The "Crossing Point" Ambush Pattern

By Al Eason

In-Fisherman, Feb/Mar 1978

During the mid 1970s when In-Fisherman was just getting started, Al Lindner was still fishing national bass tournaments across the country, as well as spending winters down in east Texas fishing and guiding. Probably not a big surprise then to see Al Eason, Texas fishing guide, with an article in this issue. Al had just  released a book in 1976, “How Pro Guides Find and Catch Fish,” which might be a new one for your library. Al (Eason) appeared in several magazine articles after his book came out, sharing his thoughts and observations about shad and bass behavior, much of which FFS seems to be confirming some 50 years later.

Excerpts:

> I felt that large concentrations of shad usually take cover at night in shoreline moss beds or in dense brush. Then, very early in the morning, they appear to leave the shore and begin following a daily migration pattern of some sort out in the open water. 

> This route might be a more or less elliptical course through areas where the shad could feed on plankton…the shad traveled circuits which could range up to as much as four or five miles…it appears that when the shad schools reach the first leg of their "rounds" — usually about mid-day, they begin to back track toward a nighttime resting place.

> From my studies, I felt convinced that certain large concentrations of bass often continually follow large shad schools like wolf packs follow caribou herds on the tundra.

> I also felt that, at night, bass lay and wait for the shad to come from shore in the morning and begin to shadow them again. It appears that bass feed on the shad whenever they are very tightly schooled as they pass over some sort of underwater barrier. It's as if the bass trail the shad until the baitfish get into a vulnerable position, usually against some kind of "cross-over" barrier, and that it is at such a site that the bass attack.

> "It's my belief that at least certain bass groups appear to follow the shad all day long, perhaps feeding on them from time to time such as at midday in open water, but more usually tearing into them when they encounter this barrier. What's more, it also appears that the shadowing bass hole up along some nearby underwater structure at night and wait for the morning arrival of the shad on their way to open water.”

Trees - Crappie Secrets

Quickly eliminate the masses of unproductive trees, and zero in on the hot fish-producers.

👉 So, expect crappie to appear in treetops at 50° and holding in the first five feet of water.

👉 Expect the crappie to be up in trees near coves, creek arm areas, bays near potential protected spawning area, and in prime fallen shoreline trees extending into at least 8 to 10 feet of water at the 55-58° temperature range.

👉 Expect all fish to leave treetops by 62° or any higher stable trend for spawning activities.

Tom Seward

Fishing Facts

May 1985

Find Hot Spots Easier

Detect Hot-Spots Before Launching Your Boat  
By Buck Perry
Fishing Facts, Feb 1985

Excerpt:

- The BASIC guideline of the structure fisherman, #1, says the bigger adult fish, in an area spend the greater part of their time somewhere in the deepest water - in the area - being fished. This is their true home base, their sanctuary, where they are quite comfortable, secure, and slowed in their activity.
From these sanctuary homes, they may migrate over known routes* to find food, depending on water and weather conditions.

* routes which are known to THEM.

In the case of reservoirs this deepest water - in an area - normally means the channels, and in the majority of cases, it means the main channel, or its main tributary channels.

- A structure fisherman's #2 guideline then says the fish will not move across an expanse of bottom devoid of visible, known, "signposts" (called, "breaks") just to reach some good-looking stick-up that might be over, "that-a-way" toward the shoreline. And by that, we mean 'good looking' to the angler.

Simply put, you can't expect these adult fish to travel a long way over featureless flats, just because you hope they will.

- Next, guideline #3 says when the fish DO move toward the shallows, the features of the bottom visible to them (aka, bottom structure, breaks, depth breaklines) which they use in their migration must go "all the way" from the deep water to the shallow water. 

The fish may not go all the way to the shallows, and in fact, its likely most won't go all the way every time they become active and moving -- BUT, the path they know and usually use does go all the way. 

- Another guideline, #4, says how deep the fish are, and how far they move toward the shallows is determined (or controlled) by the weather and water conditions at the time of their migratory movements.
The structure fisherman also knows the weather and water conditions are seldom good enough to get a great many fish, and especially the larger, adult fish, into the shoreline shallows.
They just simply prefer not to go into the shallows (8-10 ft. or less), if they don't have to. For them its unsafe and insecure, compared to their deeper water homes. 

However, when we catch them, its usually in the shallows, so we assume thats where they ALWAYS live. But we have STUMBLED upon a few of them there by playing a numbers game of lure casting. Meanwhile, the most of them are further out and have not come in.

