Fishing For Redeye Bass

A beginners guide to catching redeye bass

Nov 26, 2024

Tips For Redeye Bass Fishing

Basic Redeye Bass Fishing Tackle
Redeye Bass Fishing Video
Bass Lures For Beginners
Top 3 Tips For Beginners
Bass Tackle For Intermediate Anglers
Additional Lures For Intermediate Anglers
Top Tips For Intermediate Anglers
World Record Redeye Bass
Advice For Serious Redeye Bass Fishing Enthusiasts

Redeye Bass

Beginners

Redeye bass fishing for beginners and novice anglers. Redeye bass are found in rivers and creeks, or in lakes where these creeks and rivers flow into the lake. Redeye bass are found in Georgia, Alabama, South Carolina and Tennessee.

Basic Bass Tackle For Beginners

Rod. Start with a 5' 6" to 5' 10", light or ultra-light action rod.

Reel. Baitcasting reels and spinning reels both work nicely for redeye bass fishing. Get the best quality you can afford, and practice until you can make accurate casts.

Line. Begin with 8# to 10# monofilament line. Pay a little extra and get decent quality line.

Bass fishing basics video.

Basic Lures For Beginners

Spinnerbait. A spinnerbait can be used in all types of cover, water conditions and weather. Start with a 1/4 oz spinnerbait with double willow blades and a white or chartreuse skirt.

Swimbaits. Small, fish-shaped plastics with an action tail can entice redeye bass to attack.

3 Important Tips For Beginners

Tip 1. Redeye bass hang out around cover. Look for rocks, lay-downs, or anything that provides shade and cover for bass.

Tip 2. Thoroughly fish the cover with multiple, accurate casts. Then keep moving to find more cover. Redeye bass fishing can be done from shore and/or wading.

Tip 3. Use good knots and re-tie anytime the knot or line has been nicked or frayed. Always use sharp hooks, if they are dull replace or sharpen them

Intermediate Anglers

Bass Tackle For Intermediate Anglers

Rods. For longer casts and more powerful hook sets, choose a 6' to 7', light or ultra-light action rod. As a second rod choose a 6' or longer spinning rod in light or ultra-light action rod. Shimano, Bass Pro Shops, G. Loomis, Fenwick, Lew's and Abu Garcia, among others, all make a variety of quality rods in varying price ranges.

Reels. Baitcasting and spinning reels work well for the vast majority of bass fishing conditions. Shimano Curado, Abu Garcia Revo, Lew's Mach Crush, Bass Pro Shops Johnny Morris Series and Daiwa Fuego are five good choices, and there are many others. Accurate casts are crucial to success.

Line. Line choices include monofilament, fluorocarbon, and braided line - sometime in combination. Braided line with a monofilament or fluorocarbon tip can be an ideal setup, depending on conditions. Use an alberto or albright knot to join lines. Choose type and line weights appropriate to the cover you are fishing and the quality of bass you expect to catch.

Basic Lures For Intermediate Anglers

In addition to spinnerbaits and Texas-style worms, learning to use the following baits can improve your chances for success.

Topwater Lures. Buzzbaits, poppers, propbaits, walking baits, wake baits and many others will catch redeye when they are feeding near the surface - over deep or shallow water.

Crankbaits. Based on depth and cover, choose from lipless crankbaits, jointed crankbaits and square-bill crankbaits. Making accurate casts, and varying speeds, can entice strikes.

Jigs. Lead-head jigs can be dressed with all sorts of creature-bait plastics to imitate small crawfish or baitfish. They can be retrieved fast as a swim jig, or slow crawled on the bottom.

Swimbaits. Fish-shaped, plastics with an action tail can entice redeye bass to attack.

5 Important Tips For Intermediate Anglers

Fishing Reports. Read current fishing reports and bass tournament results from the lake you wish to fish, also review these reports and results from this time last year. Learn how to gain maximum knowledge from fishing reports.

Lake Maps. Contour maps can identify creek channels, flats, ledges, drop-offs, and depth variations. This information can help you plan your time on the water, well before you head to the lake.

Focus On Finding The Fish. Redeye bass move up and down in the water column in search of the best available water temperatures, availability of food, and a variety of other factors. Begin the day fishing shallow, medium and deep water in search of the best depth for the day. Bass also migrate throughout the lake following baitfish, so fish out on points, back in coves, on ledges in open water, and along the edges of creek channels at a variety of depths. Once you locate fish, concentrate on that depth and similar locations.

Keep Lure Selection Simple. Redeye bass are not as picky as we tend to think. Stick to basic colors. For crankbaits and jerkbaits stick to shad or crawfish colors. For worms and jigs, stick to basic crawfish colors. Depending on water clarity contrast may be an issue dictating dark or flashy colors.

Use Multiple Baits. Once you locate an area holding bass, try a variety of lures to see which entices more bites. In shallow water, try topwater, crankbaits, spinnerbaits, vibrating jigs, and jerkbaits for reaction bites. Worms and jigs for slower presentations. In deep water try big worms, drop-shot rigs, and jigging spoons. For each bait vary the speed and action to determine the best approach for getting bites

Experienced Anglers

Advice For Serious Redeye Bass Fishing Enthusiasts

Study the life cycle of redeye bass, their annual migrations, daily movements, and food sources available in the lake you plan to fish. Our focus here is to assist beginner and intermediate anglers. For those wishing to take the next step there are a multitude of options for growing your knowledge of fishing for redeye bass.

Learn To Fly Fish. Redeye bass can be caught on flies, streamers and poppers out of lakes, rivers, streams and creeks.

Bass Clubs & Tournaments. You can join and participate, with or without a boat, and learn from some of the better anglers in your area.

Time On The Water. Experience is the best teacher. Spend time locating the fish and experimenting with a wide variety of lures and techniques.

Gather Information Online. Read information on your local Fish & Game Department website. Review websites offered by expert bass anglers, fishing organizations and local fishing guides. Some highly regarded websites covering redeye bass fishing include Bassmaster, Linder's Angling Edge, and Kevin VanDam.

Have Fun. Fishing for redeye bass can be very rewarding. Be diligent, but enjoy the process. Fishing is a life-long journey, and you can learn something new every day you spend on the lake!

Redeye Bass

World record: 5 pounds, 2 ounces

Rick Seaman is a fishing enthusiast with over five decades of fishing experience, a retired bass tournament fisherman, author of numerous published articles on fishing, and co-author of the book "Bass Fishing - It's not WHAT you throw, It's WHERE you throw it".