A good Whiterock Bass technique is to use lures coupled with spoons and spinners along with a good plastic worm.

North & South

Summer fishing is very different in the north than in the south. As other distribution ranges several thousand miles from north to south, climate and temperature differences are vast. As an example, spawning does not start until as late as June in the north and it does not get nearly warm enough for them to head deep in the high summer. It does get hot, but the sun is not as direct as it is in the south. Places like Alabama warm up very quickly, reaching 80°F plus temperatures as early as March so by the time summer comes along, many freshwater fish are heading deep to stay cool.

So, summer in south south is much like late spring, the Whiterock Bass head towards deeper water, but will charge to the surface to feed on bait fish. They can be found schooling along with other whitefish and also on their own.

In the north, they do not head very deep as the water temperature rarely gets much above 70°F degrees.

East & West

The distribution of the Whiterock bass also ranges from coast to coast, the the differences between the fish found on the two coasts is negligible. However, whiterock bass are more popular where there are large populations of Striped Bass or in places that they have been stocked.

Habitat

They can be located by gravel, sandy bars, points, tailrace runs below dams, spillways, the mouth of rivers and creeks, between submerged or visible islands, along dropoffs and humps of levees. As you can imagine, this leaves a lot of searching but is well worth it.

Techniques

A good Whiterock Bass technique is to use lures coupled with spoons and spinners along with a good plastic worm. Use bright colours in clear water and muddy or murky colours in turbid or muddy waters. Other popular baits include worms, leeches, gizzard shad, golden shiners and fatheads.

Fly Fishing

Whiterock Bass can be caught using flies. While the whiterock bass prefer deeper water, they will often charge at surface insects and baitfish. For this reason, we recommend sticking with dry flies.

A 3-weight rod is recommended. For a reel, the only really important feature is reel with a good drag. If you are fishing in a location with many other large freshwater fish, use a heavier set of tackle. St Croix makes a good range of fly robs such as the elite brand, which is better suited for larger fish.

Typical flies that work on Whiterock Bass are leech flies, dragonfly flies and damselfly flies.