Got Shad? Stan Kaplun Does And A Dr. Visit Won't Help. RX BASS

Checking in with somewhat of a transition report out of San Diego. With the El Niño continuing to break record temperatures with it's scorching heat, we've being seeing somewhat of a change in weather these last several days. Finally it has started to cool down at night and there is some type of cloud cover starting to appear. As the water gets colder and the topwater frog or rat bite likely simmers away (depending on the color of your bait), the heavy feeding period begins, in preparation for the winter. The bass began to gorge on shad, trout (where they are stocked), and they continue to feed on the variety of panfish that inhabit the lake.

Locally, the shad are starting to become more prevalent and we're starting to see these isolated and scattered schools of fish keying in on this bait. Instinctively, one looks to "match the hatch". Whether in the form of a swimbait, rattletrap, jerkbait, or crankbait, it's always worth a try. This is also why I have an assortment of my favorite baits in shad color.

The other day, my fishing buddy Jorge and I hit the water, the fish were chasing bait and I scrambled to tie on one of my favorite lures, the 6" BBZ-1. I was able to catch a couple smaller fish, and I lost a good one at the shoreline by trying to drag the bass on shore instead of reaching down and lipping it. Jorge managed to stick a handful of fish on a fly lined fluke, which goes back to the concept of matching the hatch. As you can see my bait of choice was the 6" SPRO BBZ-1 Jr in Sexy Lavender Shad. The setup was a Shimano Curado 300e, Shimano Teramar, and 15lb Izorline Mono. Things are changing fast down here in SD and being ready with the right baits keep you in the game when you show up to play. 
Check back in soon for the next report! -Stan Kaplun-