Skip a big swimbait. Big hollow swimbaits skip fairly well and offer the fish a more horizontal presentation when compared to a flipped structure bug. Paddletails draw fish and offer a big meal’s profile to fish that seek refuge under docks. Skip a swimbait as far back under a dock and throw both some straight and erratic retrieves to find what the fish want!

The Ned Rig. On the opposite side of the spectrum, is the ultra finesse Ned Rig. This is a slower method of exploring boat docks, but extremely effective. It may be the bait that will allow you to pick up more fish per dock than flipping a structure bug alone. This is a good bait to throw after you find a pattern of where bass are staging or holding. Be wary of how heavy your line is around the docks however! You may want to fish a slightly heavier line than you normally would.

Skip and walk a frog. We don’t typically think of frog fishing as a dock fishing technique, but it works! In lakes or ponds with shallow boat docks, a frog is a great option for drawing the attention of bass willing to eat. Frogs are easy to skip, snag less, and offer a presentation that causes lots of commotion and chaos on calm mornings or evenings. Try throwing a frog up under a dock as far as you can and working it back to hook into a thrill. A big bass hooked topwater a ways under a dock will get your heart pounding!