Fishing during the heat of the summer can be feast or famine as many times, its morning feeding frenzies followed by intermittent feeding times and lulls throughout the day. Capitalizing on the bite windows is essential this time of year. To put himself in the right position at the right time, Major League Fishing pro Ryan Salzman covers the water column with various baits as he looks for grass, offshore shell bars and in shallow water looking for bass that are feeding on spawning bluegill.
This multifaceted approach allows him to find success in the summer, whether he is guiding clients for his Alabama Bass Guide business or fishing professionally on the Bass Pro Tour.
Tackling the Grass
As a guide on the famed Lake Guntersville, Salzman is well versed with fishing grass and it’s crucial during the summer months as he guides clients.
“One of the best baits for fishing the grass in the summer is a jerkbait,” he says. “My favorite is the Duel Hardcore Minnow Flat 110 in the pro blue color on 12-pound Yo-Zuri T7 fluorocarbon line. That jerkbait is great because it has an aggressive action that’s great for warmer water and you don’t have to work it too hard to get it to work right. I’ll use it to tease the fish out from the grass, mainly fishing it right on the grass edges or working it and then killing it and letting it sit in the holes in the grass.”
This time of year, Salzman employs his electronics and the forward-facing sonar, but not necessarily to locate fish. “It makes it really easy to see the underwater grass lines and little clumps of grass that the fish live in. Lining up and making a cast with a jerkbait is one of the best tools, but I’ll also mix in a Duel Hardcore SR crankbait on 16-pound Yo-Zuri T7 fluorocarbon line.”
Salzman generally looks for grass in the 3 to 5-foot range when fishing the shallow crankbait. “I’ll hold the rod tip high when it’s shallow and get the bait to tick the grass; when it gets balled up and hung in the grass, I’ll rip it free,” he said. “For a little deeper grass, I’ll point my rod down to get it to dive deeper and hit the top of the grass. When it gets in the grass, it’s the same thing and you want to rip it free. The change of direction and speed as it comes free of the grass is usually what triggers the bites; it’s the same concept as fishing a lipless through vegetation.”
Heading Offshore
Fishing offshore has different meanings depending on where you fish; it could be ultra-deep water or relatively shallow. The TVA lakes that Salzman fishes are known for the deep ledge bite, but he also looks for shell bars in approximately 10 feet of water.
“Those bars are a great place to throw a crankbait, and I’ll use the Duel Hardcore 3+ and 4+ a lot this time of year,” he says. “They come through cover really well and don’t get hung up easily. The 3+ is great for that 10-foot range, and I’ll use the 4+ if the water is 12 to 14 feet deep.”
Usually, Salzman imitates shad with these baits and selects shad colors with ghost pearl shad and citrus shad as his two favorites. He’ll fish both of them on 12-pound Yo-Zuri T7 fluorocarbon line.
The Shallow Bite
Another place that Salzman will look during the summer months is shallow, looking for overhanging trees and areas where bluegill will spawn. This can lead to excellent bass fishing with the chance for some giant bass. One of his best weapons for targeting the beds is a topwater popper, the Duel Hardcore Popper in the holographic bluegill pattern fished on 50-pound Yo-Zuri SuperBraid.
“It’s great around bluegill beds but also works well around shallow grass,” he said. “During the summer, you can see the bluegill coming up and kissing the surface, sometimes eating bugs and this is the time be throwing the popper. The cupped face of this popper gives it a nice blooping sound that gets the attention of the bass.”
While bluegill beds are one sign to tie on the popper, Salzman will also look for signs of a mayfly hatch. “They make a matte black color in the popper that is very good when the mayflies are around,” he shared.
Fishing during the summer months sometimes takes a willingness to try it all. Professional angler and guide Ryan Salzman keeps an open mind this time of year and will check shallow to deep to locate feeding bass.
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