How To Find And Catch Fish In High Water

This post was guest written by Pro Angler Cody Kelley. Follow Cody on Facebook and Instagram here!Spring fishing is undoubtedly one of the best times of the year to be out on the water chasing bass. Unfortunately, the growing season brings more than just the bass spawn. Many times anglers are confronted with tons of rain, which in turn can make water levels shoot up overnight. It can be easy to get overwhelmed in these kind of conditions, so follow these 5 rules to help find fish fast in these high water situations!

1. Follow The Water

As a general rule, the fish will move up with the water. If you have a water level that is quickly moving up with spring rains, look to the shallows. These fish will often be making this move to the shallow bushes for a couple of different reasons. As water finds new ground, it brings in tons of forage for small bait fish and bluegill, we all know what follows closely behind them! Newly flooded bushes also offer excellent ambush points for bass waiting for their next bluegill buffet to swim by.

2. Shallow Means SHALLOW!

I’ve seen many times that people simply aren’t fishing shallow enough. When fish make their move up to check out the new bank, they will often go as shallow as possible. Go where they are! Don’t be afraid to put a bait in 6 inches to 1 ft. of water.

3. Bass In The Bubbles

One of the best places to look for bass when the water comes up is in the very back of pockets and creeks. Back there where the water is churning in. This is a great area to look because of all the additional oxygen that is being brought into the water column.

4. Stay on the move

Shallow high water bass are typically roaming. Once the water level stabilizes, I like to target the bushes with flipping/pitching techniques. However, when the water first comes up, opt for those baits that allow you to cover tons of water.

5. Hang Around The Hard Bank

When the water comes WAY up, it can often almost put too much cover into the water. If the water gets to this point, set your sights on steeper banks that allow you to target the actual hard bank rather than vast areas of flooded trees and bushes.

Best Baits For High Water

When you are faced with these conditions, it is super important to cover a huge amount of water. For me, that means to use a few confidence baits that I know they will bite. In general, I look to a 3/8th oz. double willow blade spinnerbait and buzz frog type bait (Zoom Horny Toad is my favorite).