FOREST AND STREAM 
1089 
The Bass Love to Hide Around Islands and in the Channels Between. 
FISHING FOR BLACK BASS DURING AUGUST 
HOT WEATHER MAKES THE FISH CAPRICIOUS BUT A 
CAREFUL SELECTION OF BAIT WILL BRING RESULTS 
By Black Bass. 
I N August, the days and nights being so warm, 
bass fishing generally falls off greatly. If 
there be a number of days of very hot weather 
the bass are apt to go down into the deepest 
holes of the lake and start a sort of mid-summer 
hibernation, until the wind swings into the north 
or northwest and cools the surface of the water, 
when they will once more spread out and start 
circling the shores in search of food. 
The feeding directly after these hot spells is 
generally done at night, and the fisherman who 
happens to be there on such a night will reap 
a harvest. 
The fish at these times are very voracious and 
take almost any kind of bait—frogs, minnows or 
wooden plugs—on the surface or under water. 
Sometimes this feeding will last well into day¬ 
light and then the day caster may come into the 
sport, and the still fisherman have the time of 
his life. All over the lake the latter may be seen 
standing in their boats, holding quivering rods. 
But outside of these occasions, the fish are 
hard to get and it takes one with a thorough 
knowledge of the game to get any at all. 
For use at night, frogs seem to be the most 
tempting bait. During hot weather the live frog 
will show to a decided advantage over the wooden 
imitation. Still, once in a while the plug will 
be taken by a stray. And these strays (fish 
driven into the shores by a hunger not felt by 
the whole school) are the ones that must be 
looked for during most of the month. 
At night, the Decker or Manhattan surface 
baits will do as well as any. Or perhaps one 
might use a small wooden frog, with white belly, 
green back and a spinner at each end. The lat¬ 
ter will sometimes prove alluring on the misty, 
moonlight nights. 
During the daytime an under-water swimming 
minnow or an imitation crawfish will often pick 
up one or two fish. More than that can hardly 
be expected. August is not a black bass month 
in the eastern states, and one should be satisfied 
with a small catch during this part of the season. 
As a rule the still fisherman fares a little bet¬ 
ter than the caster. For this work the boat 
should be anchored tight at both ends, so that 
there can be no drifting from side to side, and 
no dragging of the bait along the bottom. If 
the bait drags it is almost sure to become fouled 
with weeds and rendered useless. 
In putting the anchors over the side, take care 
not to be noisy or make a splash. Row some 
twenty feet nearer shore than the intended fish¬ 
ing spot, and lower the first anchor. Now back 
water for the full length of the rope at least 
thirty feet. When the bow rope is taut, lower 
a heavy anchor straight down from the stern, 
fastening the rope securely to the stern cleats as 
soon as the anchor touches bottom, to avoid any 
slack from the drift of the boat. 
Good places to anchor are as a rule directly 
off the mouth of a brook emptying into the lake, 
where the water will very likely be much cooler 
than at other spots. 
The water should be from twelve to twenty 
feet in depth, which can easily be determined if 
the stern rope has been marked. 
Fly rods (two being legal to each person) are 
liable to furnish the greatest amount of sport 
after the fish is once hooked. But bait rods will 
hook the fish much better, on account of the 
extra backbone which they possess. 
Fishing in deep water requires a rather heavy 
strike to set the hook properly, and it is a ques¬ 
tion as to whether a fly rod can stand the strain 
and the deeper the water (which, of course, 
means more weight) the harder the strike must 
be to make it felt on the hook end of the outfit. 
The rod may be of any length, but the longer 
A Likely Spot for the Black Bass During August. 
it is the more easily can the bait be handled. 
Ten feet is a good length, and will afford good 
sport even in the heavier bait rods. 
A rod of such a length really plays the fish 
itself, the fisherman simply seeing that the line 
is kept taut (not tight) at all times. Hold it 
at an angle of forty-five degrees and the fish 
will very soon tire of bucking against the spring 
of it, when the landing net may be thrust under 
him and the fish brought safely to the boat. 
It is just as well to use two different varieties 
of bait, until it is discovered which one the fish 
prefer at a particular time. 
Minnows, soft or hard shelled crawfish, frogs, 
helgramites, worms, and sometimes salt water 
shrimp do the work, all according to the humor 
the fish happen to be in at the time. Most of the 
old-time fishermen have an assortment of all the 
baits and try them one after another until the 
successful one is found, when they discard the 
others and continue in the use of the one. 
There are several ways of hooking all these 
baits and most of the old timers have methods 
which they swear by and will not change for any 
new ways that they hear of. 
Minnows are generally hooked through both 
lips—not one lip—to keep them from drowning 
through the exhaustion that comes from carry¬ 
ing the hook about. If a very small hook be 
used, it may be put through the back just under 
the dorsal fin. But do not put it deep enough to 
go through his spine, or the minnow will be un¬ 
able to move. 
Crawfish can be hooked through the back, 
through one of the upper joints of the tail, or 
through the tail itself; frogs through both lips 
to keep out the water, as with minnows, or 
through the fleshy part of a leg. With helgra¬ 
mites, the hook can be put under the bony collar 
around the neck or through the tail. 
In the case of worms there are two good places, 
a spot just back of the head, or through the body 
midway between head and tail leaving the tail 
to wiggle as much as possible. Some fishermen 
say, however, that it is best to hook them through 
the tail alone, as the head will wiggle the most 
if left free. This must be determined for oneself. 
Cast the bait well away from the boat. With 
a ten foot rod, this is very easy of accomplish¬ 
ment after a little practice. Cast it gently, from 
side to side of the boat, stripping a little line 
from the reel after each cast until the desired 
