Ultimate Guide to Morning Bass Fishing

As bass fishing popularity rises, people are finding new ways to catch more fish. Whether it be technological advancements in gear, reading the weather to intricate levels, and many other things.

Now, all of those things are great, but sometimes we need to be simple with our approach and take part in traditional practices. Today, we will be breaking down one of the old methods for catching bass: fishing in the morning.

Here is a guide to morning bass fishing!

The early morning hours

Since we are talking about bass fishing in the morning, it is important to understand why the morning hours harbor great results.

Simply put, the answer is yes! There are a number of contributing factors as to why bass are more likely to hit a lure in the early hours of the day.

Firstly, a huge factor is temperature. In the summer, the morning and night are the coolest parts of the day. When it is hot outside during the day, bass become lethargic in midday and do their feeding when the water is cooler.

Just like we do not enjoy fishing when it is 100 degrees outside, the bass do not enjoy being too active during the same time. So, not only will the bass be cooler in the morning, so will you.

Another big factor is sunlight. Bass and similar species can sometimes be sensitive to light. As you may know, water can act like a magnifying glass when certain conditions are right. So, during midday, when the sun is at its highest, it will penetrate the water in a way that it does not during other times of the day.

So, keep a close tab on when the sun comes up and how you can take advantage of those prime opportunities.

Don’t avoid “bad” weather

No matter the time of day, don’t avoid poor weather when it is safe to still fish. But, especially in the morning, those gloomy, foggy, and rainy conditions can actually work for your benefit.

For some anglers, when they wake up and see looming clouds and drizzling rain, they hit snooze and go back to sleep. Anglers who want to make the most out of every fishing opportunity get out of bed and get to work. Instead of seeing potentially poor weather and steering away from it, you should take full advantage.

Now, when we talk about poor weather, we are not talking about thunderstorms and tornado warnings. We are talking about light rain, fog, and low cloudy conditions that do not pose much real risk.

The biggest factor to this “bad” weather is the cloud cover. Cloud cover is super beneficial because it creates shade. In turn, the water is cooler from the shade. So, those bass are more likely to strike.

Another reason why these conditions are good is the barometric pressure. When the pressure fluctuates, bass have varying feeding patterns.

So, instead of staying in your warm home when the conditions look a little less than ideal, try your luck at catching some morning bass. You might get a little wet, but it will be a worthwhile trade off to catch your next trophy bass.

The Seasons Play a Part

We have talked about a number of variables that change on a daily basis, but one that stretches a bit longer is the seasons. The season you are in will highly impact how morning bass fishing is done. Let’s break down some information for each of the four seasons.

Summer

We shall start with one of the most popular times of the year to fish. Not because it harbors the best results, but people tend to have a little more free time from May to August. Whether it be from time off of work or a summer vacation, this is the time of the year that many people can take the time to fish.

Although hot summer days normally do not make a good day of fishing. This is why going in the morning is so important. Beat the hot temperatures for yours and the bass’s sake. No one wants to be out and about during this time.

Fall

Now, when transitioning from the summer to the fall, you need to make a couple of slight changes. Instead of getting out as early as you can during the summer, you should target a late morning-to-afternoon time. This is because the water could be too cold early in the morning. You want the sun to come out and warm it slightly before trying your luck.

Fall is a great time to fish because the leaves are changing, the scenery is beautiful and bass are feeding a lot before the winter rolls in. So, take advantage of those opportunities while bass fishing in the late morning as opposed to the early morning.

Winter

Once the temperatures start to drop, morning bass fishing becomes less and less popular. In the summer, you are trying to beat the heat. In the winter, it is the opposite. If your geographic area is warm enough to not freeze over the waterways, target bass in the period of time between late morning and evening. This is because the weather will be at its warmest during these times.

If you are having to ice fish, the same rules apply. Fishing in the winter is not very popular because bass are more lethargic. Thankfully, there are a number of strategies and presentations that will help you entice cold-water bass into biting. So, avoid early mornings and try to target the warmest parts of the day.

Spring

We saved the best for last because spring is revered as one of the best times of the year to target bass. This is for a number of reasons, a few of which we will break down right here.

