Matt Freeman

As we all know from living here in the Kern River Valley, it can get HOT around here.

That affects our lifestyle in many ways, as we seek shade and cooler air. The same goes for fish, they seek shade and cooler water depending on species.

Trout for example are a cooler water fish, especially Rainbow Trout which is in abundance here. In winter they are spread out and in the shallows.

In the summer they bunch up and stay deep looking for food sources, current and cooler temps. Our warm water species in the lake do the same.

After the Bass spawn in the spring, they head back to their pre-spawn habitat. The females leave the beds first, the males guard the fry until a few weeks after they have hatched. Then they pretty much go back to their pre-spawn habitat, staying in deeper water, coming shallow in the mornings and evenings to feed. They also key in on schools of shad in the summertime.

Crappie and pan fish also have basically the same pattern from spring to summer.

Catfish are a bit different. They like very warm water. Warmer even than bass so they are more comfortable in 80 plus degree water, as long as it has plenty of oxygen.So the key is current with them in the summertime. There are several ways to take advantage of the summer patterns game fish have, if you know what to look for. Here are a few tips.

1. Get up early! Fish the crack of dawn, all species will be feeding and moving around, not to mention the fact that it is a lot more comfortable than mid day fishing. Concentrate on structure, current, and food sources. Find places where all three occur and you can park your boat there all summer.

2. Use smaller presentations. Oftentimes game fish, Bass in particular, eat less if the water is real warm. Size down your offerings, go with a faster presentation until you find the fish, then slow down, switch to live bait or smaller lures than you would normally use.

3. Be selective. Fish areas known for holding fish in summer months. Riverbeds, creek channels, mouths of river inlets, stuff like that.

4. Have some live bait. Especially in our lake, if you can catch some Thread fin Shad and put them in the live well, you WILL catch fish with them, everything in the lake keys in on that primary food source.

5. Use your sonar. Having a good sonar is a huge advantage in summertime because the fish are grouped up. Find them, drop some live shad on their head, and you will have a blast.

Til next time, tight lines and loose drags!