The bass fishing at Choke Canyon is fantastic right now! The water temperature has dropped into the upper 60’s and low 70’s. The bass have made and are continuing to make their push onto flats and into the creeks and pockets. The primary structure to look for are points, flats with ditches or channels near by, and channel swing banks. The grass is beginning to break up making it easier to fish lures through it. The bass are taking advantage of this as they can feed on bait better within the grass. Don’t forget about the trees as many bass are using the bushes and hardwoods as ambush spots. Topwater frogs, spinnerbaits, and crankbaits have been the best producers. When the action slows, switch to a texas rigged plastic bait like worms and lizards. Fish them in the grass, in the bushes, and down to 16 feet of water.

For questions, feel free to contact me via email:
dave@bassfishingaskdave.com

The Stanley Ribbit is a fantastic frog bait! It comes in 3.5″ and 4″ models. There are a multitude of colors to choose from and like many frog baits on the market it is very weedless and can be fished through the thickest cover. What sets the Stanley Ribbit apart from its competitors is the design of the feet on the frog. When the bait is retrieved fast, medium, or slow it kicks the water creating a “buzzbait” affect. This imparts a tremendous amount of action and sound which allows this frog to be successfully fished in calm and choppy water. I feel it also increases the ability of the bass to find the bait when fished over and around very thick cover. One challenge that can be faced with the Ribbit is rolling over. Although it is a rare problem, it can be completely eliminated by using the wedgehead hook produced by Stanley Bait Company especially for the Ribbit. Fish this bait on a 3/0 or 5/0 wide gap hook. Again, the wedghead is your best choice. My favorite and most productive colors to date are watermelon red pearl, green pumpkin, white, and black. Stanley just released a whole new color sequence for the Ribbit called the “Hot Foot” which I am excited about trying. I highly recommend the Ribbit for your tacklebox.

My tips: First, use the wedgehead hook and know you are using a quality hook and eliminating all potential frustrations. Ok, The main reason I like the Ribbit is its ability to be fished around grass, wood, and across open water with great success. The kick of the feet like a “buzzbait” attracts ferocious bites from the bass. In fact, the Ribbit has all but eliminated buzzbaits from my tacklebox. Start with the colors I have listed in my review. I use black in very low light conditions and stained water. Otherwise, I use the other colors focusing on white in the fall. I vary the retrieve with the Ribbit even though you can retrieve it at a steady pace and have success. I find that making the bait change its pace is very effective. You can even let the bait settle under the surface and twitch it when the bass are not attacking the surface. I have also had tremendous success allowing it to settle into a bed when the bass are spawning. Talk about a different look for the bass. They really get irritated!! I fish the Ribbit on a Medium heavy 6′6″ graphite rod that has about 80% backbone and a 20% flexible tip. I throw the frog on no less than 20 pound test line depending on the cover I am fishing it around. I prefer monofiliment unless I am swimming it over thick grass beds in which case I prefer to use 30-50 pound braid and increase my rod length to 7+ feet for hauling the bass out of the grass. Pick yourself up some of these baits, experiment with them, and enjoy their fish catching power. By some now at Basspro.com .