You cast out your line and your Salt Shaker Worm hits the water. Under the surface your lure sinks slowly. As it approaches the bottom it enters a different world. The lure settles into a dark, vast, forest of eelgrass. With confidence, you start working your offering through the grass. You shake it and pull it through the thick cover and let it settle again, watching your slack line. Inside the grass, a large Spotted Bay Bass that is sitting in one of the many holes and pockets senses the vibration - and it's getting closer. You keep working your lure with short hops, letting it settle deep into the grass each time you pause. The bass prepares for the attack and backs into the grass so it conceals him. As your lure pops from the wall of eelgrass, into the pocket - and onto his dinner plate - you rest assured knowing that it is as debris free as when you first cast it out. Having been carefully watching your slack line every time you stopped the bait and let it fall, you see the take. Your line jumps, as though the lure has been hit with 30,000 volts. No guesswork here. You wind in the slack and swing like you are trying to dislodge a stump on the bottom. The set is solid and you feel the heavy fish trying to bury itself into the grass. You work the fish free, reach down, and lip another nice Spotted Bay Bass. You remove the hook, release the fish, re-adjust your bait and do it once again.

Location and Fishing Method

All of the jig head and bait fishermen have bypassed this area because they get frustrated at removing gobs of grass from their offerings after every retrieve. Sure, they know the fish are in there - big ones too - but they cannot effectively work the eelgrass edges or present the lure to the fish hiding in the many small pockets within the grass-covered bottom. Jig head lures are very effective and I use them extensively, but in the grass I employ a different and more effective technique. The key here is to present the bait to where the fish are hiding, waiting in ambush. Keeping your bait in the strike zone, in the grass, is very important. This is where a well known freshwater bass fishing technique comes into play, The Texas Rig. This method of rigging soft plastics allows you to fish them completely weedless. It is with this technique that you can effectively work your lure through the thick eelgrass without getting hung up or snagging the vegetation that conceals the fish. You can employ this technique equally well while fishing from the bank or from a boat.

Most of the eelgrass grows in areas that are not next to the visible targets such as docks and boat moorings. With a good set of polarized sunglasses, you can find the patches of eelgrass under the surface. Sometimes, it appears as a dark patches under the water even though the grass may not be visible on the surface. Investing some time scouting the bays and watching your fish finder will pay off as you can mark the grass beds and fish them at any time, even in the dark. Some very good fishing can be found in these isolated grass beds far from docks and boat moorings.

Baits

There are no better lures to use for this technique than the Big Hammer soft plastic baits. These baits perfectly imitate the various crabs and other creatures that inhabit the grass that the Spotties love to eat. The 4" and 5" Salt Shaker Worms and the 3.5" Twitchin' Grub. All of the colors will work, but my favorites are Green Pumpkinseed, Oxblood Red, Amber Pepper Red, Red Bluegill, Watermelonseed, and Watermelon Red. Of course, water clarity and sunlight will play a part in what colors will be most effective. Armed with a good assortment of colors and styles, you will catch fish.

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