I've been struggling at my local small lake lately, 93° water temps! I've come across apparent schooling bait and feeding bass but I have no confidence seeing something on the graph, trying to turn around and casting aimlessly into open water hoping to get close. I can do it for a minute but I get eager to move on like they aren't there anymore.

Any pointers for "hitting the mark"? Is it worth dropping a marker buoy? I figure small swimbaits, underspins, hair jigs, a-rigs,etc may be good for targeting these fish. Would a ~10ft diving crankbait be a decent idea?

I can't get anything going off of the shoreline.

Suspended isolated bass way off the bottom and not relating to cover = hard to get to bite. If they are suspended at a particular depth, find somewhere there's timber, a creek channel, hump, something different that connects with that depth. Hopefully there you'll find them grouped up and easier to take a lure.

Find a steep drop and slowly drag a 1 oz crig around

See no bass in your pic. Look for something like this.

Forward facing sonar is the only way you can follow them. But honestly, that pic is probably a catfish, can’t imagine that’s a school of anything, not even baitfish.


Edit: referring to the OP’s pic.

You talking the OPs pic or mine? I can assure you I know exactly what they were and they were not catfish. Also, I didn’t have to chase them with livescope if you are talking about my pic. Lol. Here’s another pic of catfish um I mean 5-7lb bass……but believe what you want. Just trying to help the guy out if he is chasing what’s in his pic…..he is struggling cause it’s just bait fish and maybe some small bass or other species.

The OP’s, yours is good for him to see, show him what a school really looks like.


If you look at the OP’s pic, that bigger fish in the middle is how blue cats tend to feed. I guess it could be some kind of baitfish, but what runs in a school that skinny & vertical?