Silver State Bass Anglers official recommends fishing reaction baits for bass

Steep and deep. That's where Matt Lisiewski, vice president of the Silver State Bass Anglers, says fishermen generally go to look for largemouth bass in the fall. But this year Mother Nature has thrown anglers a change-up.

"Traditionally, this time of year it's light line and deep ledges. You're trying to find the isolated points where the bass are going to be. The grass is dying off, and they're not holding on the grass like they were earlier in the season," Lisiewski said. "So normally you would be steep and deep, where you are fishing along the canyon walls and along sheer cliffs. You're fishing light line and deep water trying to locate those suspended bass."

This year, though, continuing warm temperatures and unusually high shad numbers have Lisiewski thinking it might be a good idea to try something out of the norm.

"This year at Lake Mead we've had a terrific shad bloom," he said. "I've seen shad like I've never seen 'em before. More than in the last, probably, five or six years, and to the point that you can see the stripers are still boiling. If the temperature stays up, reaction baits may still be a good bait choice."

Lisiewski said fishing reaction baits means throwing a top-water bait, like a Zara Spook, a crankbait, or a jerk bait. He likes a suspending jerk bait, which runs only about 2 or 3 feet deep.

"It's like a real small crankbait, and you just rip it across the top of the water," he said.

Though he thinks the reaction bite might continue late into the year, Lisiewski said anglers should keep an eye out for a change in shad behavior and make alterations. If the shad begin to die off or drop deeper into the water column, you might want to switch to a drop-shot rig baited up with a small plastic worm or even a white jig. The key is working to locate the fish and find out what depth they're at so you can throw what you need where you need it to catch them.

Lisiewski has no problem going after striped bass when the opportunity presents itself.

"I was bass fishing and saw a striper boil last week," he said. "I followed them around, and my co-angler and I must have caught 40 of them in an hour."

The pair were throwing crankbaits.

For people new to bass fishing, the hobby sometimes can appear overwhelming. Knowing what to throw and where to throw it can be a challenge, but spending time with someone who has been there and done that can make the learning process easier. That's one of the primary purposes of the Silver State Bass Anglers organization: to help anglers learn how to fish.

"Some clubs, they really don't discuss techniques or strategies, but that's one thing we really try to do," Lisiewski said. "We're just there to help each other catch more fish and have more fun on the water."

More information on the Silver State Bass Anglers is available at silverstatebassanglers.com.

Freelance writer Doug Nielsen is a conservation educator for the Nevada Department of Wildlife. His "In the Outdoors" column, published Thursday in the Las Vegas Review-Journal, is not affiliated with or endorsed by the NDOW. Any opinions he states in his column are his own. He can be reached at intheoutdoorslv@gmail.com.