STOP Throwing the Wrong Baits in September! | Fall Bass Fishing Guide

What are the BEST bass fishing lures to throw in September? In this episode of Fishing the DMV, we break down the top September bass fishing baits, techniques, and patterns for catching largemouth and smallmouth bass during one of the toughest transition periods of the year.

We’re LIVE from Jake’s Bait & Tackle talking about how to catch bass as summer begins turning into fall across Virginia, Maryland, Washington D.C., and the Mid-Atlantic.

September bass fishing can be frustrating. Water temperatures begin dropping, baitfish start moving, bass can become extremely focused on shad, minnows and blueback herring, and patterns that worked all summer can suddenly stop producing.

That’s why this episode is all about MATCHING THE HATCH and adjusting to the fall transition.

We cover some of our favorite September bass fishing lures and techniques, including:

• Keitech swimbaits and underspins for schooling bass
 • 5-inch and 7-inch flukes for blueback herring and shad eaters
 • Spy baits for long-distance schooling fish
 • Buzzbaits for shallow fall bass around docks, grass and cover
 • Frog trailers and downsized buzzbait presentations
 • Double drop shot rigs for tough September bass
 • Micro poppers and Torpedo-style topwaters for river smallmouth
 • Hellgrammite and creature baits for clear-water smallmouth
 • Weightless swimbaits and flukes over grass and vegetation
 • BFS finesse presentations for pressured bass
 • Megabass Karashi-style finesse topwater/jerkbait presentations
 • Shallow-running crankbaits in the 1–3 foot zone
 • Megabass Blow-Lee, 6th Sense Curve and other shallow cranks
 • Compact 1/2-ounce jigs with heavy-duty hooks
 • ChatterBaits, JackHammers, EVO, EVO HD, Stealth and WillowVibe
 • ChatterBait trailers including X Zone Swimmer-style and stinger baits
 • Big swimbaits and glide baits for late September into October

We also talk specifically about the September fishing transition on Lake Anna, where bass can become extremely dialed in on schools of shad, minnows and blueback herring. When those fish are chasing bait, traditional presentations may get ignored while fast-moving minnow imitators produce.

For Lake Anna bass fishing, speed can be critical. Burning a fluke, swimbait, spy bait or other baitfish imitation through schooling fish can trigger reaction strikes that slower presentations won't.

River anglers aren't forgotten either.

For the Shenandoah River, Upper Potomac River and other Mid-Atlantic smallmouth fisheries, we break down why tiny topwaters, micro poppers, hellgrammite-style baits and finesse presentations can be deadly when the water gets low, clear and heavily pressured.

We also discuss fishing grass and vegetation on fisheries like the Potomac River and Upper Chesapeake Bay, including one of our favorite alternatives to throwing another frog: fishing a weightless swimbait or fluke across the vegetation and allowing it to fall into openings in the mat.

And as September progresses toward October, BIG BAITS start entering the conversation.

Glide baits, segmented hard swimbaits and larger soft swimbaits may produce fewer bites—but they can produce some of the biggest bass of the fall.

If you're trying to figure out what bass are doing in September, this episode is packed with practical information you can use on the water immediately.

Whether you're fishing Lake Anna, the Shenandoah River, Upper Potomac, Potomac River, Rappahannock River, Chesapeake Bay, Susquehanna or another Mid-Atlantic fishery, these September bass fishing techniques can help you adjust as the fish transition from summer into fall.

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