Fishing for bass in grass patterns still works in fall

Though the days will soon be shorter and cooler, don't be fooled into thinking that bass will be in their shallow fall patterns just yet.

Even though it may feel like fall is coming, the water will remain warm into mid October.

Until the water cools and the shad relocate, the bass will remain in their summer locations, either deep or in heavy cover. One type of heavy cover is vegetation or grass. Several lakes in this region that have really good grass fishing -- lakes like Egypt, Crab Orchard and Kincaid in Illinois and Duck Creek in Missouri to name a few.

The predominant types of grass are coontail, a submergent grass that forms heavy mats on the surface; and water willow, which is a shoreline grass that grows out to about 3 feet deep. Each type requires a different approach to fishing.

In both cases, begin by determining the major seasonal location of the bass. At this time of year, with main lake areas bring the most success. In the summer, bass prefer grass with deep water near by. Use a map to locate main lake points, channel swings and humps, then go to the lake and look for the grass on those structural elements.

For matted coontail, a strong -- and fun -- pattern on Lake of Egypt in Illinois, a heavy action rod such as a 7-foot Falcon Cara Heavy action rod, is a good start. A good double-duty rod for this is the Falcon Lowrider Lizard Dragger. It's made for Carolina Riggin but makes a good grass rod as well.

For mat fishing, I suggest at least 30-pound test braided line. It will cut through the grass and improve the hook sets and landing.

You'll need two setups. The first will be a topwater bait like the Sumo Frog. Simply cast it on top of the mat and drag it back. Be ready for a bass to explode through the grass, leaving a hole. Now for the tricky part, you must restrain yourself, do not pull or jerk the lure until you feel the weight of the fish on your line about a two count, then hit the hookset -- hard. You must move the fish up and out of the hole he made and a solid set is the only way to pull him out.

The second setup is a follow-up bait. If a fish misses the frog be ready to toss the tube in the hole the bass made. I use a large Southern Pro Flippin' Tube for this. Keep it handy, if done immediately, the bass will usually take the tube.

For water willow, Crab Orchard is a great lake for this pattern. Use the same rods and lines as for matted coontail, but I would use a reel designed for pitching, such as the Castaic from Shimano.

Find the water willow on the same kinds of structure as you did Coontail. But your technique will be different; you will be pitching a jig to the bank and simply swimming it through the grass back to the boat. The bass could hit your jig anywhere between the shore and your boat. For this technique, I like a Jewel 3/8-ounce Finesse Flipping jig and some sort of swimming trailer like a Zoom Super Chunk. I stick with basic black and blue, but some anglers prefer white in the summer.

Fishing the grass is one of my favorite ways to catch bass.

David Bortner is a promotional bass fisherman who has competed in BASS Federation and Wal-Mart BFL events.