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I am trying to find some solid techniques to finding productive ledges. There is nothing worse than trying a new technique and not getting positive results. When I think of a ledge it is a change in water depth. On Kentucky and Barkley it seems the most obvious ledge is on the river channel. When I get there I am not sure what to look for or how to find structure. It is obvious the fish aren't all over the ledge. They have to key on something. Any ideas on how to find key areas or what I should be looking for? I have a Lowrance Mark 5x Pro and can see the ledges well, but very difficult to see structure.
get a guide...
Take a trip out with Dave and you will learn a ton of info...I know I sure did. Here is a good article he wrote:
http://www.fishin.com/articles/ledges.htm
I would find some spots on the map that look productive, then throw a c-rig out there and cover some water searching for cover.
Here is a question I have had for a while. Do you tend to parallel the contour of the ledge as you fish? Or do you position your boat in deep water, and throw your lure on top of the ledge and drag it off the edge into deeper water?
I know this isn't the answer you are looking to hear but.....
Yes
to both, but it is up to you to try which is working on any particular time/place.
My brother and I won a tournament this weekend on Green River Lake basically fishing ledges or some people call them drops. A carolina rig is a good way to feel the bottom and tell what the bottom is composed of. One of the best ways to tell which ledges have fish is to idle over them with your sonar. If you don't see any fish then move on. My favorite bait for fishing ledges is a deep diving crankbait because you can cover a lot of water and big bass like big crankbaits.
What kind of weight did you all have bassman....I know it took 18lbs to win our tourny but was wondering what it took in some of the others
We had 18.49 lbs. We were gonna fish the Day's open also but the times were too conflicting. Our big fish was 5.68 (largemouth) and we also had a smallmouth over 4. All our fish came on deep diving crankbaits. We should have had a bigger bag. We lost a couple real good fish but coulda, woulda, shoulda...
Good electronics and knowing how to use them and/or what you are looking at is the most important peice of the ledge puzzel. Because you need to know what you are looking for ie shell beds, stumps ect and how the fish are relating to the ledge ie on top or on the drop to tknow which bait will work the best in that situation. I like 4 baits deep crank,football head jig, swimbaits & spoons. The c-rig is good if there is no current involed.
A great old adage for finding the best part of any ledge is "ends and bends". Look at a long channel break and look for the ends and bends in it. The end of a creek channel where it meets another channel is an example. A bend in a channel break is another. The end of a channel bend is another. All underwater points are obvious. Maybe too obvious. The great ledge fishermen look for subtle ends and bends that don't show on maps. Like liitle bumps or points that stick out on an otherwise straight ledge. They also possess the ability to visualize what is under water, what they are throwing at and where the fish are positioned along the offshore structure. To get started in your search though, keep ends and bends in mind. Good fishing.
Thats a good bag of fish during the day for sure...Most of your good bags of fish come after dark this time of yearWe had 18.49 lbs. We were gonna fish the Day's open also but the times were too conflicting. Our big fish was 5.68 (largemouth) and we also had a smallmouth over 4. All our fish came on deep diving crankbaits. We should have had a bigger bag. We lost a couple real good fish but coulda, woulda, shoulda...