Arizona Lake Fishing

Bass are predator fish and they follow schools of baitfish to prey on. So, if you can find the schools of baitfish, chances are pretty good that the bass are close by. But how do you locate the baitfish?

How to locate the baitfish and intern the big bass

1. Easiest to spot are the small minnows jumping out of the water and if your lucky swirls of bigger fish swimming close behind. If you see these tiny jumping fish, there is a school of baitfish swimming around just under them.
2. Loons also love baitfish. They feed on them regularly. The benefit of seeing loons feeding on fish is that they are easier to spot from a distance than jumping minnows. Follow the loons to the baitfish and the baitfish to the bass.
3. Gulls also prey on fish. You’ll often see them circling in one spot. This is a good place to head out and fish.
4. Herons are another bird species that prey on fish and are easy to spot in the air or on the shore.
5. If you see small dimples on the surface of the water chances are there is a school of shad near the surface. These dimples might look like little raindrops falling over a small are of water.
6. Use a depthfinder. On a depthfinder, a school of fish will look like a ball of solid mass.
7. And finally, when you see a group of boats fishing in one area, it’s probably a good spot to fish. Man also likes to prey on fish and they are very easy to spot in their boats with fishing poles.

So now you found the baitfish, what do you do?

Tips to use the baitfish to your advantage

• For your lure or bait selection, try to match the size and shape of the baitfish swimming around.
• Vary your depth to find the feeding fish (largemouth bass but also crappie, walleye, muskie, hybrids, white bass, striped bass)
• Get as close to the food source as possible to increase your odds of catching the fish you set out to catch.

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Lake Pleasant is 75% full, at just over 1600 feet in elevation.

Mornings are best before 9am. There is some fish activity but the shad boils don’t last too long and after 9am, the shad boils drying up. Some anglers are seeing the activity taper as early as 7am.

Striped bass, white bass and largemouth bass are all biting now in varying numbers. Most are being caught in the north coves of the lake, as well as Scorpion Point.

For best results: Get there early; before dawn. Try topwater lures for the stripers and whities. Specifically, the Diawa diving topwater lure works really well in the northern coves.

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white bass – A type of true bass that is only found at Lake Pleasant in Arizona. White bass are related to striped bass and yellow bass. None of these bass are native Arizona fish.

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striped bass – A member of the true bass family along with white bass and yellow bass. In Arizona, they are found in the Colorado River chain of lakes such as Powell, Mead, Mohave and Havasu, but are also found in Lake Pleasant.

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dink – A small bass, usually under 6 to 8 inches long (also called a subcatchable).

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deer-hair bug – A floating fly-rodding lure made from hollow deer hair and used principally for bass and panfish.

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Summer fishing at Lake Pleasant can get hot with average temps in triple digits. The heat pushes the fish into deeper water and are best accessed by boat.

For best odds at catching largemouth bass, try night fishing in the coves. Use watermelon colored plastic lizards or worms at 20 to 40 feet deep. If night fishing isn’t your idea of fun try top water lures in the very early mornings or late evenings.

The white bass and striped bass have moved to deeper water but you can get at them in the coves as well with a boat. Live shad seem to work the best but live minnows, small deep diving crank baits or trolling spinners have also worked well.

During these hot summer months the catfish are most active at night and are also in the coves. Small mackerel seem to work best.

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Spring is the best time to hit the water at Lake Pleasant, Arizona. This time of year the water is high, the temperatures are cool and all the fish are biting.

The largemouth bass are in spawn this time of year and migrate to the shallows. First introduced in 1897, the largemouth bass is a carnivorous fish that will bite on live and artificial bait alike. For live bait try waterdogs. For artificial try plastic worms, plastic lizards, top water lures or shad looking crank baits. Largemouth bass are warm water fish that prefer clear water with structure and cover.

White bass, a non-native fish only found in Imperial Reservoir on the Colorado River and Lake Pleasant, are also biting and looking for shad schools. The best lures for white bass are spinners, jigs, spoons, and shad crank baits. IF you prefer live bait try catching your own live shads and minnows.

Striped bass are a non-native fish introduced in 1959 and can reach a weight of over 59 pounds. They are found throughout the Colorado River from Lake Powell to the Mexican border and most recently in Lake Pleasant. Effective lures include spoons, plugs, jigs, crank baits, and streamer flies. For live bait try anchovies or shad.

The catfish are feeding at this time of year. Try the muddy or sandy coves with liver, mackerel, night crawlers or stink baits. Crappie and blue gill are active in shallow water. Try live minnows and a bobber.

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