The Inside Scoop on Super-Shallow Crankbaits

Tips For Shallow Crankin’ • Even in deep reservoirs, some bass always hold shallow, and when they’re shallow, they’re usually hunting. No wonder pros rely on super-shallow crankbaits for quick limits. • Bass often herd baitfish onto shallow reservoir flats and river bars. While your first inclination might be to try a topwater lure, a shallow crank often produces bigger bass. • Wear polarized sunglasses when cranking shallow water, watching for submerged stumps, rocks, logs, and other objects. Close isn’t good enough—the lure should bump into and deflect off cover. Most strikes occur the instant your crankbait glances off. • Cover isn’t a necessity for shallow bass, so long as baitfish are present. Any spot where you see mud trails from crayfish moving across the bottom or where baitfish are flipping on the surface has potential. Comb the area with a shallow crank in a color pattern that matches the forage. • Vary your retrieve until you find what triggers strikes. Most bass pros find that a stop-and-go retrieve produces better than a straight wind. • Experiment with noisy and quiet crankbaits. Noisy lures often work best in stained to muddy water above 65°F. But loud rattlers may turn off bass in clear, cold water or where fishing pressure is high.

When & Where

Super-shallow crankbaits are effective in many common bass fishing scenarios.

Warm runoff—In early spring, when warm, murky water enters a reservoir system via runoff from creeks and ditches, a super-shallow crank is your ticket to Lunkertown. Head up the tributary arm to the source of incoming water. A quick check of your surface temperature gauge often reveals the muddy runoff to be 5°F to 10°F warmer than the rest of the creek arm.

Cast plugs around stumps, logs, and rocks. With vision limited in stained water, bass hold tight to these objects; most strikes occur the instant the bait bumps cover.

Inside tip: Runoff from warm spring rains can trigger an influx of crayfish. Root a craw-patterned shallow diver slowly around bass-holding cover.

Brushpiles—You’re probably thinking: “Run a $6 crankbait through a brushpile? No way!” But a properly presented super-shallow diver is a deadly alternative to a jig or spinnerbait in snaggy cover. Working close to your target, use a short underhand pitch or a loop cast to deliver the lure just past the brushpile. Then reel s-l-o-w-l-y until you feel the bait contact the cover. The instant it hits wood, pause the retrieve, allowing the lure to float up just enough to clear the obstruction, then resume the retrieve.

Inside tip: Clipping the leading hook from each set of trebles reduces hang-ups when you’re cranking brushpiles.

Submerged vegetation—Milfoil, hydrilla, and coontail beds attract droves of bass in warm weather, and a super-shallow crank is a great option. Gun first for the most active bass by “waking” the lure over the top and along the outer edges of the bed. If this fails to produce, swim it just under the surface with a stop-and-go retrieve. Inside tip: Bass commonly feed on small bluegills in thick weedbeds. Try an orange-blue or firetiger lure to mimic this forage.

River bars—Gravel and mud bars swept by moving water are perfect places for bass to intercept baitfish schools. Cast a stubby-billed crank in a shad pattern upstream and retrieve it quickly along the bar.

Inside tip: Small bass often chase a school of baitfish on top of a river bar. For the big bite, bump the lure against current-breaking stumps or rocks on the downstream portion of the bar, where the structure begins to taper into deep water.

Flats—Good places for a quick limit in summer and fall. Grind your baits around scattered stumps in 1 to 3 feet of water.

Inside tip: Flats are often crisscrossed by a network of shallow ditches lined with stumps and brush. Search for these bottom features and root lures through this cover.

Mudlines—In clear lakes and reservoirs, a band of turbid water often forms against banks buffeted by waves. This creates an ideal shallow concealment opportunity for bass, and fish move to the edge of the murky zone to feed on baitfish. Cast a short-lipped crank into the darker water and retrieve it slowly into clear water—if it makes it that far.

Inside tip: This pattern is most reliable when the wind is out of the south or west.

Riprap—Large chunk rocks deposited along levees and erosion-prone banks provide a haven for crayfish and baitfish. Deep-diving crankbaits, Texas-rigged worms, and jigs often wedge between the rocks, while shallow cranks ticked over the rocks can produce monumental strikes.

Inside tip: Target riprap around dams during the initial minutes of current generation. Shad hold tight to the riprap when current sweeps past it.

*Don Wirth, Nashville, Tennessee, has been an In-Fisherman contributor for almost two decades on topics from bass to bluegills, catfish, trout, and stripers.