Schoolin' Bass Most every bass fisherman has encountered schooling bass on the surface of their favorite lake. More often than not, these encounters were memorable ones, with bass coming cast after cast. For most weekend anglers, these run-ins with schooling bass are welcomed, but unplanned, highlights of a day at the lake. However, during late summer and early fall, schools of bass are frequently active on the surface. So, why don't more anglers come across these feeding melees more often? Simply put, they just aren't in the right place at the right time on a regular basis. Although you can never guarantee a school will pop up right in front of the boat, there are a few keys to improving your odds to being in position to take advantage of the furious action once a school decides to feed. When your success - and your way of life - hinges on being in the right place at the right time, you tend to learn those keys quickly. Choke Canyon guide Jerry Dunn is one such fisherman. During a career that has spanned a part of five different decades and four different lakes, Dunn has learned a few things about putting yourself in a position to succeed when school's in session. “Anytime you find schooling bass, you're gonna catch some fish,” said Dunn. “Of course, as everyone will tell you, schooling bass can be unpredictable. But, every lake I've ever fished has had certain areas where the bass were known to come up (on the surface). The first thing to do is establish where these areas are, which usually comes from spending time on the water or getting good information from somebody who's on the water a lot. “Most often, schooling bass - at least on Texas lakes - come up in deep, open water. I have seen fish schooling in timber, so far up in the sticks it looked like they were eating the bark off the trees, but usually they're in open water. Even though this open water looks pretty much the same, there will be spots where the fish come up consistently. That's where you want to spend you're time if you're hoping to get into schooling action.” Once he's on a likely parcel of water, Dunn says his first option is to get help from his feathered friends. “Pretty much any large body of water will have seagulls,” Dunn continued. “These gulls will help you locate schooling fish. If you see seagulls wheeling and diving, there will be an active school below them. That's a dead giveaway. “Now, these fish usually don't stay on the surface too long. A lot of times when they go down, the birds will sit on the water or just kind of hover above the school until they come up again. So, anytime you see birds, it's worth checking out. “Of course, the birds aren't working every school. At times, when the lake is calm, you can spot the schools on the surface from a good distance away. In either case, it's good to have binoculars to help you scan the area for birds or for surface commotion.” However, just because fish are spotted doesn't mean anglers will automatically get into the action, according to Dunn. Most often, though, unsuccessful anglers have no one to blame but themselves when they blow an opportunity to capitalize on schooling activity. “The most common mistake I see is when fishermen pull right into a school,” said Dunn. “The absolute worst thing you can do is run in with your big motor and expect to catch fish. People think because these fish are acting so aggressive that they won't notice a boat - they're wrong. Schooling bass will spook just like any other fish. “The best thing to do is shut down just out of casting range, drop the trolling motor and move in. You really want to be able to make long casts in order to work the school longer. So, if you're planning on fishing schools, make sure you have a longer rod rigged with something you can cast a long ways. That way, when a school pops up, you're ready.” Castability, Dunn says, should be the primary consideration for anglers choosing lures to launch at schools of active bass. “When they are actively working on the surface, they will hit pretty much anything,” said Dunn. “In fact, through the years I've tried real hard to find something they won't hit and haven't done it yet. What you want to do, though, is uses something that casts well, like a heavy topwater or spoon. “At times, it does help to use single hook baits, like spoons or swimbaits. Spinnerbaits are good, too, but don't cast quite as well. The reason for this is it's a little safer to handle fish with one hook instead of multiple hooks. When the action's really hot, you're excited, there's a lot going on and you're anxious to make another cast. Sometimes you're not quite as careful as you should be when unhooking fish in those conditions. So, it's a little safer to use the single hook baits.” Although the surface activity may only last for short bursts, Dunn says the action doesn't necessarily stop when the fish submerge. “Again, these fish don't stay up long. But, when they go down, you don't want to just crank up and run, because they will most likely pop up again somewhere in the same general area. They haven't completely annihilated that school of baitfish and they will attack them again. So, the best thing to do is just stay put and keep your eyes and ears open - you can hear them coming up just as well as you can see them. “While you're waiting on them to come up, keep casting to the last area you saw them. There's still a lot of dead or dying baitfish in that area and there'll still be some bass around feeding on them. At that point, though, you'll want to throw something like a spinnerbait, crankbait or spoon - something you can work a little deeper, because these fish will be hanging a little lower, waiting for dead fish to drift down.” Dunn advises anglers working schools to keep in mind they're not likely to pull trophy fish from the pack. However, he says that there are ways to catch `better' fish from active schools. “Keep in mind, most schools will be made up of smaller, more aggressive bass,” said Dunn. “Often times these fish will school by size. Some schools will be 14- to 15-inch fish, while others may be 2 1/2- to 3-pound fish. It just depends on the school you are on. “One thing to keep in mind, though, is any big fish in the area will probably be near the school, they just won't join them on the surface. Remember, big bass are fairly lazy. They aren't going to run all over the lake chasing bait. But, they'll let the `teenagers' tear up those schools of baitfish while they hang down deep and eat any dead or dying fish that sink down to them. “The thing to do if you want to catch a little better fish from the school is throw something that gets down below the surface activity. If they're around, that's where the better fish will be - below and outside the schooling activity. But, even if you're not catching big bass, anytime you can fish an active school it's fun.” texas bass fishing, texas fishing, texas fishing reports, texas catfish, texas lakes, texas rivers, fishing in texas lakes, fishing in texas rivers