Cover

Cover is any physical object in the water that bass can hide in or around. Fallen trees, weed beds, docks, rock piles, and standing timber all count as cover. Bass use it for shade, to ambush prey, and to feel safe from predators overhead.

Finding cover is often more important than finding open water structure like a drop-off, because bass relate directly to it. A dock post, a patch of grass, or a laydown log can hold fish even in an otherwise featureless stretch of shoreline. Anglers pick baits based on the type of cover they are fishing. Thick grass and wood call for soft plastics and jigs that can slide through without snagging, while open cover near docks or rock might suit a squarebill crankbait.

A practical tip is to fish the edges of cover first before pitching into the middle of it. Bass often sit just outside heavy cover to ambush baitfish, so working the perimeter can produce bites without the risk of getting hung up.

• Wood: laydowns, stumps, brush piles
• Grass: hydrilla, milfoil, lily pads
• Man-made: docks, bridge pilings, riprap