The humble Australian Bass are an iconic freshwater fish on the East coast and are a staple amongst freshwater and tidal fisho’s for many reasons. They can be caught everywhere from the inland dams through to the eastern mountain streams, even down to the brackish and salty coastal water. Australian Bass is a readily available target species for beginner and advanced anglers alike, and no matter how many you catch that explosion on a lure never gets old!

While many of us started off chasing Bass on a size 2 hook accompanied with a freshly dug worm from the back yard, Bass have long been renowned for their aggressive takes on lures of all kinds. Bait fishing for Bass is still very effective and a great way to get kids into fishing, but lures allow anglers to cover a lot of ground, locate the fish and see the sights that come with a day on the water.

Bass fishing can be broken into 2 distinct styles, fishing in rivers and fishing in dams. While most lures can be used for each when working structure, unlocking success in dams can be more difficult as sometimes you aren’t casting at the visual snags and rocks, but rather suspended fish on banks, points and basins. Spoons, vibes and paddle tail plastics are great for determining the depth of these fish and getting onto good numbers.

When targeting Bass in river systems and structure holding fish, it’s important to carry a spread of lures designed to be fished at different depths. Determining where bass are feeding in the water column and what on will allow you to fish more effectively for longer. Using lures like beetle-spins and chatterbaits are great presentations for working out what depth the fish at and are a staple when the going gets tough.

When chasing that surface bite late afternoon and early morning are the best windows. Keeping an eye on the banks for what’s around for bass to feed on will quickly help you unlock that addictive surface bite. Walkers like the Halco Night Crawler or D-style are fantastic for fishing over lay down timber and rocky out crops for bites. If the cicadas are singing, it’s a great sign that lures like the Tiemco Soft Shell and Megabass Siglett twitched slowly out from under tree covered banks, won’t last on the surface for long!

Bass holding in structure that won’t come to the surface will often take a slow rolled spinner bait or a Keitech Swing Impact paddle tail. If the fishing is a little slower, a swap to a small chubby or twitched suspending minnow could make all the difference.

Lastly, when the sun is at its highest, quite often Bass will feed deeper in the water column. Jackall TN60’s, although the world’s best snag attractor, do a great job in deeper holes and rock walls. Deep timber and really snaggy bottom requires pitching jigs like the Bassman All Terrain by themselves or bulked out with a plastic like the Keitech Flex Chunk. These weed guarded jigs are more difficult to snag and great for getting slurped off the bottom.

So this summer get back to basics, grab a light fishing rod and target some of the most fun you can have on the East coast chasing the “humble” Australian Bass.