The Short Answer to Is Bass Fishing Good After the Rain
Yes, bass fishing can be good after the rain. Rain can cause the water level to rise, which can attract bass to areas they may not have been to before. The water can also become murky and full of debris, which can make it difficult to fish but can also provide more cover for the bass to hide.
Discover the conditions where rain can help or hurt your bass fishing below.
The Long Answer to Is Bass Fishing Good After the Rain
Bass fishing can be amazing after the rain, but like most things, there are different situations where that is true and where it isn’t. Let’s break some of the basics down.
When Fishing is Good After the Rain
If you are fishing in the spring and there is a warm rain that runs into a colder body of water you can really do good. The first thing is that bass will migrate to warmer water.
Another aspect is that bass tend to move into the current for a fresh food source as they are ambush predators and runoff can bring the forage they are looking for, or attract it into that area.
Another rule of thumb, if the water is warming, is that bass will move up with the water when it is rising. This can work in a lake or a river. There are exceptions to this which we will discuss later.
This same idea can apply to the summer months when cooler water is running into a warmer body of water and the bass will move up the same to cooler water and to feed.
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When Fishing is Not Good After the Rain
In the winter when the water is typically a lot clearer, the cold water runoff can mess up fishing. Not only does it bring debris into the water but makes it murky. This can really put bass in a negative mood.
When the water is already cold and colder water runs in it makes the bass either stay where they are or move deeper to warmer or cleaner water. Bass are cold-blooded, so they will find the warmer water and so if cold water is running in this will detur bass.
For instance, in a highland reservoir where I fish quite a lot, in the winter when the snow melts and runs off it really messes up the fishing. The bass will either shut down and stay in their deeper locations where the water temperature is more consistent, or they will move to cleaner water altogether.
In some lakes, this will not be the case, so test it out, but as a rule of thumb bass that are getting conditioned to clearer cold water don’t typically navigate to colder more stained conditions.
Another situation where bass will be harder to catch after the rain is when the weather front has moved through and the runoff has slowed, leaving bluebird skies and stained water.
If the weather is warm, or the water running in is warm, this can still help, but typically the two to three days after a cold front comes through the bass will get tight to cover and be in a negative mood.
You can still catch them by fishing in the thick cover, but it will not be as easy as when the pressure is falling and there is still overcast. In these situations, I will go to finesse tactics or Texas rigs.
Bass Fishing After the Rain – Conclusion
Bass fishing can really make you stop and think. That is one thing I love about this sport. That said, these are general rules that I have seen in my fishing after rain storms, but they are not solid rules.
The bass in your lake or river could totally go against what I have shared, but it is a good place to start as it seems to be part of their normal behavior.
I am always learning and growing and our understanding of bass behavior is ever-changing.
My experiences will be a good place to start, but go out and try for yourself. Fishing is always changing and not all bass are alike.
To your post-rain bass fishing success,
Jonathan Burke
LiveBassFishing.com