This time of the year, everyone believes that the bass are easy to catch and of course they are big. Well the bass aren't very easy to catch, as a matter of fact they are very difficult to catch. You have to use the most natural looking baits as possible, or live baits. My personal favorites are big swimbaits and live baits.

Live waterdogs are a very good choice for this time of year. I have noticed from watching a buddy of mine catching and landing 4 to 5 bass over 5 pounds in a day, when everyone else is shut down. Therefore I gave them a shot, and they are a great bait. 

To use them I suggest that you use a line of at least 10 pound test, and use a nice 6'6" rod and a good reel with a good drag. I suggest that you use bait cast gear, not spinning. You have better leverage and better control with the bait cast set ups.

If you want to get your fish on an artificial bait, the best for these big bass are the big 9" and bigger swimbaits. I suggest that you throw these with the big gear, which is suggested in my article on big baits. I like to throw these around areas with the most

The bait of choice is 7" or 9" Osprey Swimbaits. These baits catch bass in good numbers, and the bass are pretty darn big. In the last month, more big bass have been caught at Lake Casitas on the Osprey Swimbait than other swimbaits. So far the biggest bass at 15.75 pounds was brought in on the 9" Osprey. Give these a try and hold on.

I hope this article helps out a little with your pre-spawn fishing. Of course the worms and jigs will work, but these are my 2 favorites for the bigger bass. Good Luck and God Bless!!!!

~Eric Elshere