When is the best time to go fishing for bass. Is rain better or worse for fishing.  What live baits are the best for bass.

I am not a big bass fisherman, but I can tell you that the second largest bass I have ever caught came on a rainy, 50* day. The largest came from a private pond on an overcast day just ahead of a storm. Draw your own conclusions, this is typical of what my buddies have experienced. Tom
Fishin' fool in NE Illinois

What Tom said. Heavy clouds, looming foul weather, choppy waves, a loud rain pounding around your boat, whatever it is that suddenly reduces visibility tends to make bass more comfortable, less spooky even when being heavily pressured on a busy weekend. They will often quickly move much shallower to shorelines, or decide to slam a school of shad in the open, merely followed during clear weather. For me a heavy summer rain roughly resembles fishing at night when many pressured bass feed, going nocturnal to avoid us.
Jim NAFC Life Member, USNavy '66-'70, Retired USACE

I think this is a topic that can go either way. In one of my Bassin magazines there was a topic, sunny or overcast. Proffesional anglers were asked what weather they liked to fish in. It was 50/50. I personally like sunny days, as I feel fish are easier to find when the sun is beaming down. All I do is look for cover or where there is shade. Really I say this is opinion based. whatever condition you feel more confident in, then be on the water during that time.

It certainly is more pleasant to fish on a nice warm(not hot) partly cloudy day! Tom
Fishin' fool in NE Illinois

yer right yanosick, it can go either way. when bright and sunny, bass are hold up close to or into their favorite cover and when the weather is overcast they do fell more confort and move around a bit.

so i guess ya can say--in sunny weather the bass are more perdictable on where they are going to be and ya can always get them to bite with the right tools and stealth.

and on cloudy/stormy weather the bass are more agresive and more willing to bite. even thou they are spread out more in the water.


the bottom line is get to know were the fish want to be when they are doing certian things such as resting or feeding. what they are feeding on the most in yer body of water. what time of day --which will change with the weather patterns or the moon phasess--, just find out what the patterns of the bass are and use them to yer advanage.
this year i been catching bass in 3ft. of water and then moving out to the deeper part of this lake--which is 35ft.--and getting bass off the bottom and just 5ft. under the surface. useing different baits in each situation.

Spring, Summer, Winter and Fall, all the time. The best time is to go whenever you can. Seriously. But if you mean to catch the biggest bass with limited time and resources then the best time is in the spring right beofre the first full moon, or again in the summer anf fall at night between 11 Pm and 4 am. That is the best time.
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