Bass Lures for Early Spring Fishing

Bass Lures for Early Spring Fishing If you’re a largemouth nut, you’re not waiting for the weather to turn balmy before hitting water. You’re looking for the best bass lures for early spring—emphasis on early. You’re out there right now, with a jacket and gloves if necessary. You know to head for the warmest parts of the lake, the north end and the stained water. And you know that big pre-spawners will be staging along those first steep drop-offs not far from the flats where they’ll eventually spawn. But do you know exactly what bait you’re going to tie on, and how you’re going to fish it? Well, the bass nuts below do, and they can help you make the best choice—and catch more largemouths, right now. We asked 10 B.A.S.S. and Major League Fishing pros to pick the best bass lures for early spring fishing. Here are their go-to baits and how they fish them. Spinnerbaits

• Double Colorado Blade Spinnerbait with Zoom Split Tail Trailer
• Picasso Shock Blade Pro Jig

Double Colorado Blade Spinnerbait with Zoom Split Tail Trailer Wes Logan, Alabama-based Bassmaster Elite Series Angler, likes a spinnerbait during this time of year because it allows him to fish around almost any type of cover at a variety of depth ranges. “I like a spinnerbait during this time of year because it allows me to fish around almost any type of cover at a variety of depth ranges,” Logan says. “If I want to fish it in a foot of water I can; if I want to fish it in 8 feet of water I can.” He likes to use a Lew’s Custom Pro 6.8:1 reel, which allows him to slow his retrieve down or speed it up. He uses an ARK Rods Invoker Pro 7′3 Mag Medium Heavy rod that allows him to make precise casts with enough tip but also plenty of backbone to get the fish out of any type of cover. From early spring into the middle of spring, the best place to throw a spinnerbait 90 percent of the time is to cover near spawning pockets or bays where the fish are coming to you to begin their spawning process. Soft Plastics

• Googan Baits Bandito Bug
• Googan Baits Krackin’ Craw

Googan Baits Bandito Bug Skylar Hamilton, Tennessee-based Bassmaster Elite Series Angler, loves the Bandito Bug because it’s a highly versatile soft plastic bait during the spring. “My go-to presentation in the spring is to fish the bait on a Texas Rig with a 1/4-ounce Angler Tungsten weight and Hayabusa 5/0 FPP Flipping Hook,” Hamilton says. “I pitch the rig around docks and any shallow cover. The Bug also works great as a jig trailer and on a Carolina Rig.” He generally pitches to a piece of cover, hops it a few times, and then makes another pitch—slowly but still covering water. Googan Baits Krackin’ Craw Dustin Connell, Alabama-based Major League Fishing Angler, likes a swim jig during this time of year because it allows him to cover water quickly and catches those giant pre-spawn brim-eaters. “I use a 3/8-ounce black-and-blue swim jig paired with a Googan Baits Green Pumpkin Krackin Craw,” Connell says. “As far as line, I go with 50-pound Seaguar braid, and my rod is a Favorite Summit 7′2″ medium-heavy.” Bladed Jigs

• Picasso Shock Blade Pro Jig

Picasso Shock Blade Pro Jig Aaron Martens, Alabama-based Major League Fishing Angler, likes a 3/8-ounce bladed jig because it’s ideal for warming-weather patterns and stained or slightly dirty water. “The Shock Blade is the most erratic action bladed jig bait on the market, and it gets larger pre-spawn fish to react,” Martens says. “I use 20-pound FC Sniper fluorocarbon on a G. Loomis GLX 854C heavy fast-action rod for the grass and medium, heavy-fast elsewhere.” Search Baits

• River2Sea S-Waver

River2Sea S-Waver Randy Pierson, California-based Bassmaster Elite Series Angler, likes the S-Waver because it catches big fish and can be used as a search bait. “If I get followers and none are eating the bait, I’ll slow down and throw a Texas-rigged trick worm to catch those,” Pierson says. “I look for shallower points, docks, or trees leading into spawning pockets or bays. I cast directly to the visual targets and just do a slow retrieve back to the boat, pausing and twitching the bait at least twice during the retrieve.” Other Options

• Bill Lewis Original Rat-L-Trap
• Optimum Baits Boom Boom Swimbait
• Greenfish Tackle Skipping Jig with Zoom Super Chunk Jr.

Bill Lewis Original Rat-L-Trap Brock Mosley, Mississippi-based Bassmaster Elite Series Angler, and Boyd Duckett, Alabama-based Major League Fishing Angler, like the Rat-L-Trap because it’s extremely effective in cold water and can be used to cover a lot of water quickly. “I throw it around grass, rocks, on flats, and through ditches and depressions,” Mosley says. “One of my favorite ways to fish it is called the yo-yo retrieve. I simply keep my line tight and work the rod from the 10 o’clock position to the 12 o’clock position, so the trap goes up and down.” Boyd Duckett uses a similar yo-yo retrieve, but he emphasizes the importance of slowly letting the bait sink to the bottom before starting the retrieve. Optimum Baits Boom Boom Swimbait Fred Roumbanis, Arkansas-based Major League Fishing Angler, likes fishing his Boom Boom swimbait because it’s an absolute blast and has caught him some of his biggest bass. “I go to a swimbait as soon as water temps hit the mid 50s in the early spring,” Roumbanis says. “I rig it on a 1/4-ounce 7/0 HAYABUSA belly-weighted hook on 20-pound fluorocarbon. The key is having the right equipment; I use my signature 8-foot Dobyns Swimbait rod and pair it with a 8:1 Hamarr Baitcaster by SixGill.” Greenfish Tackle Skipping Jig with Zoom Super Chunk Jr. Casey Ashley, South Carolina-based Major League Fishing Angler, likes this skipping jig because it’s a versatile bait that can be used in both deep and shallow water. “I usually throw this jig on 20-pound Hi-Seas fluorocarbon with a 7′4″ Quantum Smoke rod and a Quantum Smoke S3 7:3:1 reel,” Ashley says. “In clear water, I’ll go with a Green Pumpkin Super Chunk Jr, and I’ll switch to throw Black and Blue in dirty water. If water temps are at 55 or below, I target deeper structure like rock, brush, and deeper docks. When the water warms to above 55, I target shallower cover like blowdowns, bushes, shallow docks, and shallow rock.