As spring hits in your region fish move to their annual spawn making some of the biggest fish of the year very targetable.  I love sight fishing – the game-like process of tracking down fish that are locked on at just the right time and juggling to find more is a total rush!

Fist off, key triggers that signal bedding bass: new moon or full moon cycle (usually best a few days before each); 3-5 day warming trend; water temp (this one is regional, in South Florida it’s usually low to mid 70’s however the further north you go the cooler that temp range will be).

Arsenal of baits can vary but I prefer plastics like the Gambler Why Not, Burner Craw, or Mega Daddy.  I also love to throw tubes at bedding bass – especially in Florida since it’s not something they see very often.  My got to bait to get a fish started however is a white stick bait – watch the vid for more sight fishing bait details:

I run a pretty standard sight fishing equipment setup.  I’ll usually have 2 7′ rods one a medium, the other medium-heavy.  High-speed Shimano Curado I and 14-20lbs Sunline Flourocarbon.  Texas rigged setups with 1/4-3/8oz Eco Pro Tungsten and an Owner Wide Gap Hook 4/0 or 5/0.

What’s the strategy?  The way I approach sight fishing – when the environment is telling me they should be on beds is I commit to it 100%.  What does that mean, that means when I’m sight fishing I’m not even regular fishing.  Trolling motor is turned on high, polarized glasses on, and looking until you see the right size female.

It’s a tough process to explain but here are a few vids that really show off the process and the time it takes: