The bass spawn is officially behind us. No more occasional stragglers to be found, and fry balls have busted up into individual baby bass trying to make it on their own. Most of the fish have vacated the shallows, and the beds are starting to be covered with silt. But don’t be dismayed—there is still plenty of good fishing to be had as the bass spawn winds down.
If you’ve been following along with our Spawn Reporters series, you know that we’ve already worked our way through the early pre-spawn, pre-spawn, spawn, and post-spawn phases. Now it’s time to tackle the final stage: the late post-spawn. Again, we asked our six bass experts and fishing influencers from across the country for their tips and tactics on targeting late post-spawn bass. Plus, the best times to do it. Here's when and where to get in on the final action of the bass spawn.
Late Post-Spawn Overview
The late post-spawn refers to the time frame in which the majority of the bass population moves offshore. As the water begins to warm into the 80s, cold-blooded bass become increasingly uncomfortable and begin to migrate towards deeper, cooler water. The spawning process that had them shallow is over at this point, and even the shad spawns and other bait spawns that had kept them shallow a little longer are starting to wind down. In search of greener pastures, the bass begin to move offshore, positioning around deeper cover like brushpiles, standing timber, and boulders.
They also group up on structures like river ledges, bridge pylons, and creek channels. Strong current, deeper water, and bait all become critical pieces of the puzzle when looking for fish this time of year. Once you find an area with a combination of these things, baits like hair jigs, deep diving crankbaits, football jigs, drop shots, flutter spoons, and swimbaits all work really well. That said, don’t turn your back completely on the shallows. Though most bass do move deep, some remain shallow to feed around bluegill beds and insect hatches. They’ll also rest in shady spots and stack up in any shallow area with strong current, like creek ends or manmade water discharges.
Region 1: Scott Martin
When to Fish the Post-Spawn: April 21 to May 21
Region one is the first area to experience the late post-sawn. Making up all of Florida, the southernmost sections of Texas, and a few other states, this zone warms the quickest, forcing the bass into deeper water. How deep? Scott Martin likes to flip baits in 6- to 10-feet of Kissimmee grass during the last phase of the spawn. He prefers a big flipping jig or a creature bait like the Googan Squad Bandito Bug along the grass lines. Martin explains there’s no need to go slow this time of year; you can keep your foot on the trolling motor and cover water looking for a reaction bite.
“If there are some brushpiles in that 6- to 10-foot water range, that's where those fish will go," says Martin. "And then if there's any offshore grass in the middle of those bays, that's a great time to go out there and throw wacky worms, drop shots, or slow roll a speed worm.”
In addition to finessing the deeper brush and grass, Martin has had a lot of success in the last couple of years using his forward-facing sonar to tick the tops of the brush with a swimbait. His favorite bait for this technique is the Bass Mafia Daingerous Loaded swimbait.
“If you're in North Florida, those fish are going to pull out a little bit and get around some of those bluegill beds," explains Martin. "You can target bluegill spawning areas at that time of the year with a wacky worm or even a topwater prop bait and catch a lot of those post-spawn fish.” On lakes with a little more contour and deeper water, Martin recommends pulling out even further to any kind of structure or cover and using the same baits.
Region 2: Scott Canterbury
When to Fish the Post-Spawn: May 15 to May 30
The water in Alabama, where Scott Canterbury mostly fishes, is, by and large, a little deeper. Some of the bass will be holding on brush and other cover around 10 feet deep, but many more will be deeper than that. Getting on those fish as they make the transition can lead to great days on the water.
“The first ones to spawn are usually some of the biggest ones in the lake, and the first ones to get out [to deeper water] can be the biggest in the lake, too," says Canterbury. "I've caught my biggest bags and some of my biggest fish ever during Memorial Day week. The fish aren’t super fed up yet. But man, they're just eating everything they can. It can be some of the most fun fishing you can do. I put a big crankbait in my hand and crank all day long.”
In addition to targeting these deep bass with 16- to 18-foot diving crankbaits, Canterbury recommends a flutter spoon and a hair jig. He also points out the importance of a good graph when looking for areas to fish. "Use your graph to find fish setting up on hard spots in the current, like shell beds," Canterbiry says. "But anywhere the current creates a hard place is a great area for them to school up. And they really gang up this time of year.”
As the current slams into and washes over river ledges in 10 to 20 feet of water, the silt and sediment are washed away, and hard spots are revealed. These are the areas bass like to key in on when staging. He recommends slowing down and then speeding up your presentation. This helps trigger finicky fish that aren't super aggressive yet.
Bluegill beds are again something to keep an eye on in Zone two, as they can keep small concentrations of big bass shallow. And, it’s this time of year that mayflies will start to hatch out in swarms of thousands in localized areas. Target bass relating to these bluegill beds and mayfly hatches with topwaters and worms.
Region 3: Carl Jocumsen
When to Fish the Post-Spawn: May 17 to June 1
Carl Jocumsen lives right beside Chickamauga Lake and within a short drive of Guntersville and Pickwick–three of the best ledge fisheries in the country for late post-spawn bass fishing. What makes them so good? Current plays a big part, which you can find in deeper water with schooled up fish nearby.
