Effective Methods to Work Docks During the Spawn to Catch GIANT Bedding Bass

Effectively locating bass during the spawn will make finding big bedding females much easier and efficient. Docks are a visual way of locating quality fish, because they often fought for prime real estate and won out. Docks offer protection for the bedding fish, as well as for fry. Here are a few things to consider when poking around docks for big bedding bass.

Docks may be deep! Although visual by nature, fishing docks can still surprise you. When choosing baits or setups, remember that you can only truly see the surface of the water until you fish under/around the dock. Bring a few different baits that can handle different depths of water to be sure you can present your offering to the fish efficiently and effectively. One major tip I often give to guys/gals that plan to flip and pitch docks during the spawn, is to target the darkest and deepest water you can first because they often hold enormous monsters. I do that before picking at the smaller beds that may be visible. Fish fight for the prime locations, and the deep, dark unknown is prime.

Go the distance! In the same realm as the first tip, try to fish the hard-to-reach areas that other anglers don’t often fish. We instinctively want to skip over the tougher areas that are hard to accurately cast to in favor of the “easy pickings” like near dock edges. Find the pockets you think other anglers can’t effectively fish. You may lose a few lures or baits, but you may also hook a 10lb bass and isn’t that worth a few lost baits?

Choose the right baits! When fishing beds for spawning bass, there are a few paths we can take. Imitate a big intruder, or finesse the bed to persuade a strike. I like to rig a creature bait that I will Texas Rig and either hop or slowly swim through the bed. Or, I like to use a Ned rig to keep the bait in the bed as long as possible to anger the bass into striking.

Finding fish is only half the battle, and convincing bedding bass to strike can be a challenge this time of year. With a little patience and mindfulness, you can better your odds on catching a monster bass this spring spawn. Tight lines!