Depending on your location, the spawn is either early spring or late spring. So, during the springtime, you can take advantage of both pre-spawn and the spawn itself. The spawn is when bass make beds to give birth. In the time leading up to it, females especially are eating a lot to fatten up. So, they can be super aggressive and the females will be as big as they ever get.

After the pre-spawn, there is the spawn itself. The best way to target fish during this time is bed fishing. This is when you seek out fish beds and target the big females getting ready to give birth. This is a super fun way to fish because you can literally watch the bass bite your lure in real-time.

Use Topwater

If you have any prior experience fishing for bass, you probably know how fun fishing topwater lures can be. If you have yet to experience it, you have to do it at some point. You may as well make the next time you use topwater in the morning!

The main reason why topwater lures work great in the morning is because the lack of strong sunlight. When it is midday and the sun is at its highest point, the fish are blinded when looking up at the surface. So, you can try to use a frog or popper in the middle of the day, but if it is sunny, the chances of hooking up are lessened. When you can take advantage of the light at dawn, your chances are elevated tremendously.

The other reason is the temperature. Specifically, with the summer, cooler temperatures are in the morning, as we have already discussed. When the bass are not in hot water, they are more likely to be active. You want active fish when targeting topwater. If the bass are lethargic, they will not spend the energy to eat something on the surface.

Plus, topwater fishing is very fun. Watching a bass breach the surface of the water and destroy your lure will make your body surge with adrenaline in a way that is rarely replicated. Another reason why topwater fishing is so beneficial is the fact that you can cover a lot of water in one swoop. With other, slower presentations, this is much harder to accomplish. Especially with a buzzbait or any quick-moving topwater, you can take advantage of all that the specific area has to offer.

Other great presentations

Fishing topwater is a blast, but sometimes you have to mix it up and try some other ways to catch those morning bass. Thankfully, there are a number of lures that can get the job done. Here are some of our favorites.

Spinnerbait

When bass are looking to feed before the sun shines bright and the water warms up, they are probably going to be looking for baitfish. So, this is a great time to take advantage of moving baits that can resemble baitfish.

The flash of a slow-rolling spinnerbait is perfect for those early, cool, but not too cool, mornings. For even better action, you should add a trailer such as a soft swimbait. This adds another layer that can elevate your fishing endeavors.

Crankbaits

Both billed and lipless crankbaits are fantastic in the morning for the same reasons as the spinnerbait. You are imitating a baitfish that is cruising through the water column.

Lipless crankbaits are even better in the morning because you can rip the shiny bodies through grass and drop offs in a very natural way. Tying on a crankbait of any kind can produce some excellent results, especially when the bass are fired up and willing to take a reaction bite.

Swimjigs

Jig fishing is extremely popular for bass because it takes a natural, finesse approach to the presentation. Using a swim jig specifically will give you both the moving bait and finesse presentations. This helps you get the best of both worlds. Especially in the morning, this is great because the bass are active and sometimes still want a lure that is more natural.

The jig itself should be accompanied by a trailer of some sort. This is up to you, but a soft swimbait or a craw is best. This adds delicious action on the back end of the jig that will take the presentation up a notch.

Jerkbait

For those specifically cool mornings, maybe in the fall or spring, jerkbaits are fantastic lures to use. A jerkbait is a hard-bodied lure that twitches with the action from the rod’s tip. It is used to imitate bait fish who are injured and navigating the water column.

Many jerkbaits have rattle or vibration qualities that further entice bass to take a bite. The jerkbait is so good on cool mornings, because you are not burning the lure in. It is a slow, steady retrieval that requires a bit of rhythm and technique. When the moving bait is not going too fast, bass can still pursue in cold water.

So, when you beat the sun to your fishing spot, tie on a jerkbait and see what happens

There are a number of other great lures and presentations that can be fruitful in the morning. Make sure to have fun with it and use your fishing knowledge to get the job done.

Final Thoughts

Hopefully, you now know a bit more about how to catch bass in the morning. With the information presented above, your chances of hooking up in those early hours can be improved upon greatly.

Taking the morning route can completely shake up your view on bass fishing. You may be in the rhythm of midday fishing and sweating it out in the summer heat when you can get far more bites by going a couple of hours earlier. Work smarter not harder.

So, the next time you are looking to take a fishing trip , plan it out a little more and try your luck in the morning. This will be very enjoyable and bring great results. Happy Fishing!