As bass and bluegill wrap up the spawn, they head to the newest submerged weed growth. Summer bass fresh off the spawn tend to lean one of two ways: either they want one big meal like a whole adult bluegill, or they want something easy they don’t have to expend energy on to get.
Using a large lure to imitate bluegill can increase the size class of fish that strike but greatly diminishes your catch ratio. For this reason, Virtual Angling staff McKeon Roberts opts for a small Texas-rigged straight-tail worm with a very light 1/16oz tungsten bullet weight. The light weight allows it to sink very slowly, and the smaller profile makes it hard for bass to turn down. While working up-wind, Roberts uses this rig as a method to find weeds without using electronics and can feel how the weedline lays out while fan casting. Once the weeds are located, make sure to spotlock and really spend time thoroughly fishing the whole weed bed. Often, bass will congregate in small areas among the weeds.
To work the bait, simply use a gentle pendulum through the weeds with occasional hops. This subtle action imparts a tantalizing tail movement but doesn’t move too erratically to ward off potential bites from lethargic bass.
One popular option for fishing along summer weeds is a Jig worm, but as Roberts points out, the separation of the bullet weight from the worm gives this rig a more relaxed action. It’s also much lighter than a traditional Texas-rigged worm. To account for this, Roberts uses a stiffer medium-action spinning set-up for improved casting distance and the power to pull fish out of the weeds.
