If you are tired of beating the bank and feel the need to fish some deeper, possibly undiscovered hotspots then you need to search out the ledges on your home water. Here’s how to locate these overlooked bass sanctuaries.

Think of a ledge as a shelf. It is usually long and flat on the top and then drops off sharply on one side. This type contour really benefits a bass and how they approach feeding and resting. This is like a rest stop for passing fish, and gives them a place to ambush baitfish. Ledges can often be single staged or multi-staged. Bass will relate to both at certain times of the year.

Ledges are more commonly found in man made reservoirs but can occur in natural lakes and rivers as well. Ledges appear on topographical maps as parallel contour lines running close together. Use your graph to pinpoint the ledge and always carry marker buoys to mark your spots so you can fish them more effectively. What ledges you should fish depends on the time of year, water temperature and water clarity. Try and seek out shallow ledges when the visibility is slim. Bass relate more to shallow water during this time. If you are fishing ultra clear water try and locate deeper ledges in the range of 18 to 25 feet. These type ledges are exceptional in winter and summer.

Here are some lures you need to have on hand if fishing ledges:

 Suspending Jerkbait

Sometimes bass will suspend above a ledge if the water is clear enough and can be caught using a suspending jerkbait. This is a great technique for lethargic fish.

Grubs

These baits are best in fall and winter when the bass are staging on ledges and not willing to chase your offerings. Use this on light line and stay small with your baits. A good spinning outfit should do you well here. Let the grub fall from one ledge to the next.

Deep Diving Crankbaits

This is a great way of provoking a reaction strike from bass that are holding on ledges. The diving action the bait has will deflect off the ledges really getting the bass to make a commitment to eat it. Work it at different speeds to find out the best retrieves. I like this type bait for summer ledge fishing.

Spoons

Here is a great bait for mimicking bait fish and keeping your bait in position to get bit. This is usually done vertically and  worked at different depths until you find the right strike zone. Spoons are a great way of getting bass to react and become active.

Jig and Pig

This is one of my favorite lures for fishing shallow ledges during the colder months. I normally fish this bait when the water is murky or off color. Swim the jig and let it fall very slow keeping it in the strike zone longer. Here lethargic bass have time to react.

Carolina Rig

This is one of the most popular techniques for fishing ledges. It can work any time of the year and targets bass at different depths. Many different style baits may be used also. Experiment with different bait sizes and types until you find the one they are keying on.

I hope this has inspired you to get out and fish ledges with more confidence and understanding. It can be intimidating at times but stick with it and it will pay off!

Keywords:  fishing ledges  |  carolina rig 

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This entry was posted on Wednesday, November 7th, 2007 at 4:10 pm and is filed under Fishing Techniques. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.