by Tyler Rose
If you are a passionate angler that feels as if a nine to five workday impedes upon your love for the water I have one thing to say to you… YOU ARE NOT ALONE! Luckily the warm months ahead make the early morning and late evening some of the most productive (and comfortable) times to catch bass in Piedmont lakes. I have found several strategies that have helped me consistently catch fish before or after a long day of not being a professional angler.
If you can, cover as much water as possible.
Limited hours of fishing time mean that anglers do not have all day to experiment with different patterns and presentations. To avoid the sensation that you are fishing under pressure, try picking one or two “search baits” such as a topwater, crankbait, or fluke and covering as much prime water as you can.
Understand what baitfish are doing.
The month of May includes both shad and sunfish spawns across North Carolina. Bass will be feeding on spawning shad at night and early in the morning in shallow water near some sort of cover. Many of these fish will remain shallow after the conclusion of the shad spawn to feast on hungry sunfish that will spawn throughout the entire month of May. Paying attention to water temperatures and knowing which forage species is spawning is crucial to picking the correct bait to use.
Pay attention to the birds.
With heightened baitfish activity comes hungry birds (that also breed during this time of year), and these full-time fish hunters can help you pinpoint areas where baitfish are staging.
Enjoy the time you spend on the water.
Fishing is meant to be a primal way in which we humans reconnect ourselves to the ecosystem that society has so desperately tried to remove us from. If you only get to spend a few hours on the water, do not put unnecessary pressure on yourself to catch fish. Immerse yourself in your surroundings and pay attention to the subtle details of the ecosystem as a whole. It might just point you in the direction of a fish.