Spinnerbait

Moving Bait technique

A wire-form bait with a leadhead, skirt and one or two spinning blades, retrieved through and around cover.

Gear

How to fish the Spinnerbait

1. Pick blade size and color for the clarity and light.
2. Cast to cover and let it sink to the depth you want.
3. Reel steadily so the blades thump, keeping it near cover.
4. Bump wood and grass and let it helicopter on pauses.
5. Reel-set into the fish.

Retrieve: Steady retrieve at the target depth; slow-roll deep or wake it shallow, bumping cover.

Where it shines

Cover: wood, grass, docks; structure: laydowns, grass edges, points; clarity: stained, muddy.

When to use it

Best seasons: Spring, Fall, Winter

Best conditions: Wind, Cloud Cover, Rising Water Level, Rain

When Bryan reaches for it: On windy, cloudy days and in stained water, and when the lake rises and floods fresh cover to fish fast.

Lakes where it works

Lake Travis · Lake Austin · Lake Buchanan · Lake Marble Falls · Lake Bastrop

Lures to throw

Spinnerbait.

Common mistakes

• Too small a blade in muddy water
• Reeling too fast in cold water
• Not keeping it in contact with cover

Pro tips

• Colorado blades for thump in dirty water, willow for flash in clear
• A trailer hook catches short strikers

---