With just these few guidelines we should begin to see or get a good interpretation of most all reservoirs... at least one good enough to catch fish consistently in whatever reservoir we find ourselves.

This "classic" bar has depth breaks and signpost features (breaks) which fish know and follow into the shallows

Not far to go from deep water - straight up, basically. 

The long flat is the problem here - featureless and without any guideposts for fish to follow. The edge of the channel is the likeliest pace to find them..if they are here at all

Look Beyond The Obvious

By Buck Perry Fishing Facts, Sep. 1984

Excerpts:

> If I had a depth sounder, I would still do the trolling. Lures that are trolled properly will give a more detailed picture of the shape, depths, and the condition of the bottom than a depth sounder. But more importantly, the lures on the troll would have me "fishing" all the time. Furthermore, if I used a depth sounder as an aid in determining what bottom features were present, the speed of the boat would be rather fast, anyway, to get a good picture of the changes in the bottom.

If the boat is moving slowly, such as with a paddle or an electric motor, a depth sounder is not likely to allow a true interpretation of the bottom features (structure, breaks, breaklines, deep water). So I may as well be trolling a lure while I learn whats down below. Much too often the fisherman doesn't realize these things and he skips trolling. Trolling is still an outstanding, "teacher."

> My thoughts and "guidelines" in the fishing situations discussed are:

(1) Fish spend the greater part of their time in deep water—a sanctuary from a changing environment (when deep water is available to them). And they are usually so deep, or so dormant, they are almost impossible to catch.

(2) Fish are not active and moving ALL the time. Therefore I must exercise patience quite often for the fish to become active and move shallower.

(3) When the fish move shallower, they follow bottom features (structure, breaks or breaklines) to show them the way. I can also recognize the same features the fish use in their movements and migrations.

(4) How far the fish move toward the shallows and how long they stay is controlled by weather and water conditions (at that time). And I have found the weather and water conditions are seldom good enough for all the fish, and especially the larger ones, to move shallow enough for the shoreline fisherman to make a decent catch consistently.

(5) To handle the different fishing situations faced, I must control the depth and speed of my lures (or bait) on or around the bottom features (structure, breaks, breaklines) the fish use in their movements and migrations. To handle all the situations, trolling is the "teacher" and is just as important as casting - and in some instances may be the only way to put the fish on the stringer.

8 Rules For Bigger Fish

8 Rules To Help You Catch Big Fish

By Spence Petros

Fishing Facts, Sep 1984

Excerpt:

RULE 1 - Fish Where Your Chances Are Best ... deals with selecting trophy-producing waters.

RULE 2 - Be Aware Of Key Times And Conditions... deals with seasonal and weather conditions that usually turned the big ones on, plus some examples of on-the-water peak periods that occur.

RULE 3 - Forage Means Fish... explains how important forage is to game fish concentrations. Briefly, the more forage that's funneled through, collected or drawn to a specific area, the better it will generally be for consistently producing numbers of bigger fish.

RULE 4 - Big Balts For Big Fish.... Day in and day out bigger lures and baits will produce a lot more big fish than smaller-to-medium-size baits, unless dealing with certain adverse conditions that were noted.

Now let's get to the final four rules for maximum effectiveness on big fish.

RULE 5 -  ACE-IN-THE-HOLE PRESENTATIONS

I have a standard rule that's almost always followed: If I fish EXACTLY like everyone else on a lake or in an area, my results will pretty much be like everyone else's - average... and that's not a favorite word of mine.

RULE 6 - THAT BIG-FISH FEELING

Of all the rules given, this is the toughest one to teach. That big-fish feeling is similar to a very skilled hunter's sense of awareness. It's more like a feeling that comes over you that seems to signify it's big-fish time or you're on a big-fish spot. Most of these feelings probably stem from years of successful fishing experiences, and only those who have this awareness will understand exactly what is meant.

RULE 7 - LEARN TO 'PATTERN' FISH

Before you learn to "pattern" fish, you should understand what a fish-catching pattern is. By definition, "a pattern is the exact set of water conditions such as depth, cover, struc-ture, temperature, clarity, current, forage availability, etc., which attracts fish to that specific spot and generally to other similar spots all over the same body of water that day." Isolate features which are producing, and try to find similar situations elsewhere.

RULE 8 - MINIMIZE MISTAKES

Unfortunately, a lot of mistakes will never really be cured until they're made. But when a foul-up costs a trophy, you'll remember the hard way.