By Bft Staff

In almost every harbor as far north as Ventura Harbor to almost all the way down the Southern coast into Mexico we have species of bass that occupy those waters. The main 3 species we see are Calico Bass , Sand Bass and Spotted Bay Bass. In this BFT Journal we will highlight some of the basics on catching these inshore predators using jigging techniques and share some tips that will help you get more fish at the end of your line. 

What gear do you need to catch these fish ?

We recommend using a 7’ to 7’6” medium heavy rod with a rating of 10lb-20lb with a 150 or 200 size baitcasting reel that is saltwater rated. If you'd like to use a spinning outfit something in the same length range but with a 2500 or 3000 size spinning reel 

BAITCASTING OUTFIT

Rods - Phenix Feather 71mh (FTX71MH) OR Irod Kaimana 733 ( SWC-733) 
Reels- Shimano Tranx 150hg or 200hg 

SPINNING OUTFIT 

Rods- Phenix M1 7’2” M 6-12LB (MX-S72M)  or Irod Kaimana 7’3” 8-15lb (SWC 733S) Shimano Expride 72ml
Spinning- Daiwa Fuego 2500-3000 or Shimano Vanford 2000-3000 

Where should you fish for these bass?

These fish much like all predatory fish like to ambush their prey. That being said, fishing around docks , submerged structure , or grass lines are going to be your best bet in catching these fish. However fishing different types of areas would mean fishing our baits slightly different from area to area. 

Dock Fishing - 10g - 20g BFT MG jigs would be ideal for fishing docks. The jigs will fall deep under the dock where the bass don't normally see our lures. Fishing the jig vertical will allow for more fishing time where the fish are opposed to just passing by it with something like a swimbait.  Fishing docks are where the spinning setup works the best. The design of the MG jigs in combination with the open bail of a spinning reel allows for the bait to slide without any disturbance. Fishing the BFT MG on a spinning reel with slack line allows the bait to sink and work with the least bit of resistance providing the angler with the best action on the bait. The 2000-3000 size reel with 10-15LB braid to a 8-10lb fluorocarbon leader will definitely optimize your fishing time.

Submerged Structure - Our BFT MG jigs work great when fishing submerged structures like rock piles. In contrast to fishing docks where you will be fishing them vertically, while structure fishing we recommend to fish the MG jigs on a swim or even a swim and pop.

What do we mean by swim? By this we mean just a simple cast and retrieve. We like to recommend letting the bait sink out anywhere from 5-10 seconds before you start to wind in order to let the bait sink to the bite zone being closer to the structure. What do we mean by a swim and pop? By this we simply mean letting the jig hit the bottom and ripping it up off the bottom. Doing this will create the illusion of a fleeing or a dying bait fish trying to swim away from the bass triggering a bite. When it comes to fishing structure off the shore we like to recommend the BAITCASTING OUTFIT. The reason we recommend that is because the casting reels will come with a quicker line retrieval rate allowing you to rip the fish out of the cover before they tuck themselves in causing you to lose the fish and the jig. Fishing heavier 30-50 pound braid to a 12-20 pound fluorocarbon leader is ideal for this type of fishing. In contrast to dock fishing we are using the 15g -30g models to allow for a further cast. 

KEY TIPS 

● Keep a tab on the high and low tides and fish the larger swing.

● Fish around areas you see baitfish popping up

● Fishing at night sometimes puts out bigger fish

● Use heavier line at night don't fish light stuff