s and 90s slowly drop, and bass start changing their behavior. This seasonal transition can create some of the best opportunities of the year to catch a true monster.
During the summer months, many of the biggest bass spend a lot of their time around deeper structure, offshore cover and areas where they can find cooler, more comfortable water. As we move toward fall, baitfish become the key. Shad begin moving, and bass know that an easy meal is available.
When I see that transition starting, I want a bait that can imitate those shad and give me the ability to cover water. That’s one reason I developed the Bloom Shad with Bait Cave Customs. Making its debut at ICAST 2026, the Bloom Shad is designed to imitate a natural shad profile while giving me plenty of versatility. I can fish it around grass, brush, docks and other cover, or work it through areas where bass are actively feeding on baitfish. When the bass are roaming, I want something I can cast, retrieve and cover water with while still having the ability to slow it down when I find a productive area. It has quickly become one of my favorite soft plastics to utilize when I’m looking for quality fish.
One of the biggest keys during this transition is paying attention to the bait. If I find shad around points, creek channels, grass lines or the mouths of pockets, I know there’s a good chance bass won’t be far away. I also pay close attention to changing water conditions. Fall rains can raise lake levels, push fresh water into the system and move baitfish into newly flooded cover. When that happens, some of the biggest bass in the lake will take advantage of the opportunity to feed up.
I like to start shallow when conditions tell me the bait is there, but I’m always prepared to move deeper if the bass haven’t followed the baitfish yet. The transition isn’t always predictable, and sometimes the best fish can be caught by checking several different depths until you figure out where the bass are positioned.
For me, the biggest lesson is to follow the food. Bass don’t have a calendar telling them it’s fall: they respond to water temperature, weather and most importantly, the movement of their prey.
When those first signs of fall begin showing up, I’ll have a Bloom Shad tied on and I’m going to be looking for that one area where the bait and the big bass come together. That’s when the summer-to-fall transition can turn into some of the most exciting fishing of the entire year.
Follow Joey Bloom on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube at Joey Bloom Fishing. The Bloom Shad will soon be available at baitcavecustoms.com.