Bed Fish

[Doug Hodel]

Ok I found a bed yesterday with a male and Female on it.

I could not get them to go, but indicated that they might be ready.

No matter what I threw they weren't having any of it.

I'm not sure what I could have done differently, any suggestions.

[TritonBrent]

Snag em

[Dynastyworms]

Two things

1- were the bass rolling or swimming around chasing each other?
2- what size bait did you use? Do you try to upsize the profile of the bait?


When I can't get the fish to react to the jig I'm using I go bigger!
When a white jig fails I go to a tora tube and river2sea white nest raider. Most times the bass will react to the larger baits and are more aggressive. Besure to start with the jig cuz the larger bait might spook the fish at first.

If the fish are rolling, the you make that spot on your gps and go back later. This means the bass haven't done the deed and you could spook them away for good.


Hope this helped.

Zach

[Doug Hodel]

That helps a lot. The fish were rolling and when I couldn't get them to go, I left and came back.

The male was still there, but the female was gone. So I am wondering if someone did spook the female away or didn't need the male for their bag.

[elfish16]

true...bass that are rolling on each other, nosing the bed togther and swimming around are way too INTO each other and won't pay attention to anything else around them.

Sometimes it will be different by the later part of the day or may have to visit the next day. What you want to ideally find is a male and female on the bed...throw a jig to get the mail biting and then wait see if the female starts to react. if the male continues to remove the bait and you DON'T set the hook the female will eventually take over and eat the bait.

Most times you get one shot at a biting female so be prepared! Heavy line and stout gear to drive the hook home!

[split172]

Two things

1- were the bass rolling or swimming around chasing each other?
2- what size bait did you use? Do you try to upsize the profile of the bait?


When I can't get the fish to react to the jig I'm using I go bigger!
When a white jig fails I go to a tora tube and river2sea white nest raider. Most times the bass will react to the larger baits and are more aggressive. Besure to start with the jig cuz the larger bait might spook the fish at first.

If the fish are rolling, the you make that spot on your gps and go back later. This means the bass haven't done the deed and you could spook them away for good.


Hope this helped.

Zach

Dont listen to this guy. He has never even seen a bed fish. I have to get the fish all worked up so he can catch em!

[WishinIwerFishin]

Snag em

I realy hope that was a joke.


I like to hook up a texas rig and start throwing beavers to get em' mad then I'll switch to a white or silver fluke and twitch it in the bed. Some times you have to find the sweet spot and it's not always right under them, you can be an inch off and they wont even look sometimes. I like to find a crack or a rock I can bounce the bat in or up against and keep it in the bed for a while then twitch it around. It can take a long time to get them to hit sometime so once you decide to catch them stay on em until you do, 95% of the time you will eventually. Or get a mttlures bluegill and that gets em' every time but you better have mendit or they will trash it. Bluegill pattern jigs are deadly too.

[tracker31]

fished the delta this weekend, and saw multiple males sitting on beds. tried flipping a beaver, nothing. then switched to a jig and managed to catch a couple off the beds. made about 20 casts to each bed, then the slightest pick up...

[Chaozu]

Have any of you guys heard of the "Dukie" rig? Basically run your line through a 2 oz weight and then tie on a floating crank bait on the end. Toss the weight on the bed and pull up on your line to make the crank bait dive at the weight. Makes it look like a fish attacking the bed. Very effective

[Caudawg]

A crunched up alka seltzer inside a gitzit with a small cotton ball stopper works good at times. It's kind of a pain but it does work.

I also like to switch up colors fairly frequently with chartreus being the main agitator.

Switch up the size too. A motor oil 6 inch lizard, followed by a 4 " chartreus gitzit followed by a white minijig. and repeat...

[biteme]

Toss a big swimbait on the bed. Repeat a few time. Them pull out the jib and watch em blast it!

[Pearl Swimbaits]

A crunched up alka seltzer inside a gitzit with a small cotton ball stopper works good at times. It's kind of a pain but it does work.

I also like to switch up colors fairly frequently with chartreus being the main agitator.

Switch up the size too. A motor oil 6 inch lizard, followed by a 4 " chartreus gitzit followed by a white minijig. and repeat...

The BOOM BOOM SELTZER TUBE.....dont forget to fill it full of yur favorite scent..............Classic

[Phil]

Ok I found a bed yesterday with a male and Female on it.

I could not get them to go, but indicated that they might be ready.

