How I Fish Senkos at Del Valle

Contributed by: dinkcatcher

I fish the south end for a lot of 2 pound average bass by throwing Senkos(no weight) around the edges of the weedbanks in the morning and then out to little rock pile and patches of gravel, where they spend the mid-day hours. Towards evening I hit up a couple of travel lanes and have a chance for a couple of good ones. If the action is slow in the morning I head to midlake and fish closer to deep water. Usually scouting a little , then anchoring for a while to patiently work the bank. This is when I’ll add a splitshot above the Senko to work it down to 30 feet if I have to. If I had a trolling motor it is easier to fish without anchoring (until the wind really starts to blow).

Lots of lures work at Del Vale, each has its own time but I use Senkos because they are very versatile and work well for so many different conditions. I like to teach the different ways I fish them because it has to be seen and tried for people to get it. In the heat of the summer I’ll go to deep rock piles and boulder strewn drop offs where the fish suspend during the day. This is when I’ll use a jig head to get more straight down and deeper (to 50 feet).

It all depends on where the fish are, and knowing the lake good, trying different structure and depths to figure them out that day. Once you get a pattern that’s working, you can go to similar places around the lake and catch more fish. Most people fish them too fast. Go SLOW. sometimes a trolling motor is a disadvantage because you are tempted to keep moving and don’t take the time to really work an area to see if the fish are there. I see a lot of Bill Dance kind of guys who blow right by productive banks and never realize there are 20, 30 , 50 fish right under them and haven’t even got their lure into the zone before they are past the bank.

So start in the morning shallow near weed banks, work it until things slow down. Then go out deeper and check out different kinds of structure, at different depths, until you find more fish. Work similar areas until the sun starts going down. Then try shallower again.

* Less than 15 feet, no weight and work it SLOW. You should feel the bottom all the time.
* 15 to 30 feet, put on a splitshot and work slow enough to feel bottom.
* 30 feet and deeper, put on a jighead and, again work slow, bouncing the bottom, and feel for rocky bottom.

I hope this helps all fisherfolk add another tool to the tackle box and catch more fish!

Senko secret is work slow, random, let it rest often and always be in touch with the lure so you can feel the tap of a pickup.

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