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Best bets for stained/muddy water

I primarily fish in my pond in the backyard and lately had been having some okay luck with soft plastics and the occasional crank bait. For some odd reason, spinnerbaits (Terminators, for example) hardly ever produce for me. I don't know why, I can just never get a bass to hit it. Here in North Georgia, we recently had some torrential rains, courtesy of Tropical Storm Arlene. The pond is now VERY muddy. I haven't been out to it since, but I'm wondering what the best kind of lures are for these conditions. Prior to the rains, I had luck s-l-o-w-l-y reeling in a senko and letting it crawl around the bottom of the pond but I'm guessing this would do little to allow the bass' lateral line to sense any kind of movement and down more than 6" visibility is probably zero. So, logically, I would think topwaters are ideal for this kind of situation and maybe lures that send out plenty of vibration, like a spinnerbait(again, I've never had much luck with them but maybe I needed these kinds of conditions).

Is my reasoning on target here or do I not give bass enough credit for dealing with stained water?

Seismo
Jun 16
2005
I am actually used to fishing stained water. One thing i do immediately is go to a larger lure. Move some water around man. I will switch to a 3/8 ounce or maybe 1/2 ounce jig. Texas craw is a great color for dirty water, with a craw trailer with HUGE Chart. claws. Make sure you have a rattle on it as well.

As for spinnerbaits, Make sure you are using a single colorado, and you can get away with a colored blade. One thing you can do is increase the size of your blade. Also use a dark colored skirt.

Also a large paddle tail worm is great for this situation in the same color scheme. Also insert a worm rattle , that will stimulate a few different senses.

That is where I would start with muddy water.

Good luck,

Chris

Chris
Jun 16
Do you feel like the bass tend to stay closer to the surface in muddy water or does it affect them - in orther words, does the lack of vision dictate their position? Should I run my lures shallower than I normally would? Seismo
Jun 16
Really, if it is available they will look for clearer water, because they definitely rely on site for feeding. If it is not available then find the nastiest cover you can find. Wood, weeds, or whatever you possibly have. If the water is just stirred up , and starting to settle then certain areas will clear up first, I would focus on those areas. I am not sure how diverse the lake you are fishing is, but stick with heavy cover first and fish the thickest part of it.

Again this is what works for me, and the picture I have in my head of what you are dealing with is a couple inch vis almost choclate milk. If it is raining continually, then I would definitely find some type of cover. I also know that wind stirs our lake up , but any shift in the wind settles calm areas quickly and it clears up. Rain usually stirs it up for a day or so in shoreline areas that are soft.

I hope this helps.

Chris

Chris
Jun 16
muddier the water the shallower the fish will be. If it's high to boot go for the shoreline, in the trees e.g. as shallow as one can get imho. Joshuall
Jun 16
bingo Chris
Jun 16
Here it is at the moment. http://www.flickr.com/photos/56301544@N00/19781661/

Just a few hours ago I caught a small one (about a pound) behind those catails on the left.

It's overdue for lime and I'm going to try some gypsum, as well. I only recently stumbled across this and found that gypsum can clear muddy water: http://georgiawildlife.dnr.state.ga.us/content/displaycontent.asp?txtDocument=299&txtPage=16

Seismo
Jun 16
Got any piles of rocks in there? Or a tree laying over in the water? If so work a red shad zoom worm over and through them. A little more green instead of brown and I'ld guarantee that approach. I like a worm on a jig clicking the jig off the rocks or branches.

Bob
Jun 16
I would have to throw a topwater bait there - work a Pop-R slowly all over the pond. Try a buzz bait, too. Ronnie
Jun 16
A lot of it has to do with how used to dealing with dingy water the resident bass are. Bass that live in water that's usually (or always) dirty, rely a lot on vibration to locate prey. Bass that live in water that's almost always reasonably clear, do not suddenly develop "skills" at feeding by vibration when the water muddies up for a few days. In fact, bass that live in clear water, when faced with a temporary dirty water condition, often just hunker down tight to the best "solid" cover they can find, and ride it out without moving much. You've got to try fishing super tight to cover with a slow moving bait in that condition. A big, heavy jig on a flipping stick with big string is a good choice then. In the case of bass that are used to feeding by sound in moderately dirty water, when the water gets dirtier, just fish the same way you do normally. Using louder lures in that situation is the functional equivalent of shouting so a blind man can hear you. They've already got a well-tuned sense of vibration detection, and the baitfish didn't get any noisier. I like a spinnerbait in those conditions, and will almost always go with single spin. I don't know if THEY can feel it any better, but *I* sure can. And that means I can react to light biters better. RichZ
Jun 16
Let me offer an addition and then another lure suggestion. I've learned that Joe
Jun 19
   

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