Entry 162-3
Mark Menendez on Jerkbaits and Big Bass
Part 3: The Big Bag Tactic
Question: Have you ever used that same tactic that you’ve used to catch so many big bass on Wilson and Pickwick lakes in another tournament?
Menendez: Yes, I did when I was fishing on Guntersville Lake in 2005. I knew Guntersville fairly well. The water temperature was the same as it had been when I caught the fish on Pickwick and Wilson. As I cruised some points, I could see baitfish holding in about 9 to 12 feet of water. So, the first cast I made that morning, I caught a 6-pound largemouth on a Strike King Wild Shiner.
I went to a point close to a road, and just about that time, my wife came by. I had another bite and told her, “Hey, let me catch this fish and I’ll talk to you.” That bass weighed 8 pounds. I was really feeling bad. I had a bad headache and was sick at my stomach, but I kept fishing. I continued to fish and found three more places where I saw shad suspended in 9 to 12 feet of water, and I caught three more fish suspended off points fishing the Wild Shiner.
Those five fish would have weighed 30 to 35 pounds. So, I knew that this tactic had the potential to win the Guntersville tournament for me. But what I didn’t know was that night I was going to get sick. I went to the hospital and was diagnosed with spinal meningitis, and I never made another cast on that lake the rest of the week.
At both Pickwick and Wilson where I won and at Guntersville where I believe I would have won if the weather had remained the same, the temperature had stayed at 49 degrees, which is where a jerkbait like Strike King’s Wild Shiner is at its best. The water temperature needs to be between 40 and 50 degrees. After the water temperature reaches 50 degrees, there are other baits you can fish with to catch fish faster than the Wild Shiner.
The key to remember here is that the bass are in a pre-spawn mode, the water’s clean, and there’s not a better bait to fish than the Wild Shiner. The trick to fishing it is to look for the bass suspended in 9 to 12 feet of water around baitfish, well away from the bank and above a bottom break. When you fish the Wild Shiner, cast it out, reel it down to the depth you want to fish it, let it sit for at least a slow 15 count, twitch it, and let it sit still again for the same count. Use that technique to get the fish back to the boat.
Contents:
- Part 1: The Bass That Changed My Life
- Part 2: My Biggest Three-Day Bag
- Part 3: The Big Bag Tactic
- Part 4: How to Catch Bass in Cold Water
- Part 5: How I Learned to Fish a Jerkbait
