Calm weather and a slick water surface are perfect for pleasure boating, water skiing and lounging on an inflatable mattress, but those conditions usually are less favorable for catching bass. The Bassmaster Elite Series pros frequently encounter these unfavorable conditions on the tournament trail and have to coax bass into biting when the fish are uneasy about their surroundings.
“Those conditions all have to do with light penetration, particularly in clean water where light penetration is so high,” said veteran pro Mark Menendez of Kentucky. “We are different than a bass in that we have eyelids and can squint to keep the light out of our eyes, but they have to go find cover or depth.
“It can be advantageous in certain situations where bass pull up next to cover and then you concentrate on a weedline or boat docks or whatever cover you find down a bank. But as a general rule, it makes for some pretty stingy fish.”
How the pros catch bass in calm weather and slick water surfaces varies depending on the body of water they are fishing. Menendez and his fellow Elite Series competitors Bill Lowen and Seth Feider offer the following tips for catching bass in calm conditions throughout the year on reservoirs, rivers and natural lakes.
