Come late summer, you just don’t see mega-schools on the offshore ledges and drop-offs. The fish have been pounded on all summer, and with a few cooler nights the fish will head to grass, schooling on top and chasing shad. What were once 50-fish schools might now just be eight to 10 fish. These fish can be hard to catch, but as the numbers of deep fishermen dwindle, the more apt the fish will be to bite.
The community holes are the places to begin looking. Community holes earn that reputation because fish live there. It is rare for all the fish from a mega-school to up and leave, so chances are you’ll still be able to catch a few. If they’re not right on the main part of the community hole, look for transition areas leading to where the shad will be in fall. A lot of times you just have to get out there with the graph and hunt for them.
You can also fish for them. There are random groups of fish scattered up and down ledges. Anglers who spend a lot of time graphing will miss these roaming fish. While covering water by moving down a ledge, you are likely to run into some.
If I am able to locate a small school with my electronics, my first choice is a 12-inch worm Texas rigged on a ½-ounce weight. I use 14- to 17-pound Vicious fluorocarbon. I enjoy this technique so much that I helped design the perfect hook for it. The Mustad 2X Big Bite hook in 5/0 or 6/0 is perfect for a 12-inch worm. It has a longer shank, which helps with hook-up percentage. I’ve found it is also the perfect hook for my X-Zone Center Stick.
I use the MHX EPS-86MHF baitcast rod from Mud Hole Custom Tackle. It is a 7’ 2”, medium-heavy power. It took me an hour and forty-five minutes to build this rod. It is easy and fun to knock them out.
A ½-ounce War Eagle jigging spoon and a big crankbait like a Strike King 6XD will be the other baits I’ll throw. And you can always catch them on a drop shot. The key to the drop shot is to watch your electronics. If I note the fish are not right on the bottom with my Raymarine units, I make my leader up to 20 inches long so it sits right in their face.
The rod I build for the drop shot is the MHX EPS-81MLXF. It is a 6’9” medium-light power with an extra-fast tip. I spool it with 10-pound Vicious No-Fade braid and an 8-pound fluorocarbon leader. I prefer a wacky-rigged, 6” MB Fat Finesse Worm from X-Zone, using a 1/4 to 3/8 drop shot weight and a Mustad Titan-X Wacky Neko hook.
If the water has at least a couple feet of visibility, you can save yourself some time by utilizing an underwater camera. Knowing the fish down there are bass and not catfish really helps. This year I switched over to an Aqua Vu camera that displays on my Raymarine unit. Seeing is believing, let me tell you!