No matter what I threw they weren't having any of it.

I'm not sure what I could have done differently, any suggestions.

curious, how long did you stay on them......I have fish for a bed fish for way over an hour, and they finally get pissed enough to kill your bait !!

[RMANZO]

i was in my back yard on tues (pedro) and i found one that ended up going 9.86 and she took me just over an hour.... she ate my swim bait a couple times and never got the hook...then i went to my creature bait that "always works" and she wouldn't eat it... i then went to the "BIG" tube, she swollowed it she was actually rolling w/the male... you just never know!!!!!
"SEE YA ON MY WATER"

[Doug Hodel]

I stayed on it for about 1.5 hours.

[Bill K]

Take a small white Zoom fluke, nose hook it with a dropshot/splitshot hook and just keeping working it in the center of the bed. One or both will take it when they get worked up enough. Then release them and move onto another bed. Bill K

[tALLkAN]

i like to throw a whole can of corn on the bed and see how many pieces will land on them. then stick around to watch the carp interbreed with the largies. its one hell of a sight to see, you should give it a try.

[DeltaDan]

Last Thursday after DeltaLuke got out of school .. He and I went out for him to practice DS'ing only. (Had an AWESOME evening for #'s of fish -- Just nothing over #2lb's. )


We came across our very first bed fish that was prolly a Male in the rocks on low-tide. Nothing big - mabey 3.5+ pounds at the most.


So DeltaLuke starts playing with it with a nose weighted Iveno worm - It would move off and seek shelter from a grass bed 3' away-- then circle 2x and sit on it again. He then tried with a DS Bluegill patterned Robo for the same results. I let Luke sit on that one fish for 20-25 minuets before I told him that he has things to do ....

Well then out of frustration I suppose -- and "Fun" for Delta Luke .... He chased that bass around and around in lightning speed with the nose weighted Iveno .. Bouncing it off that bass even at times. Well that bass finally got pissed off enoufgh at what was happening -- and he took 4 strikes at it while being pissed off.

Luke did not hook-set .. But it prolly didin't matter as it was taking it by the tail.


But it was very cool to target/watch and see for a first time !! ..... And it was also a complete waste of our time on the water doing as we had planned as well !!







PS- These new Maui Jim Canoes in Green Lenses are AWESOME !! Luke was wearing his Spy's in HCL ... It was not till he switched to my glasses after constant finger pointing -- that he could see everything that that one bass was doing ... And I could not see 1/2 of it either while wearing his lenses.

[MIKE TREMONT]

and it was also a complete waste of time as well !! Laughing

You sure about that Dan. You got to spend time with your son doing what you guys love to do, and figured out a triggering method.

I wouldn't classify that a waste of time, but that's just me, I'm kind of weird that way.





I should just let some things go

[DeltaDan]

BrothA Mike - - I hear exactly where you are comming from !!


We had 30+ fish later after that in 2+ more hours in deeper/clearer water with Luke practicing a sweeping hookset on a light spinning rod ... and then practice back-reeling them all in.


I wish we could of had one bigger fish take the worm -- so he could fight it in the same method unless he needed to have to rely on the drag/thumbspool.

But for the amount of time we spent on one fish -- Yhea- It did burn some sunlight and practice for him.


I kept thowing frogs on grass matts where we were at with the water 70.6 - Only one swoosh on it for a miss off of the face before it dropped to 16' +

[MIKE TREMONT]

Good times!

Hope to be out there ASAP. I gotta figure out a way to pay for my gear box.

See you out there.

[Dynastyworms]

Wow rob really??? What your personan best again?? Ha ha BURN!

Meow

[Dom]

Hey Dan
If you go back and read my post from over the years on bed fishing you will see this is a very effective way of getting these bed fish I have posted about using a 1/2 jig and just nailing the fish in the side with it not hard or to snag it but you have to hit that fish.

I think the fish is already in a fighting mood he is guarding the bed so he strikes out of anger becuase the threat is at him now and not the eggs. It saves alot of time, trying to find that sweet spot is a pain in the you know what.

I'll toss it pass the bed bring it up to the fish slowly then the fish will do that ever so famouse roll to get a good look then out of no where BAM hit the fish and pull the jig out. repeat till you see the fish get in its strike mode fins moving fast and he will take the jig. I like white or pink jigs ones you can see reall good. the worm left to much unexsposed hook so no hook up, but if you did that with a jig the fish bites all hook and bam you got him give it a try.