Fall Turnover – Where Are The Largemouth Bass?
As fall is in full swing, the two words “Fall Turnover” will be uttered by just about every bass angler. When you mention your lake is turning over, you will seldom get a favorable or excited response from other anglers.
What is a Fall Turnover on Lakes?
When a lake turns over, the cooler water on the bottom of the lake will mix with the warmer water at the top of the lake in a brief time period.
We know fisherman that won’t even hook onto the boat when their lake is turning over. It makes the water off colored and even muddy in some areas. The turnover can cause fish kills in some areas, but it is more common on smaller lakes with little moving water or in backwater creek areas where fish can’t escape the water that is lacking oxygen.
How does it affect your fishing?
Fish are creatures of habit that move systematically with changing weather conditions. Some bass prefer to stay relatively shallow their entire lives. While others stay fairly deep and only move shallow to spawn. The last group forage from deep to shallow on a frequent basis. It may make the bass in the deeper water much harder to catch during the turnover. That can be as little as a few days, but it can take several weeks for most lakes to fully turnover.
Do all lakes turnover in the fall?
NO. Large lakes that have river fed systems and natural lakes that have a constant in-flow of fresh water will typically not turn over the way a man-made impoundment will. If these natural bodies of water do turnover, it is usually less drastic than a typical reservoir or impoundment.
How do I catch fish during the turnover?
Fish slightly shallower than you would normally is one technique. Use a shock-n-awe approach with a bait like a Sixth Sense Cloud 9 Magnum Square Bill crankbait In Sexified Shad or Gizzard flash color. This is a larger than average crankbait and will give the fish a larger profile as the baitfish have been growing all summer long and it will provide some great triggering qualities as it bangs off of stumps, boat docks or whatever cover you have available.
The other more subtle approach will involve smaller baits and more finesse techniques. Use smaller worms, jigs and creature baits worked very slow and methodical in high percentage areas. These areas include main lake points, creek mouths, channel banks and offshore humps.
Great baits to try are a Carolina Rigged Lake Fork Trophy Lures Ring Fry, a weightless Texas Rigged L.F.T Magic Shad or fluke style bait or a smaller jig like a Santone Lures- Texas Finesse Jig. Use a smaller diameter line and make frequent lure changes in a given area to see if you can get bit on one bait or another to try and give yourself confidence in on particular bait or technique for that given day.
The bottom line is, yes the fishing may be a bit tough for a few days or even a week. However, they still live there and still have to eat. You certainly won’t catch them on the couch.