Bass Fishing Tips from Bassmaster Elite Series Angler Garrett Paquette

Professional fisherman Garrett Paquette shares bass fishing tips for recreational anglers with PartsVu Xchange editor Tonia Becker.

PartsVu is proud to sponsor Bassmaster Elite Series fisherman Garrett Paquette. In his third year on the Elite Series, Garrett is a young fisherman with a promising future. Years ago, he fell in love with the sport of bass fishing, and he has worked hard to advance his skills. He shared his bass fishing tips for anglers within the PartsVu community.

As a professional tournament fisherman, you have to learn the best ways to fish new bodies of water very quickly. What advice would you give people as they branch out to new fisheries, especially if they only have a week or a weekend?

Garrett: Often when you go to a new body of water, fishing in the obvious places is best. Everyone wants to find a little secret spot for themselves, but the reality is you can spend days trying to do that and never come across anything. Whenever I go to a new lake, I look for obvious areas that should hold fish, such as bridges, boat docks, big points, and large bays. By going to the obvious structures of the lake, you have the best chance of catching fish right away. Once you have success in those areas, then you can start branching out and finding those secret spots.

Also, when I’m out on a new body of water, I like to fish faster with baits like crankbait, chatterbait, and jerkbait so I can move more quickly. I usually like to start by day in a new place with this approach because it helps you find the fish so much faster. I’ll start by fishing really fast, trying to cover water, then once I start getting some bites, I’ll slow down and really try to take it apart so I can catch as many as I can.

How can a recreational angler learn more about the preferences of the species they are fishing, such as water temperature preference and the likely depth of the fish depending on the season?

Garrett: The internet is obviously a great resource for bass fishing tips. There are tons of YouTube videos and online articles, so it’s easy to research whatever species you are targeting. You can easily find the typical temperature of a lake during a given season. You can then arrive at the lake with a good idea of the conditions you will likely face, the types of lures that might be most successful, and the depths you should be looking at.

Lure manufacturers are constantly working to advance the effectiveness of their lures, but it also seems to depend on what is in style at the moment and one’s personal preference. How do you decide which lures to use?

Garrett: There are proven bait designs, like crankbaits and jigs. Typically, new lures fall within established categories, but there is still a lot of trial and error involved.

It is important for the lure to catch your attention and for you to have confidence in it. There is nothing worse than trying to fish a lure you don’t have confidence in. It just won’t work. If a bait looks good, give it a try. The best lures in my tackle box are lures I just tried as an experiment.

Lures have to match the forage in the lake, meaning whatever the fish feed on. There are a lot of gimmicky lures out there, but in today’s market, there are also a lot of lures that work really well. So again, if a lure appeals to you, give it a try. You’ll probably have success with it.

Can you explain what you mean when you say that you need to have faith in the lure?

Garrett: This is one of the biggest fishing mysteries, at least to me. If you go out there believing that something will work, it usually does. Likewise, if you go out believing the conditions are bad and you won’t catch anything, things usually go that way.

Henry Ford said, “Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t—you’re right.” This is a hugely important concept in fishing. I don’t know why, because it doesn’t feel like you are doing anything differently, but when you don’t have confidence, you just don’t have the same success. You have to believe you are making the right decision. However, don’t force it. One of the best bass fishing tips I can offer—something isn’t working, change it up and try something else.

Is fishing for bass trickier than fishing for other species?

Garrett: I think bass fishing is a bit more complicated than fishing for a lot of other species. First, bass live in so many different environments, whereas a lot of other species live in more consistent environments, such as those that only live in the ocean or those that only live in rivers. Bass truly live everywhere. They live in natural lakes, lakes hundreds of feet deep, shallow rivers, and tributaries, just to name a few. Because they behave differently in each environment, you have to do your research.

Another challenge is fishing pressure. Many people fish for bass because they are accessible and fun to catch. You can fish for them from a boat, the shore, a kayak—you don’t have to have an expensive boat to get to them. Because of their popularity, you have to be precise with your presentation in order to trick them. They learn quickly, and unfortunately for anglers, they are learning faster and faster.

Are bass too pressured? Are they becoming increasingly scarce?

Garrett: In some areas, I would say yes. They tend not to thrive in extremely cold or hot environments. They like a good mixture of water temperatures and an abundance of bait. Some areas are losing their population of bait fish due to pesticide, weed killer, or fertilizer run-off. Some of these chemicals can significantly impact the bass population. And invasive species like Asian carp can really do a number on the bass population as well.

What time of day are bass typically most active?

Garrett: In the warmer months, early morning and evening when the sun is low is best. In the spring and the fall when the water is cooler, the best time is the middle of the day when the sun is high and warms the water.

What do you do on days where you are having success but then the fish just stop biting?

Garrett: If you have caught some fish but they stop biting, don’t just move on right away. Rather, try different lures and colors first. A lot of times there are more fish than you think, and it is a big mistake to move on too quickly.

How do you know when it’s time to move on and try a different spot?

Garrett: That’s a tough question, and the answer is pretty much a gut feeling. In tournament fishing, it can depend on the tournament. If it’s a really tough tournament or lake and I know I might only catch five fish but I’ve already caught three in the first hour, I’m probably going to stay in that spot for quite a while and try to grind it out to catch two more.

If I’m on a really good lake, however, I might move spots even if I’m catching fish on every cast. If I know I need to catch five-pounders on average and I’m only catching two-pounders, I have to move and find bigger fish.

If you’re just fishing for fun and they stop biting for 20 or 30 minutes, it’s probably time to move and try something else. There really are no concrete answers in fishing—so much is a matter of personal approach and opinion.

When does the bass season really get going in the Great Lakes region?

Garrett: The fish get active and start biting just a couple of weeks after the ice melts off the lake when the water is in the mid-40s or so. When the water gets near 60 degrees, usually early to mid-May, that’s some of the best fishing of the year.