Current plays a significant role on the Tennessee River and other river systems and fisheries in this region. The swift water is naturally cooler, as it mixes the shallower and deeper sections of the water column. The current also makes it perfect for the bass to position themselves in little eddies and seams. Bass set up like this partly to conserve energy, but these are also the perfect ambush points where baitfish and other forage wash right to them.
“You're going away from more aggressive baits like crankbaits and big swimbaits this time of year and starting to fish more finesse style baits like a drop shot, Neko rig, or free rig," says Jocumsen. "The fish will be more wary because they’ve been targeted for longer.”
Region 4: Bryan Schmitt
When to Fish the Post-Spawn: June 15 to June 30
Bryan Schmitt has extensive experience with lakes and rivers throughout this region, but those closest to his home in Deale, Maryland, are quite different from most of the others. The Potomac River and Chesapeake Bay are both tidal fisheries that have big daily tide swings. And the timing of these swings shifts every day, which makes fishing in these waters any time of the year tricky to say the least.
“During the late post-spawn, the bass want to either get into the backs of creeks or out to the furthest grass," says Schmitt. "For the back of the creek deal, they’re seeking that cooler, cleaner water with better oxygen. We’ll go back there and throw a vibrating or swim jig down the center of those ditches.”
The power fishing baits work well when the bass are aggressive, but when the water drops out of these areas, the fish get much more wary, and Schmitt recommends slowing down. “On a real, real low tide, we’ll bomb [baits] on light line. Usually it's a wacky Missile Baits 48 or a light drop shot with a Missile Baits Magic Worm. And we’re imagining fish swimming this little creek on the grass edges looking for bait.”
As for the bite that happens farther out, Schmitt recommends a topwater, swim jig, and a chatterbait. A SPRO frog is his favorite bait for this style of fishing. He’s looking for thick grass in water that’s 3 to 4 feet deep. “If I see some thick grass, it's guaranteed they’re using it," says Schmitt. "If you have a long area where it’s sparse with some mats, punching and frogging are good tactics.”
Region 5: Ben Nowak
When to Fish the Post-Spawn: June 15 to June 30
Up north, the late post-spawn bite starts to heat up in mid- to late-June. Ben Nowak of Midland, Michigan, has spent countless hours chasing the massive smallmouth and studly largemouth that roam these waters. Here’s his take on how to catch both species.
“Smallmouth are going to be moving into that deeper water, which is relative, but typically 15-plus feet," says Nowak. "I'm looking for areas where baitfish are going to congregate, whether it's a small contour change like an underwater point or a small hump or the steep side of a ledge. Say you have a hump that is steeper on one side. A lot of times, that deeper side is where the smallmouth are going to set up because they can move up and down a lot faster. If you're fishing like a Great Lakes body of water with a lot of current, I typically fish the current-driven side, so the current is pushing into [the fish].”
When it comes to largemouth, Nowak focuses more on cover than structure. Humps and points collect the groups of smallmouth. While cover, like grass patches, holds the big largemouth. “For largemouths, I'm looking for isolated cover in deeper water," explains Nowak. "The big grass patches or areas where you have a rock-to-sand transition in 15 feet of water are good spots to find fish. During the late post-spawn, when fish start to go deep, I use side scan to find isolated pieces of cover or grass patches.” Usually, fish are holding around this deep cover.
Region 6: Jeff Gustafson
When to Fish the Post-Spawn: July 1 to July 15
The last phase of the spawn in the northernmost region of the country doesn't happen until July. Jeff Gustafson knows all about this time of year, and he says the fishing can be pretty tough. “That’s probably the worst time of the whole open water season up north. A lot of the fish are sort of skinny and lethargic," Gustafson says. "They're all worn out from spawning, and that can be a challenging time.”
The fish spread out in the late post-spawn according to Gustafson. Some are shallow, some are deep. And how and where he fishes depends on the day. “Let the conditions tell you what to do," he says. "If it's a bright sunny day and you can see well, use that to your advantage and fish shallow. If it's a cooler, darker, windy day, I'm going to try and fish a little bit deeper.” Whatever the case, Gustafson recommends finesse baits primarily this time of year. Baits like drop shots, Ned rigs, Marabou hair jigs, tubes, and spy baits all work well on bronzebacks.
Key Takeaways for Fishing the Late Post-Spawn
For the late post-spawn, there are a few themes across all six regions. The first, and maybe most important, is that bass will move into deeper water this time of year. Of course, how deep depends on where you are. In South Florida, deeper may only signify a 4-foot change from 1 to 5 feet. But as you move farther north, deeper is usually an increase of 10 to 20 feet.
Bait is another thing to look for, which will primarily be found in deeper water as well, though there are some fish still feeding in shallow water on bluegill and other bream beds. The final three factors to consider are current, cover, and structure. Look for some combination of these five—cover, structure, deeper water, current, and bait—and you will be in the right area for a late post-spawn bite.
