16. Fall fishing in lakes. (16 of 18)

In the fall, when days get shorter and water temperatures drop below 70 degrees, it's going to really put bass on the move from deep into shallower water and they might feed aggressively. When water temperatures hover around 60 degrees, there is no reason to get up early or stay late.
Bass will be most active in the middle of the day, when water temperatures move into a more comfortable range for them. Now, painfully slow. This is fighting good, this is a six-weight rod. Very nice.
Yeah, look at how wide the tail is, yeah. Very nice. Ultra, ultra slow. Okay. In the fall, both, largemouth and smallmouth bass hunt in packs. Insects and frogs are not active so these fish are prowling for schools of baitfish in both rivers and lakes.
In lakes, the primary focus in the fall for both species is chasing large schools of baitfish in open water. They might push baitfish into the shallows but they're just as likely to be in open water, feeding on schools as suspended baitfish are pushing them to the surface.
Look for fish around deep shoals or sunken humps, where baitfish congregate. If you see diving birds or splashes, cast baitfish patterns right into the boils and retrieve with short fast drips to imitate fleeing baitfish. You might be tempted to use a floating line but it's much more effective to use a sinking line and begin your strips immediately because the predatory bass are typically in 1 to 13 feet of water.
Get tight to the fly right away because bass may take the fly as soon it lands. If you don't see any surface action but spot baitfish schools on your sonar, a good technique is to drift over the baitfish schools and use a sinking or intermediate line.
Let the fly sink and retrieve with short pulls with pauses in between. When you're fishing an intermediate or sinking line, especially, on a day like this where you've got a little bit of wind, you want to keep that rod tip very close to the water. It's going to give you better line control. It's going to allow you to see or feel that strike if a fish takes it when the fly is dropping and it just gives you a lot more control.