When the water gets hot, and the bass are looking for oxygen, looking for cooler water or just suspending nothing duplicates the results of a jigging spoon. What makes it even better than most realize its bait that even the most inexperienced fisherman can use and be successful at? You can present the bait with long casts or drop it over the edge of the boat and just jig it up and down.

There are a few key things you need to prepare for when using a jigging spoon, if you use the heavy 1 oz. spoons they have big hooks and snag everything on the bottom and when you get one stuck into a stump, well it becomes a bottom decoration. The next thing to be prepared for is if you cast it hard and snap your cast it will break your line fairly easily so hook it up on braid so you have enough strength in line to keep it from snapping off. Braid also gives you a fair chance of being able to pull the spoon off a snag on the bottom and retrieve it from hang- ups.

Another key to using a jigging spoon is to fish it with a fast speed reel like a 7:1:1 reel and rig it on at least a heavy rod where the tip strength aids the hook set when you’re fishing it. Catching up to the fall speed of a heavy spoon requires the fast reel to catch up to the drop speed; it also allows you to be in position quickly to set the hook when needed in a retrieve. The key to catching a fish when struck on a jigging spoon is snapping the spoon off the bottom and whey you do that the spoon falls quickly back to the bottom this is when you generally get hit and the reel and rod must support the hook set so rod strength and reel speed to catch up to the spoon is very important. 

To fish with Captain Mike Gerry visit: Fish Lake Guntersville Guide Service