Northwest Reel Life March 2025 Volume 4 Issue 5 - Flipbook - Page 24
That is a tactic Kyle Clark,
an avid tournament bass
angler and the owner of
PNW Fishing Adventures,
swears by. A three-eighth
to half-ounce chatterbait
is a popular size to fish at
depths of 10 feet or less.
Popular colors are white,
brown/black, black &
blue and in stained water,
chartreuse.
SENKO
When the bass are on
their spawning beds a
soft plastic worm called a
Senko is hard to beat. This
is a shallow water offering
and precise casting while
sight fishing for bass is
a key to success. The
number one color to fish
is green pumpkin but at
times, a purple worm with
blue fleck can outshine the
green pumpkin. I personally
like to fish with a five-inch
Berkley Powerbait Senko
called The General, because
the bass seem to hold onto
it longer. However, many
other serious bass anglers
prefer Senko baits made by
Yamamoto.
The Senko should be fished
without weight. You can
fish it Texas rigged through
the nose and watch it
slowly fall towards where
the bass are. Others will
fish it wacky rigged, with
a hook right through the
middle of the worm. The
way a wacky rigged worm
falls triggers vicious strikes
from bass as it slowly
undulates down through
the water. Use a #2 or #1
Wacky hook and if you
can find ones with wire
weed guards that will help
prevent some of the snags,
you’ll encounter fishing
around flooded timber and
shrubs.
LIPLESS CRANKBAIT
The lipless crankbait can
be fished in cool waters
but really starts to prove
itself when the water
temperature hits 55
degrees. Bill Lewis came
out with the original Rat-LTrap decades ago. This is a
hard lure with a slim profile
designed to produce a very
