Best bets for stained/muddy water

I primarily fish in my pond in the backyard and lately had been having
some okay luck with soft plastics and the occasional crank bait. For
some odd reason, spinnerbaits (Terminators, for example) hardly ever
produce for me. I don't know why, I can just never get a bass to hit
it.
Here in North Georgia, we recently had some torrential rains, courtesy
of Tropical Storm Arlene. The pond is now VERY muddy. I haven't been
out to it since, but I'm wondering what the best kind of lures are for
these conditions.
Prior to the rains, I had luck s-l-o-w-l-y reeling in a senko and
letting it crawl around the bottom of the pond but I'm guessing this
would do little to allow the bass' lateral line to sense any kind of
movement and down more than 6" visibility is probably zero.
So, logically, I would think topwaters are ideal for this kind of
situation and maybe lures that send out plenty of vibration, like a
spinnerbait(again, I've never had much luck with them but maybe I
needed these kinds of conditions).

Is my reasoning on target here or do I not give bass enough credit for
dealing with stained water?

Seismo wrote:
I primarily fish in my pond in the backyard and lately had been having
some okay luck with soft plastics and the occasional crank bait. For
some odd reason, spinnerbaits (Terminators, for example) hardly ever
produce for me. I don't know why, I can just never get a bass to hit
it.
Here in North Georgia, we recently had some torrential rains, courtesy
of Tropical Storm Arlene. The pond is now VERY muddy. I haven't been
out to it since, but I'm wondering what the best kind of lures are for
these conditions.
Prior to the rains, I had luck s-l-o-w-l-y reeling in a senko and
letting it crawl around the bottom of the pond but I'm guessing this
would do little to allow the bass' lateral line to sense any kind of
movement and down more than 6" visibility is probably zero.
So, logically, I would think topwaters are ideal for this kind of
situation and maybe lures that send out plenty of vibration, like a
spinnerbait(again, I've never had much luck with them but maybe I
needed these kinds of conditions).

Is my reasoning on target here or do I not give bass enough credit for
dealing with stained water?

I am actually used to fishing stained water. One thing i do immediately
is go to a larger lure. Move some water around man. I will switch to a
3/8 ounce or maybe 1/2 ounce jig. Texas craw is a great color for dirty
water, with a craw trailer with HUGE Chart. claws. Make sure you have a
rattle on it as well.

As for spinnerbaits, Make sure you are using a single colorado, and you
can get away with a colored blade. One thing you can do is increase the
size of your blade. Also use a dark colored skirt.

Also a large paddle tail worm is great for this situation in the same
color scheme. Also insert a worm rattle , that will stimulate a few
different senses.

That is where I would start with muddy water.

Good luck,

Chris

Do you feel like the bass tend to stay closer to the surface in muddy
water or does it affect them - in orther words, does the lack of vision
dictate their position? Should I run my lures shallower than I normally
would?

Seismo wrote:
Do you feel like the bass tend to stay closer to the surface in muddy
water or does it affect them - in orther words, does the lack of vision
dictate their position? Should I run my lures shallower than I normally
would?

Really, if it is available they will look for clearer water, because
they definitely rely on site for feeding. If it is not available then
find the nastiest cover you can find. Wood, weeds, or whatever you
possibly have. If the water is just stirred up , and starting to settle
then certain areas will clear up first, I would focus on those areas. I
am not sure how diverse the lake you are fishing is, but stick with
heavy cover first and fish the thickest part of it.

Again this is what works for me, and the picture I have in my head of
what you are dealing with is a couple inch vis almost choclate milk. If
it is raining continually, then I would definitely find some type of
cover. I also know that wind stirs our lake up , but any shift in the
wind settles calm areas quickly and it clears up. Rain usually stirs it
up for a day or so in shoreline areas that are soft.

I hope this helps.

Chris

muddier the water the shallower the fish will be. If it's high to boot go
for the shoreline, in the trees e.g. as shallow as one can get imho.

--
God Bless America

Josh The Bad Bear

Joshuall wrote:
muddier the water the shallower the fish will be. If it's high to boot go
for the shoreline, in the trees e.g. as shallow as one can get imho.

bingo

Here it is at the moment.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/56301544@N00/19781661/

Just a few hours ago I caught a small one (about a pound) behind those
catails on the left.

It's overdue for lime and I'm going to try some gypsum, as well. I only
recently stumbled across this and found that gypsum can clear muddy
water:
http://georgiawildlife.dnr.state.ga....299&txtPage=16

"Seismo" wrote in message
ups.com...
Here it is at the moment.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/56301544@N00/19781661/

Just a few hours ago I caught a small one (about a pound) behind those
catails on the left.

It's overdue for lime and I'm going to try some gypsum, as well. I only
recently stumbled across this and found that gypsum can clear muddy
water:
http://georgiawildlife.dnr.state.ga....299&txtPage=16


Got any piles of rocks in there? Or a tree laying over in the water? If so
work a red shad zoom worm over and through them. A little more green
instead of brown and I'ld guarantee that approach. I like a worm on a jig
clicking the jig off the rocks or branches.


--
Bob La Londe
http://www.YumaBassMan.com

Seismo wrote:

Here it is at the moment.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/56301544@N00/19781661/

Just a few hours ago I caught a small one (about a pound) behind those
catails on the left.

It's overdue for lime and I'm going to try some gypsum, as well. I only
recently stumbled across this and found that gypsum can clear muddy
water:
http://georgiawildlife.dnr.state.ga....299&txtPage=16

I would have to throw a topwater bait there - work a Pop-R slowly all
over the pond. Try a buzz bait, too.

Seismo wrote:

Is my reasoning on target here or do I not give bass enough credit for
dealing with stained water?


A lot of it has to do with how used to dealing with dingy water the
resident bass are. Bass that live in water that's usually (or always)
dirty, rely a lot on vibration to locate prey. Bass that live in water
that's almost always reasonably clear, do not suddenly develop "skills"
at feeding by vibration when the water muddies up for a few days. In
fact, bass that live in clear water, when faced with a temporary dirty
water condition, often just hunker down tight to the best "solid" cover
they can find, and ride it out without moving much. You've got to try
fishing super tight to cover with a slow moving bait in that condition.
A big, heavy jig on a flipping stick with big string is a good choice
then. In the case of bass that are used to feeding by sound in
moderately dirty water, when the water gets dirtier, just fish the same
way you do normally. Using louder lures in that situation is the
functional equivalent of shouting so a blind man can hear you. They've
already got a well-tuned sense of vibration detection, and the baitfish
didn't get any noisier. I like a spinnerbait in those conditions, and
will almost always go with single spin. I don't know if THEY can feel it
any better, but *I* sure can. And that means I can react to light biters
better.