Strike King pro Mark Rose advises anglers of typical water patterns for Zone 4 in the month of September.
“Water temperatures are still warm early September; however, we’ll usually start getting some cooler nights starting mid-September,” shares Rose. When fishing top water, the shift in temperature can often be beneficial. “The cooler water temperatures create some good early morning and late evening top water bites,” says Rose. Keep an eye on the radar when fishing in Zone 4 because “water clarity varies based on summer rains,” Rose offers.
As late-September approaches in Zone 4, there are some other changes anglers can expect. “Some lakes will start to see water levels fall as the winter drawdowns begin in late-September,” Rose concludes.
If the water is clear, Rose prefers Black Lab. In stained water, he switches to Green Gizzard Shad. For muddy water, Rose will favor Chartreuse Sexy Shad.
The Sexy Dawg was designed to be an easy to work, far casting, premium “walk-the-dog” topwater lure with great action.
Rose throws a Tour Grade Swim Jig with a Green Pumpkin Scounbug trailer. A top choice for him in clear water is Blue Craw, while he opts for White if the water is stained. In low-vis or muddy water, Rose picks up Black and Blue.
The Strike King Tour Grade Swim Jig design is perfect for moving through cover, emulating a swimming bait fish or darting crawfish. Rose keeps his rod tip low to keep the bait near cover, letting the fish determine retrieval speed.
Rose opts for the Green Pumpkin Finesse Worm in clear, stained, or muddy water, pairing it with a Tour Grade Shakey Head in the same color.
This high-performing jig head features a special barb that helps baits stand up for enhanced "shaky head" action and securely holds both ElazTech 3X and standard plastics in place.
If the water is clear, Rose will throw Green Gizzard Shad, while more stained water calls for Wicked Firetiger. When the water is muddy, Rose grabs Chartreuse Blue Black Splatterback.
The Pro Model Series 3 is a proven crankbait in the 6 to 8 foot range, depending on how light the line is.
Rose opts for the Pearl Tour Grade Spin Head paired with a Caffeine Shad Jr. trailer. For the trailer, he chooses Blue Glimmer in clear water, switching to Pearl when conditions are stained or muddy.
The Tour Grade Spinnerbait features delivers super-bright attraction at the slowest speeds and won’t cause the bait to rise as much on faster retrieves.
Strike King pro Scott Suggs discusses how the thermocline impacts fishing in Zone 4 during September.
During September in Zone 4, the thermocline is starting to rise and forcing anglers to be intentional about the depths they are focusing on for their next catch. “The thermocline is so hard that you can see it in the daytime. When it gets really hard like that, it is building up for a turnover. When that happens, everything changes,” shares Suggs.
Based on the rising thermocline, the available fishing area is drastically reduced with suspended fish hovering above the line, usually above 30-feet. “What is so amazing, I can take a bait and pitch it to ‘em, if they don’t get to it before it gets to the thermocline, they stop in their tracks. When it flips over, you’ll be able to catch them at all depths,” Suggs says.
Suggs expects that the thermocline will flip toward the end of September, opening up the lake and allowing for the full acreage of the lake to be fished. One piece of advice that Suggs lends to anglers is that there is no thermocline in moving bodies of water, like the Arkansas or Mississippi Rivers, so the fishing depths are not impacted by the thermocline.
If the water is clear, Suggs prefers Chrome Blue. In stained water, he switches to TN Shad 2.0. For muddy water, he will favor Black Lab.
The special design of the KVD Splash allows this bait to deliver the perfect balance of spitting, chugging, and walking to entire topwater strikes. KVD Splash includes premium components such as a feather-enhanced rear treble hook, 3D eyes, and an ultra-realistic paint job.
His choice for clear water is Green Pumpkin, while he opts for White if the water is stained. Suggs will utilize Black when fishing in muddy water. Suggs pairs this bait with a toad trailer.
Strike King’s Skip’N Buzz is specifically built to help anglers target out-of-reach fish in places where few baits will go. The Skip'N Buzz features a 4/0 hook positioned perfectly to not hinder the baits skipping ability while maintaining maximum hook ups.
