Bass Insider
8
Hopefully I do not get crucified for this statement!
The building rubble you can usually find right at the back of a dock, on the sides of the slipway or right in front of the slipway. These are the three most obvious places to search for additional structure at docks.
DOCK-FISHING METHODS
Once you located prime docks and piers, an angler must decide how to fish them. Time of year, how bass are relating to the structure, lure and tackle selection and cast/retrieve techniques all go into making this decision. Generally bass will hold underneath docks, and if there is vertical structure (pilings, ladders, etc), they will be next to the best of this cover. Also, unless it is early spring, they’ll usually stay on the shady side of the dock. But in the pre-spawn, they’ll be seeking warmer water, so they’ll be on the sunny side. You have to approach a dock as quietly as possible and it’s very important to get your boat in just the right position before making a cast. Wait until the boat is positioned exactly like you want it, then be very precise with your casts. I would pick my target depending on whether I am fishing for fun or in a tournament. If I am fishing for fun, I’ll cast to the end and outsides of the dock first. This way I may tease a fish out from under the dock. Then I can play it in open water where there’s less chance of losing it. Also a good way to teach kids you to fish docks until they have the confidence to fish the structure. But if I’ve got a tournament or competitor on my boat, I’ll make my first cast to where I think I’m most likely to get a strike. Usually this is back under the dock and around the thickest clump of pilings. If there is current (Vaal River), I approach the dock from the down current side (or down-wind side). My first cast will be across the end of the dock to the up current side, and I’ll retrieve the bait right back across the face of the dock, coming with the current. The fish will usually hold on the downstream side of the dock, and they’ll strike as the bait passes the downstream corner. Following this initial cast, I continue the deeper part of the dock, hitting every corner and side. Then I move my boat close to the structure and begin fishing the way along the dock toward the bank. In the process I hit every piling and other cover object that has the potential of holding fish. In the spring and early summer, I may twitch a Rapala jerk bait. The bait is fished right next to the pilings or plastic blocks. I also like to toss a spinner bait, crank bait and lipless crank baits around the docks, actually bumping the cover when possible.
But the bread and butter dock lures, the real productive baits, are those in the slow-moving, sinking family. Plastic worms, super flukes, jigs, tubes, grubs and similar offerings account for the majority of boat-dock bass. I use them interchangeable with the faster baits mentioned above. When I’m fishing docks with worms or plastics, I’ll skip-cast my bait back under the dock. I’ll use a medium heavy rod with bait cast reel and 12 – 14 pound test fluorocarbon line. (A skip-cast is similar to skipping a flat rock across the water. This is not an easy technique to learn but critical if you want to be successful at fishing docks. The secret to skip casting is to keep your lure as close as possible to the surface before making the pitch to the back of the dock.)
When worming docks, I normally fish a six inch worm, 4/0 hook and either a 1/8 ounce or ½ ounce bullet sinker. The light sinker allows the bait to sink slower, which gives the bass more time to decide to strike as the worm falls past it. Sometimes, though, if the docks are in deeper water, I will change to a ½ ounce sinker to get it down a little faster, especially if the fish are holding close to the bottom. The heavier the sinker, the more difficult it is to skip the bait. When skipping with a sinker the sinker must be pegged with a toothpick at the head of the worm.