There's a few different ways I like to fish a drop shot rig. One way I really like to
fish it is vertically. There's a couple different ways you can do that. The first is if your
over deeper water fishing the end of a point that drops off into deep water or the top
of a hump. You can actually look at your graph and see the fish whether they're 20-30-40
feet down and you can drop the drop shot, follow it on your graph all the way down,
and then catch those fish. Another way to fish is vertically is around pieces of cover.
We have this cement intake right here which has four sides obviously and there's some
shade. So it's a perfect place for those fish to hang out, ambush prey, or just get out of
the direct sunlight. So what I like to do is just come up on these pieces of vertical
cover like this and I'll just pitch my drop shot right against the wall right there and
just let it fall on a slack line. Once you get to the bottom you generally want to keep
it in one place and just shake it. Give the opportunity for a fish to find it.
I prefer
to use smaller baits when drop shotting as opposed to fishing a Texas Rig. Right now
we're using a Yamamoto Shad Shaped Worm, which is an excellent bait that catches lots of
fish. It works on all three species: smallmouth, largemouth, and spotted bass. If I'm fishing
around vertical cover like this I like to nose hook my bait as well. You have the option
to Texas Rig it if you're fishing in cover, but if it's relatively snag free I feel like
I get a better hook up ratio and land more fish using a nose hook presentation.
On a piece of cover like this you want to be real thorough. You want to make sure you
hit each corner and each shade line.
Another important thing to do is vary your leader length. Generally I'll start off with
a leader anywhere from 6-12". There's a few things you want to consider when playing with
you leader length; one is the water visibility, and also where you think the fish are holding
on a piece of cover. So obviously when we have this cement intake structure it sits
about 8-10 foot deep and the fish could be anywhere on that. But I'll usually start at
the base and then work my way up from there.
Another general rule of thumb is I like to get away with the lightest weight possible
so I have the most natural presentation. If I'm fishing anywhere from 8-15 foot I'll use
a 1/4 ounce weight. Anything shallower than that I'll go with a 3/16 or an 1/8 weight
though. If I'm fishing deep water and I need my bait to of all really fast I'll use a 3/8
or even up to a 1/2-ounce sometimes.
When shaking your drop shot it's really important to try to keep your weight on the bottom and
just move your bait. A good way to do that is by shaking your bait on a slack line. That
way you ensure your weight is staying on bottom, you're not pulling it up off the bottom, and
you're just moving the bait.
I like to use both straight fluorocarbon as well as braided line with a fluorocarbon leader
on my drop shot rigs. It just kind of depends on the circumstance. Most of the time I'll
use 15 pound Seaguar Kanzen Braid as my main line and I'll tie on a 5 and half or 6 foot
leader of 8 pound Seaguar InvizX or Tatsu fluorocarbon. What that does in helps eliminate
some of the line stretch. With braided line there is almost zero stretch so it helps with
the hook sets and it helps you feel bites you normally wouldn't feel. I really like
fishing braided line when I'm fishing vertically for those reasons.
Another thing I like to do with a drop shot is fish it higher in the water column. If
I'm fishing around a piece of cover and didn't get bite at the base what I'll do is I'll
tie on a lighter drop shot weight like something as light as a 1/16 ounce or even a 1/32. I'll
cast it out and I'll let it pendulum back to me. So I'm kind of just bringing it threw
the top of the water column and it gives those fish something different to look at. It also
allows you to present your bait to the fish that might be higher in the water column that
you normally wouldn't be able to get to with a drop shot presentation. That will work on
anything say you're fishing over the of top brush, or anything even big boulders. The
key is just using a really lightweight. Just let it swing back toward you, reel in the
slack every once and awhile, and make sure it stays up off the bottom.
Now vertical fishing isn't the only way to fish a drop shot presentation. You can also
cast it and work it like you would fish a normal Texas rig or even a jig. Basically
just cast it out, drag it back to the boat, and reel in the slack. There are a few situations
where I really like to drag my drop shot. I use it when I'm targeting any specific piece
of cover. Whether it is a rock or it could be a tree. Fishing vertically allows you to
be able to present it from directly over the top. But a lot of times if the water is super
clear or you're fishing shallower water you need to get back off the top of that cover
and cast to it so the fish don't know you're there. A great way to do that instead of a
standard presentation is with a drop shot. Right out in front of us we have these buoys
that are anchored with cement blocks at the bottom and it's a little to shallow because
it's only about 7 feet so it's a little to shallow to get vertical and drop on top of
them. So I'll stay back off them within a cast distance and pitch it up there. Basically
what I'm doing is I'm just dragging my drop shot until I feel those cement blocks down
there that are anchoring that buoy. Once I find that, there it is right there, I'm just
going to keep that drop shot in one place and just shake it. Like we talked about earlier
I want to shake it on a slack line so I'm not moving my weight and I'm making sure I'm
just moving my bait.
The advantage of using a drop shot in this situation over a jig or a Texas Rig is even
if your shaking that Texas rig or jig lightly you're still moving that bait towards you.
With a drop shot you're able to keep it in one place for a long period of time. Sometimes
on heavily pressured bodies of water or if it's a spot other anglers have hit before
you've gotten to it's important to keep that bait in the strike zone longer to give those
fish the opportunity to eat it.
What other people don't realize as well is if you're fishing a Texas rig or jig on bottom
the fish actually have to turn on they're side to inspect that bait a lot of times before
they suck it. With a drop shot if you have it up 8-10-12 inches off the bottom it's right
a lot of times at the fishes eye level. So they don't have to make nearly the effort
to inspect your lure and a lot of times they'll just open up their mouths and just suck it
in.