Patience is key for ledge-fishing bass

Mason Wooldridge caught this big bass while cranking a crankbait in the deep water on a fishing trip with the author.

“Sometimes it’s simply a matter of being patient and being in the right place at the right time,” Murphy said. “On occasion, I’ll pull up on a place and not get a strike for 30 minutes, and I know that the bass and baitfish are there.

“Then I’ll coax a finesse strike from a bass and set the hook and catch one, and it puts them in a feeding frenzy.”

That’s when it’s critical to keep a bait in the water.

“Other bass on the ledge will get in on the action, and you’ve got to get that bait right back in there to catch another one before the feeding frenzy stops,” Murphy said.

Other times it simply takes something different to trigger the bass into feeding and biting.

“Sometimes they’ll want a lure presented to them in a certain manner or fashion, or even from a certain direction,” Murphy explained. “I always feel like I can do something a little different and try different presentations to make them strike.”

Fishing some areas commonly called community holes can be both frustrating because you might not be able to get on them or catch the bass due to pressure from other anglers.

That’s when Murphy puts his head down and tries to outthink the competition.

“There are so many boats on the water today and pressure on the fish that you have to do something different,” Murphy said. “You can’t let the fishing pressure bother you or you’ll never catch many fish.

“You’ve just got to be more creative than the anglers ahead of you.”

About Michael O. Giles 406 Articles
Mike Giles of Meridian has been hunting and fishing Mississippi since 1965. He is an award-winning wildlife photographer, writer, seminar speaker and guide.

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