The Six Seasons of Arizona Kayak Bass Fishing:
Throughout the year, I will be posting a series of articles discussing all six seasons of bass fishing, but before I do I would like to give you a quick overview of the seasons from somebody who, unlike me has actually made a name for himself in this sport, Kevin VanDam. To read about KVD's bass fishing seasons, click HERE. Now obviously VanDam and others have discussed this topic at length all over the Internet, my goal isn't to just write a carbon copy of old information. I will outline several extra steps that kayak fishermen need to consider that may not seem obvious at first, as well as add an Arizona twist to the concepts. My goal with this series of articles is two-fold; to make you a more successful angler (kayak angler or otherwise), but also to help spread the spirit of kayak fishing across the state of Arizona to aid in the development of one of the most exciting and fastest growing outdoor sports; kayak fishing.
Kevin VanDam, just the mention of his name gets bass fishermen of all ages giggling like a school girl at a Katy Perry concert. KVD is arguably one of the most successful tournament anglers in bass fishing history. With four Bassmaster Classic wins and seven Angler of the Year awards, it's safe to say the guy knows his stuff, and he didn't even need to deflate any football heads to get there. A couple years back, VanDam agreed to share one of his most kept secrets with bassmaster.com: his "seasonal guide". You can check out the full article HERE, but if you're an Arizona bass angler hold off on memorizing those numbers for just a moment, they aren't going to be much help for you!
If you didn't read the article, here's the important part: There are six "seasons" of bass fishing. VanDam identifies those seasons based on changing water temps.
Winter: 48 degrees and below
Pre-Spawn: 48-55 degrees
Spawn: 55-70 degrees
Post-Spawn: 70-75 degrees
Summer: 75-90 degrees
Fall: 75-55 degrees
(I guess KVD doesn't fish in late Fall when the water temp is between 48 and 55 degrees...)
If only it were this easy, we'd all be catching fish like KVD. I'm not going to make the claim that he is wrong. I'm not going to make the claim that I know better than him. And I'm not going to make the claim that KVD, nor I, could shoot someone on 5th Avenue and not loose any supporters over it, because well, that's just silly. I'll let you make your own judgments on his system (or at least the system he told us about), and while you're at it feel free to make judgments about me and my thoughts too!
The claim I will make, is that KVD isn't talking about any specific region, especially not about Arizona lakes! He's speaking generally, to a national audience. To say that post-spawn and summer is separated by only five degrees at all lakes is ludicrous, and I'm sure he'd probably agree. After all, lakes can change five degrees from noon to midnight all year long, but you wouldn't say it's two different seasons. This strategy is just a starting point for him, and I don't think he's starting in Arizona. If you follow his advise on Guntersville, I'm sure you'll catch some fish. If you follow his advise on our deep canyon reservoirs, you may find yourself having some trouble even finding their neighborhoods.
This is Mike-the-Bass.
Mike is a January fish.
Mike doesn't hang out in 60 feet of water.
Mike is staging for spawn.
Be like Mike-the-Bass.
Below is what I've found to be a more reliable timeline from my experience as an Arizona native:
Winter: December/January
Pre-Spawn: January-March
Spawn: March/April
Post-Spawn: March-June
Summer: June-October
Fall: One random weekend in late October/early November
Notice two important points:
1. I don't use water temp when considering the season. Arizona is just too different than the rest of the country for me to rely on what I hear about and read from national sources. This past weekend (January 23rd) Saguaro Lake was 57 degrees at 9:00am. All winter long, the lowest temp I saw was 53, a full "post-spawn" away from the warmest "winter" according to KVD. (And yes, a "post-spawn" is now a unit of measurement equaling five degrees. You may use it for measuring temperatures, or angles. My blog, my rules.)
2. Seasons overlap. Especially in the spring. Bass don't all spawn at the same time. Bass will move up in waves, usually 3 to 5 waves per spring depending on the weather. They may even move backwards! A fish may be searching out a mate, maybe just starting to sweet talk her up a bit when a cold front runs through that pushes them both back to deeper water for another week or so. And of course there's a transition between every other season as well. Fall, especially in Arizona, you will find bass scattered all around from 2 to 80 feet deep.
So why is this important? How does it affect the way we fish? The six "seasons" outline the yearly migration schedule of bass. For those anglers that fish the same area year long using the same bait every time, (Yes, I'm talking to you, guy I see under the bridge at Canyon Lake throwing spinnerbaits every time I'm there) the seasons may explain why you think bass don't bite in the winter, or it may explain why "the bite is really hot lately". The truth is, you can find a consistent bite year round if you know where to look. If you understand bass migration, you'll know where to look. You will find them, and you will catch them.
For more information on seasonal patterns and bass migration in general, check out all of THESE videos. Then, be sure to check back in February to read about kayak fishing for pre-spawn bass, one of my favorite times of the year. I'll tell you everything I do on the days leading up to my trip, how I develop a game plan, and how I adjust that plan on the water once I realize I'm wrong. Until then, here's an unnecessary plug for my favorite local lure company: Go HERE and purchase everything they sell. Rig up and dropshots and shakeyheads, toss them out into 20 to 30 feet of water and start catching some fish regardless of the season!
Tight lines!
